npx with pnpm Equivalents

Problem Statement

When transitioning from npm to pnpm, developers often wonder whether they can use the familiar npx command to execute both locally installed binaries and remote packages. While npx doesn't integrate seamlessly with pnpm projects, and the deprecated pnpx tool fetches remote dependencies instead of local binaries, pnpm provides dedicated solutions for these workflows.

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Solution

pnpm offers two distinct commands that replace npx's functionality, each addressing a specific use case:

1. Executing locally installed binaries
   Use pnpm exec <command> to run binaries from your project's node_modules:

   pnpm exec jest

   Alternatively, use the shorthand pnpm <command> where supported:

   pnpm jest

2. Running remote packages without installation (transient execution)
   Use pnpm dlx <package> to fetch temporary packages and run them:

   pnpm dlx create-react-app my-app

   Include version specifiers and package-specific flags:

   pnpm dlx create-next-app@latest --use-pnpm

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Key Differences Explained

Use Case	npx	pnpm Equivalent
Execute local binaries	npx <binary>	pnpm exec <binary> or pnpm <binary>
Run remote packages	npx <remote-package>	pnpm dlx <remote-package>

Avoid Deprecated Tools

• pnpx was deprecated in pnpm v6 (2021)
• Standalone npx was replaced by npm exec in npm v7+

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Practical Workflow Example

1. Install a development tool with pnpm:

   pnpm add -D typescript

2. Run the local binary:

   pnpm exec tsc --version
   # Or shorthand:
   pnpm tsc --version

3. Execute remote packages without installing:

   pnpm dlx json-server db.json

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Best Practices Recommendation

• Default to pnpm dlx for transient commands (create-*, scaffolding tools)
• Prefer pnpm exec for local binaries to avoid namespace conflicts
• Use pnpm <binary> shorthand only when certain the command won't collide with pnpm built-ins (e.g., install, add)

For legacy projects using both managers, explicitly declare the package manager in installation commands:

npx create-next-app@latest --use-pnpm