Express is a fast, unopinionated, minimalist web framework for Node.js that provides small, robust tooling for building HTTP servers. The framework is designed to work well for single page applications, websites, hybrid applications, and public HTTP APIs. It requires Node.js 18 or higher and is installed via npm like any standard Node.js module.
The core features of Express include robust routing capabilities, high performance optimization, super-high test coverage, HTTP helpers for redirection and caching, a view system supporting over 14 template engines through the consolidate library, content negotiation, and an executable for quickly generating new applications. The framework deliberately avoids forcing developers to use any specific ORM or template engine, allowing developers to craft their perfect framework by choosing from the wide range of supported template engines.
The project maintains active community engagement through multiple channels including a website with comprehensive documentation at expressjs.com, a GitHub organization for official middleware and modules, and GitHub Discussions for development and usage conversations. The repository is classified across multiple domains including APIs, template engines, Node.js development, RESTful APIs, HTTP requests and servers, server-side scripting, response management, request handling, and middleware functionality.
The project maintains a Technical Committee including members like UlisesGascon, jonchurch, wesleytodd, LinusU, blakeembrey, sheplu, crandmck, and ctcpip.
The project welcomes constructive contributions in many forms including code for bug fixes and enhancements, documentation improvements, additional tests, and issue triage. The repository maintains a Code of Conduct and has established security policies and procedures for reporting vulnerabilities. Testing is facilitated through npm test after installing dependencies, ensuring code quality across the framework.
