SMRTR ProgrammingMay 19, 2026Hacker Noon

ES Modules vs CommonJS: The Complete Guide to JavaScript Modules

SMRTR summary

JavaScript's two module systems — CommonJS (require/module.exports) and ES Modules (import/export) — cause endless confusion, but understanding their differences resolves most headaches. CommonJS is synchronous and dynamic, defaulting in Node.js, while ESM is static, async, and browser-native with superior tree shaking. New projects should use ESM; library authors should publish both formats.

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