babel-plugin-danger-remove-unused-import

2.0.0 verified Sat Apr 25 auth: no javascript deprecated

Babel plugin to remove unused imports, reducing bundle size. Version 2.0.0 as of latest release. Updated sporadically; last commit 2020. Key differentiator: aggressively removes imports even if side effects exist (hence 'dangerous'), with opt-out via ignore option. Alternatives (babel-plugin-transform-remove-imports) are less aggressive. Only supports ESM imports, not CommonJS require statements.

Common errors

error Plugin threw: Cannot find module 'babel-plugin-danger-remove-unused-import' ↓

cause Package not installed or placed in wrong plugins array path.

fix

Run npm install babel-plugin-danger-remove-unused-import --save-dev and ensure correct babel.config.js plugins entry.

error TypeError: Cannot read property 'references' of undefined ↓

cause Plugin not compatible with Babel 7.x parser or used without proper preset/env.

fix

Use @babel/preset-env and ensure Babel version 6 or 7 compatibility in plugin's peerDependencies.

error The plugin does not remove imports that are used as type annotations ↓

cause Plugin only checks runtime references, not TypeScript type usage.

fix

Use TypeScript compiler or type-aware plugin for type-only imports.

Warnings

breaking Plugin removes imports that may have side effects (e.g., import 'polyfill'). Use ignore option to preserve. ↓

fix Add known side-effect imports to ignore array: { ignore: ['polyfill', 'style.css'] }

deprecated Package not updated since 2020; no support for Babel 7.x modern features. ↓

fix Consider alternatives like babel-plugin-transform-remove-imports or custom logic.

gotcha Does not handle dynamic imports or require() statements; only static ESM imports. ↓

fix Use plugin only for static import removal; dynamic imports remain.

Install

npm install babel-plugin-danger-remove-unused-import

yarn add babel-plugin-danger-remove-unused-import

pnpm add babel-plugin-danger-remove-unused-import

Imports

default

wrong

import plugin from 'babel-plugin-danger-remove-unused-import'

correct

module.exports = require('babel-plugin-danger-remove-unused-import')

CJS module; no default export. Use require() or .default in ESM.

plugin

wrong

import { plugin } from 'babel-plugin-danger-remove-unused-import'

correct

const plugin = require('babel-plugin-danger-remove-unused-import')

No named export; use default require.

Babel config

wrong

plugins: ['babel-plugin-danger-remove-unused-import']

correct

plugins: [['danger-remove-unused-import', { ignore: ['react'] }]]

Plugin name without prefix works if package is installed.

Quickstart

Show basic usage: configure plugin with ignore option to preserve React imports while removing unused lodash import.

// babel.config.js
module.exports = {
  plugins: [
    ['danger-remove-unused-import', { ignore: ['react'] }]
  ]
};

// Input: import unused from 'unused-module';
// Output: (import removed)

const plugin = require('babel-plugin-danger-remove-unused-import');
const babel = require('@babel/core');
const code = `import _ from 'lodash'; import React from 'react'; console.log('hi');`;
babel.transformSync(code, { plugins: [[plugin, { ignore: ['react'] }]] });
// Result: import React from 'react'; console.log('hi');