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Lerna
What Lerna is
Lerna is an open-source build system for managing and publishing JavaScript and TypeScript packages from a shared repository. It runs commands across projects in an efficient order, with parallel execution, caching and the option to distribute work across machines. When a task has already produced a cached result, Lerna can restore its files and terminal output instead of running it again. For releases, it handles package versioning and publishing to npm, with fixed or independent versioning workflows. An interactive workspace graph helps teams see project structure and dependencies, and Lerna uses Nx to identify workspace packages and run scripts. Package managers supported are npm, yarn, pnpm and bun; those tools’ workspace features should install and link dependencies. Lerna is free and open source. Nx Cloud offers a related Hobby plan at no cost, billed Free forever, with 50,000 credits monthly, five contributors, 10 concurrent CI connections and community support. Its Team plan costs $29 a month. For closed-source projects, Nx Cloud includes the first 500 computation hours monthly, then charges $1 per computation hour. Lerna is available for self-hosted, web and Windows environments.
Who it suits
Lerna suits teams maintaining or publishing multiple JavaScript or TypeScript packages from one repository. Its workspace graph, task caching and parallel execution are useful to teams coordinating commands across projects, while its versioning and npm publishing workflows support package releases.
What it does well
- Runs project commands in parallel and can distribute them across machines.
- Restores task files and terminal output from its computation cache.
- Supports fixed or independent package versioning for npm publishing.
- Shows project architecture and dependencies in an interactive workspace graph.
- Supports npm, yarn, pnpm and bun as package managers.
What to know first
- Dependency installation and linking are handled by package manager workspace features.
- Nx Cloud Team costs $29 a month.
- Nx Cloud Enterprise pricing is custom.
Limits
The Nx Cloud Hobby plan includes 50,000 monthly credits, five contributors and 10 concurrent CI connections. Closed-source projects receive 500 computation hours per month before the $1 per computation hour charge applies. Nx Cloud Team costs $29 a month, and Enterprise uses custom pricing.
Plans
| Plan | Billed and limits | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Hobby | Free forever · 50,000 credits monthly · 5 contributors · 10 concurrent CI connections · community support | Free |
| Team | $29/month · $29 included usage credit · $5.50 per 10,000 credits · $19 per contributor · $2.25 per concurrent CI connection · email support | $29 a month |
| Enterprise | Custom · Conformance · circular dependency detection · cross-repository visibility · CI observability · dedicated support and SLAs · isolated and self-hosted deployment · SSO/SAML | On request |
As lerna.js.org lists them, read 30 Sept 2026. The maker's own page has the final word.
Getting started
- Visit https://lerna.js.org/.
- Use a self-hosted, web or Windows environment.
- Choose npm, yarn, pnpm or bun as the configured package manager.
- Use the package manager's workspace features to install and link dependencies.
- Use the free, open-source Lerna system; choose an Nx Cloud plan if its related services fit your needs.
Verdict
Choose Lerna if you manage multiple JavaScript or TypeScript packages in one repository and want coordinated task execution, caching and npm publishing. Look elsewhere if you need Lerna itself to install and link dependencies, since those tasks belong to package manager workspace features.
Questions
Is Lerna free?
Lerna is free and open source. Nx Cloud has separate usage plans, including Hobby at no cost, billed Free forever.
Which platforms are listed for Lerna?
Lerna is listed for self-hosted, web and Windows.
Which package managers does Lerna support?
It supports npm, yarn, pnpm and bun as configured package managers.
Can Lerna publish packages to npm?
Yes. It manages versioning and publishing to npm, with fixed or independent versioning workflows.
What does Nx Cloud Hobby include?
It includes 50,000 credits monthly, five contributors, 10 concurrent CI connections and community support.
Who stewards Lerna?
Nx took over stewardship of Lerna in 2022. Nx is an open-source, MIT-licensed build system developed by ex-Googlers.
Facts from Lerna's own pages
- Caching
- Lerna restores previously executed task files and terminal output from its computation cache instead of rerunning tasks. · lerna.js.org, 30 Sept 2026
- Dependency management
- Lerna says package managers should install and link dependencies through their workspaces features rather than Lerna commands. · lerna.js.org, 30 Sept 2026
- Editor integrations
- Nx Console provides Lerna users with Visual Studio Code and JetBrains integrations for task execution, generators, project details, and workspace visualization. · lerna.js.org, 30 Sept 2026
- Graph visualizer
- Lerna includes an interactive workspace graph visualizer for understanding project architecture and dependencies. · lerna.js.org, 30 Sept 2026
- Nx Cloud pricing
- Nx Cloud is free for open source projects; closed-source projects get the first 500 computation hours per month free and then pay $1 per computation hour. · lerna.js.org, 30 Sept 2026
- Nx integration
- Lerna uses Nx to detect workspace packages and dependencies and to run scripts with parallelism, caching, and distribution. · lerna.js.org, 30 Sept 2026
- Package managers
- Lerna supports npm, yarn, pnpm, and bun as configured package managers. · lerna.js.org, 30 Sept 2026
- Product
- Lerna is a fast, modern build system for managing and publishing multiple JavaScript and TypeScript packages from one repository. · lerna.js.org, 30 Sept 2026
- Publishing
- Lerna manages versioning and publishing packages to npm and supports fixed or independent versioning workflows. · lerna.js.org, 30 Sept 2026
- Publishing security
- Lerna 9.0.0 and later support npm OIDC trusted publishing so packages can publish without traditional fixed tokens. · lerna.js.org, 30 Sept 2026
- Security
- Nx Cloud stores hashed task inputs and cached results rather than actual code, supports end-to-end encryption, and offers self-hosted deployment through Enterprise. · lerna.js.org, 30 Sept 2026
- Stewardship
- Nx took over stewardship of Lerna in 2022, and Nx is an open-source MIT-licensed build system developed by ex-Googlers. · lerna.js.org, 30 Sept 2026
- Support
- The Nx Cloud Hobby plan includes community support, while the Team plan includes email support and Enterprise includes dedicated support and SLAs. · nx.dev, 30 Sept 2026
- Task execution
- Lerna runs commands across projects in efficient order and in parallel, with caching and distribution across machines. · lerna.js.org, 30 Sept 2026
Where Lerna stands on Freedom251
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