NPM vs Yarn-Which is better to choose?

Want to know what is the difference between NPM and Yarn? Then you are at the right place because In this post, we will discuss their differences and which is better and How.

NPM and yarn both are package managers for our projects. They both are open source. NPM is the largest software registry, while Facebook built the yarn to overcome NPM’s drawbacks. NPM and yarn both manage our project’s dependencies or manage packages that are needed to run our project in a good way.

When you Install Node.js, NPM will be installed with it. There was a time when NPM was the only package manager to manage javascript dependencies. NPM had some drawbacks and then Yarn came into the picture. Yarn was fast, secure, and came with more functionalities so people started using it.

NPM also upgraded a lot and now both are good options, both are fast and secure, and but but wait…which is better NPM or Yarn to use for your projects? In this post, we will discuss what is the difference between npm and yarn along with their features along with their advantages and disadvantages which will make you clear which one is better for you-NPM or Yarn.

Before diving deep, let’s see the overview of them-

What is NPM?

NPM is a package manager which manages dependencies of our projects that are needed to build our projects. You can’t just manually do that, NPM is a savior.

NPM is the world’s largest software registry. You can install any package using NPM with commands like NPM install package-name.

How to install NPM? When you install Node.js which is also a javascript runtime environment, NPM will be installed with it.

To check whether the NPM is installed or not just use the following command in the terminal:

npm -v

What is Yarn?

Just another Package manager built by tech giant Facebook. At first, NPM was the only package manager we has. People had to compromise with its drawbacks then Yarn came into the picture.

The yarn was really fast at that time, and it was more secure than NPM, and even it had some great functionality that ended NPM’s monopoly.

NPM improved a lot since Yarn came into the picture, now both are the most useful good package managers with advanced functionality.

Now, let’s see How to install the yarn package manager?
To install yarn you have to use NPM in your system. To install Yarn just run the following command in your terminal-

npm install yarn -g

Now let’s see the command difference between Yarn and NPM.

NPM vs Yarn: Commands

These package managers have some commands to operate. You have to give them instructions via commands to install, delete, and update the package.

So, these were some commands that are used in NPM and yarn and there is a slight difference in yarn and npm if we talk about commands. 

Which is fast-NPM or Yarn?

In terms of speed to install packages-Yarn is on an upper bench. Because of its way of installing packages.

Time is important in development as efficiency also. We can use both npm and yarn to install and use packages to speed up our development process but the main question is which is fast between npm and yarn.

So, NPM installs packages in a serial way. It installs packages one by one or one after the another in the queue.

On the other hand, Yarn is made to overcome this issue. Yarn follows a parallel installation process means the yarn is capable to install multiple packages at once.

You should know that this parallel installation is not good if you are dealing with large packages.

NPM vs Yarn-Which is more secure?

Security is a prime concern when we are playing with packages and other tools.

When npm was alone as a package manager, it had some security concerns. But now NPM improved a lot after yarn came into the market. NPM uses hash files in package-lock.json and tests the security of packages.

Yarn has a security concept as its core feature. It uses a checksum to verify packages. It runs in the background for security checks when you install any package with yarn. To avoid downloading dangerous scripts it uses package license information and all.

So, now both are secure currently in terms of security.

Related: What is the difference between NPM and NPX?

NPM vs yarn-which one is better?

NPM and yarn both are good different package managers but there are some features that makes one of them useful for you.

To know which one is better we should dive into their advantages and disadvantages.

Advantages and disadvantages of NPM-

Advantages of NPM include:

• It comes in default with node.js
• It is the world’s largest software registry.
• Easy to use for developers, you don’t need to install it so it fits perfectly with the smooth workflow.

Disadvantages of NPM:

• It is less fast than yarn
• Some security issues still exist somehow.
• Some features are missing like “why”
• Install packages in sequence format which takes time

Advantages and disadvantages of Yarn:

Advantages of Yarn:

• It is fast
• Log files generated with yarn are in form of a tree which are easy to read
• It comes with awesome features like the command “why” and license checking
• It installs packages in parallel so the development process becomes fast.
• It is secure.

Disadvantages of Yarn:

Yarn installs dependency in parallel so it sometimes becomes hard to install large packages together.
Not compatible with an older version of node.js

So these were some advantages and disadvantages of NPM and yarn. Now let’s see how yarn is better than npm here.

How Yarn is better than NPM?-Terms

Yarn was introduced to fill the gaps that NPM had with developers, Yarn succeed in that task. Yarn was launched to overcome the drawbacks of NPM.NPM is also a good package manager, but there are some things in which yarn is doing well currently and hope it will improve itself.How yarn made it to compete with npm and in which factors, yarn is better than NPM are discussed below one by one-

1. Yarn is faster than NPM. It installs packages in parallel which increases the speed and development.
2. The yarn is secure.
3. It works locally.
   Yarn is clean and easy to use and npm also worked on user experience a lot and it is becoming better day by day.
4. Yarn has some awesome features like-
   • Why command: Why command l is useful which let you know why the particular dependency is installed.
   • Plum ’n’ play- Yarn don’t use that big node modules folder. It makes .pnp.cjs file that maps dependencies.
   • zero-Install-: It uses .pnp.cjs filr to map package in offline cache.
   • License checker: Yarn has a license checker which is used to get instant info about dependency or package.

So these were all about NPM vs yarn from my side, now the question is which one to use between npm and yarn?

So, NPM comes inbuilt with node.js and it is the largest software registry. Yarn is new and for developers who are used to the older workflow, or new developers which want to go with npm as it is inbuilt then it is ok. NPM also becoming good day by day and it has improved a lot.

If you want to use a package manager with some more features and commands then you can go with the yarn.

It is you who needs to decide which one will be better for you. Read the whole post and decide which is better for you.

Conclusion:

NPM was the only package manager which exist in past and it had a lot of errors. Then Yarn came to the picture with advanced features and now npm also improved a lot.
That’s why we need competitors to compete to make ourselves better.

FAQs related to the Topic:

NPM vs Yarn-which is easy to use?

Both are easy to use. They just have different features and once you will know the commands, it will become easier for you.

Which is better NPM or Yarn?

When we talk about speed, performance, and security yarn is better. Yarn also has some good features like zero-install and license checker which npm doesn’t have. But NPM is also improving itself day by day.

Can I Install Yarn without NPM?

There are some other things you can try like you can install yarn with scoop and Chocolatey. But is recommended to install yarn with npm.