npm-version

Check current version

$ npm version

$ npm version minor

$ npm version [version]

$ npm version patch --no-git-tag-version

$ npm version major [[-m|--message]] "[Upgrade to %s for reasons]"

npm version <newversion> | major | minor | patch | premajor | preminor | prepatch | prerelease [--message "message"]

<newversion>
    A specific version number to set. Must be a valid semantic version string (e.g., 1.2.3).

major
    Increments the major version number (e.g., 1.0.0 -> 2.0.0).

minor
    Increments the minor version number (e.g., 1.2.0 -> 1.3.0).

patch
    Increments the patch version number (e.g., 1.2.3 -> 1.2.4).

premajor
    Increments the major version number and adds a prerelease identifier (e.g., 1.0.0 -> 2.0.0-0).

preminor
    Increments the minor version number and adds a prerelease identifier (e.g., 1.2.0 -> 1.3.0-0).

prepatch
    Increments the patch version number and adds a prerelease identifier (e.g., 1.2.3 -> 1.2.4-0).

prerelease
    Increments the prerelease version number if it exists, otherwise initializes it (e.g., 1.2.3-0 -> 1.2.3-1, or 1.2.3 -> 1.2.4-0).

--message "message"
    Specifies a custom commit message. The string "%s" will be replaced with the new version number.

--no-git-tag-version
    Do not commit or tag the new version.

The `npm version` command is used to increment the version number in a `package.json` file and create a new Git tag. It automates the process of updating your project's version, committing the changes, and tagging the commit with the new version. This command is critical for managing software releases and ensuring proper versioning for package management. It integrates seamlessly with Git to maintain a consistent version history. The version can be incremented by a semantic version part (`major`, `minor`, `patch`), a prerelease identifier (`premajor`, `preminor`, `prepatch`, `prerelease`), or a specific version number. It also runs lifecycle scripts like `preversion`, `version`, and `postversion` if they are defined in the `package.json` file. This makes it a central tool in the release workflow for npm packages, allowing for automated version bumps and tagging, facilitating continuous deployment.

Requires a Git repository to function correctly. It also requires a `package.json` file in the current directory. Fails if the version bump results in a non-semantic version.

The `npm version` command runs lifecycle scripts during the versioning process. The order is: `preversion`, then `version`, and lastly `postversion`.
If any of these scripts exit with a non-zero code, the `npm version` command will abort. The VERSION environment variable is set during these scripts.

The command uses Semantic Versioning (SemVer) to determine how the version number is incremented. SemVer is a widely adopted standard for versioning software packages and is crucial for dependency management.

The `npm version` command has been a core feature of npm since its inception, providing a standardized way to manage package versions. It evolved alongside npm's growth and the increasing importance of semantic versioning. It has been crucial to automate package publishing and dependency resolution.

npm(1), git(1)