Installing Node.js and npm for local WordPress development

Node.js is a cross-platform, open-source server environment that can run on most popular operating systems. Node.js lets developers use JavaScript to write command line tools and for server-side scripting. When you install Node.js on your operating system, it comes preinstalled with npm, a command line tool that allows developers to share and use software packages as dependencies in their own projects.

While not specifically a requirement for WordPress development, if you want to develop blocks, contribute to Gutenberg, or use modern tools like wp-env or wp-now, you will need to have Node.js and npm installed on your computer.

In this tutorial, you will learn how to install Node.js and npm on macOS, Ubuntu, and Windows.