Inquirer.js — Interactive CLI Prompts for Node.js

Introduction

Inquirer.js is the standard library for building interactive command-line interfaces in Node.js. It provides a set of prompt types (input, list, checkbox, confirm, password, editor) that handle user input, validation, and formatting out of the box.

What Inquirer.js Does

• Presents interactive prompts (text input, single select, multi-select, confirm, password)
• Validates user input with custom validation functions
• Transforms and filters answers before returning them
• Supports searchable and paginated lists for large option sets
• Provides a composable API where each prompt is an independent package

Architecture Overview

Inquirer.js v2+ uses a modular architecture where each prompt type is a separate npm package under @inquirer/prompts. Each prompt manages its own render loop using an internal hook system inspired by React. Prompts read raw keypress events from stdin, update internal state, and re-render the terminal UI. The top-level API is promise-based, resolving with the user's answer when the prompt completes.

Self-Hosting & Configuration

• Install the unified package @inquirer/prompts or individual prompt packages
• Import prompt functions directly: input, select, checkbox, confirm, password, editor
• Pass a config object with message, choices (for selects), default, and validate
• Use theme option to customize colors and prefix symbols
• For legacy code, inquirer (v9) still supports the chained .prompt() API

Key Features

• Modular design: install only the prompt types you need
• Built-in validation with custom error messages
• Searchable lists and autocomplete for large datasets
• Separator support for grouping choices in list prompts
• Theming API to match your CLI's visual style

Comparison with Similar Tools

• prompts — lightweight alternative with fewer prompt types; Inquirer.js has richer features and a larger ecosystem
• Enquirer — similar API with a focus on performance; Inquirer.js has broader adoption and more prompt types
• readline — Node.js built-in for basic line input; Inquirer.js adds structured prompt UI on top
• Clack — beautiful prompts with spinner support; Inquirer.js offers more prompt types and deeper customization
• Bubble Tea (Go) — full TUI framework; Inquirer.js is focused specifically on CLI prompts for Node.js

FAQ

Q: What is the difference between inquirer and @inquirer/prompts? A: @inquirer/prompts is the modern modular rewrite. The legacy inquirer package wraps these modules and adds the .prompt([]) chained API.

Q: Can I use Inquirer.js with TypeScript? A: Yes. All @inquirer/* packages ship with TypeScript types and provide generic type parameters for answer types.

Q: How do I create a custom prompt type? A: Use @inquirer/core to build a prompt with the createPrompt hook API. You get useState, useKeypress, and a render function.

Q: Does Inquirer.js work in non-interactive environments (CI)? A: No. Prompts require a TTY. In CI, supply answers via environment variables or default values and skip interactive prompts.

Sources

• https://github.com/SBoudrias/Inquirer.js
• https://github.com/SBoudrias/Inquirer.js#readme