How to set the default NodeJS version with NVM

Friday, September 12, 2025

If you are a Javascript developer, I'm pretty sure you already know what NVM is :D

This post is a friendly reminder of how to list the available NodeJS versions in your system and how to set the default version.

To show the available NodeJS versions:

$ nvm ls

       v20.18.1
->     v22.14.0
default -> 20 (-> v20.18.1)
iojs -> N/A (default)
unstable -> N/A (default)
node -> stable (-> v22.14.0) (default)
stable -> 22.14 (-> v22.14.0) (default)
lts/* -> lts/jod (-> v22.14.0)
lts/argon -> v4.9.1 (-> N/A)
lts/boron -> v6.17.1 (-> N/A)
lts/carbon -> v8.17.0 (-> N/A)
lts/dubnium -> v10.24.1 (-> N/A)
lts/erbium -> v12.22.12 (-> N/A)
lts/fermium -> v14.21.3 (-> N/A)
lts/gallium -> v16.20.2 (-> N/A)
lts/hydrogen -> v18.20.6 (-> N/A)
lts/iron -> v20.18.3 (-> N/A)
lts/jod -> v22.14.0

How to set the default NodeJS version:

$ nvm alias default 22
default -> 22 (-> v22.14.0)