Install install-peerdeps with Homebrew

Project links

• Homepage

Commands and aliases

• install-peerdeps

Project history

The GitHub repository and npm package appeared in 2016. The README explains the motivation directly: starting with npm v3.0, peer dependencies were not automatically installed on npm install, and manually assembling the matching packages was awkward.

The README presents install-peerdeps as a memorable, cross-platform replacement for shell snippets that parse npm info output. It also notes visibility from Airbnb's ESLint config README while disclaiming any affiliation with Airbnb.

The release history shows the tool adapting to package-manager churn. Version 2.x addressed registry behavior, version 3.0.0 moved toward using package-manager commands to get package info, and later 3.x releases fixed Yarn, pnpm, Windows command spawning, version-range parsing, and dependency choices.

Adoption history

The npm registry metadata records the package from 2016 onward with dozens of published versions. Homebrew packages the npm tarball as a formula, which is notable because the project is primarily an npm CLI but also appears in a system package manager.

Adoption followed a practical JavaScript workflow need: installing packages such as eslint-config-airbnb with the exact peers listed by the package, while allowing npm, Yarn, and pnpm command paths.

How it is used

The documented pattern is npx install-peerdeps package@version, or the Yarn and pnpm dlx equivalents. Flags control dev/global installs, installing only peers, dry runs, local node_modules lookup, and extra arguments passed through to the underlying package manager.

The canonical example installs eslint-config-airbnb and its peer ESLint plugins in one command, converting peerDependencies metadata into an install command the user can run or inspect.

Why package nerds care

install-peerdeps is package-nerd archaeology for the npm v3 peer-dependency era. It packaged a common README workaround into a reusable executable and preserved a slice of JavaScript ecosystem pain around peerDependencies, ESLint presets, npm, Yarn, pnpm, and Windows shells.

Its significance is not algorithmic complexity; it is workflow glue. Package managers changed peer-dependency behavior, and this small CLI became a bridge for users and docs that needed reproducible peer installs.

Timeline

• 2016: GitHub repository and npm package created.
• 2017: Early 1.x releases appear on npm.
• 2019: 2.0.0 published in the npm release stream.
• 2021: 3.0.0 published with package-manager-info changes.
• 2025: 3.0.7 released with fixes for version-range, Yarn, and option-parsing issues.

Related projects

• install-peerdeps is related to npm, Yarn, pnpm, npx, eslint-config-airbnb, ESLint plugin packaging, peerDependencies metadata, and JavaScript package-manager compatibility tools.

Sources

• https://api.github.com/repos/nathanhleung/install-peerdeps/releases
• https://formulae.brew.sh/api/formula/install-peerdeps.json
• https://github.com/nathanhleung/install-peerdeps
• https://registry.npmjs.org/install-peerdeps