pnpm vs npm
npm: Standard JavaScript package manager
pnpm
Fast, disk space efficient package manager
As of 29 August 2026, pnpm is free to use. pnpm is a fast, disk space efficient package manager. Softwr lists it under Developer Tools. pnpm is made by pnpm Contributors, launched in 2017, available on Linux, Windows, macOS.
Overview
What pnpm does
pnpm is a fast, disk space efficient package manager. It uses a content-addressable filesystem to store all files from all project dependencies, allowing you to save a lot of disk space on projects and in monorepos in general.
What people use it for
- Installing dependencies faster than npm in monorepo workspaces
- Sharing common dependencies across multiple projects to save disk space
- Preventing dependency version conflicts in workspace environments
- Managing workspaces with many interdependent packages
The honest half
Where it falls short
Concrete and checkable, so you can decide whether any of them matter to you. This is the half of a review a vendor will not write about pnpm.
- Requires command-line proficiency to use
- Community-driven support only
Cross-shopped
What people choose instead of pnpm
Each pairing was judged by two reviewers asking whether a buyer would genuinely weigh the two against each other. The ones that failed were deleted rather than published.
pnpm vs Yarn
Yarn: Alternative JavaScript package manager with different approach to dependencies
Answered, with sources
Questions people ask
Each answer names the page it came from, so you can check it rather than take our word for it.
Is pnpm free and open source?
Yes. pnpm is free and open source software developed for Node.js. Version 10 and 11 are currently available.
SourceHow does pnpm save disk space?
pnpm uses a content-addressable store with hard linking and symlinks to avoid duplication. All files are saved in a single place on disk and hard-linked to individual projects, dramatically reducing storage requirements compared to npm.
SourceIs pnpm faster than npm?
Yes. pnpm performs installation in three stages: dependency resolution, directory structure calculation, and linking. Packages are fetched and linked as soon as possible, making it significantly faster than npm's sequential approach.
SourceDoes pnpm support monorepos?
Yes. pnpm has built-in support for monorepositories. You can create a workspace using pnpm-workspace.yaml to unite multiple projects in a single repository.
SourceHow does pnpm handle node_modules differently than npm?
pnpm uses symlinks to add only direct dependencies to node_modules root, preventing accidental access to undeclared dependencies. This encourages more explicit dependency management compared to npm's flattened node_modules structure.
SourceBehind it
Who makes pnpm
- Company
- pnpm Contributors
- Based in
- Open Source
- Founders
- Rico Sta. Cruz
Timeline
pnpm over time
Keep looking
Where to go from pnpm
- pnpm alternativesEvery product people weigh against it
- pnpm pricingPlans, floors and what the tiers exclude
- pnpm badgesWhich rules it meets, and the figure behind each
- All Developer Tools softwareThe full category
- Best Developer Tools softwareThe shortlist, and how it was cut
Best Developer Tools software for
Compare pnpm with
- Yarn
- Webpack
- Sublime Text
- Bazel
- Helm
- Nix
- LaunchDarkly
- Vite
- Moonrepo
- Pants Build
- Ansible
- Buildkite
- Blacksmith
- CLion
- Coder
- Eclipse
- Garden
- GitLab CI/CD
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Softwr does not host reviews and shows no star rating for pnpm, because a rating we did not collect is not ours to publish. What is here is the pricing and platform detail from the vendor’s own pages, limitations we could state concretely, and alternatives a reviewer confirmed people weigh against it. Tell us if any of it is wrong.
More on pnpm
pnpm alternatives
What people switch to, and what they give up
pnpm pricing
Every tier, and where the cost actually lands
Compare pnpm
Put it head to head with anything we hold
pnpm badge
Its rating, and an embed for your own site
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