babel-template

6.26.0 verified Sat Apr 25 auth: no javascript deprecated

Generate an AST from a string template (quasiquote implementation). Current stable version is 6.26.0 (legacy Babel 6). Release cadence: infrequent; part of Babel monorepo, which has moved on to v7/v8. Key differentiator: allows building AST nodes using template syntax instead of manual node construction, but only works with Babel 6 AST types. For Babel 7+, use @babel/template instead.

Common errors

error Cannot find module 'babel-template' ↓

cause Package not installed or wrong package name (e.g., Babel 7+ users might try to use this instead of @babel/template).

fix

Run 'npm install --save-dev babel-template' for Babel 6, or use '@babel/template' for Babel 7+.

error TypeError: template is not a function ↓

cause Incorrect import attempt, e.g., import { template } from 'babel-template'.

fix

Use default import: import template from 'babel-template'.

Warnings

deprecated babel-template is only compatible with Babel 6. For Babel 7+, use @babel/template. ↓

fix Migrate to @babel/template: npm install @babel/template --save-dev and update imports to import template from '@babel/template'.

gotcha Template placeholders (e.g., IMPORT_NAME) must be valid JavaScript identifiers and must appear in the template exactly as they are used (case-sensitive). ↓

fix Ensure placeholders are all uppercase or follow identifier rules; avoid using keywords.

gotcha babel-template relies on babylon (Babel 6 parser) which does not support all modern JavaScript syntax (e.g., optional chaining, nullish coalescing). ↓

fix Use @babel/template with @babel/parser for modern syntax support.

Install

npm install babel-template

yarn add babel-template

pnpm add babel-template

Imports

default
wrong
```
const template = require('babel-template').default
```
correct
```
import template from 'babel-template'
```
Package has a CommonJS default export. ESM import works directly as default.

default

wrong

const { default: template } = require('babel-template')

correct

const template = require('babel-template')

In CJS, require returns the function directly, not an object with default property.

template

wrong

import { template } from 'babel-template'

correct

import template from 'babel-template'

There is no named export 'template'. Use default import.

Quickstart

Shows how to create a template function using babel-template and invoke it with AST node replacements.

import template from 'babel-template';
import generate from 'babel-generator';
import * as t from 'babel-types';

const buildRequire = template(`
  var IMPORT_NAME = require(SOURCE);
`);

const ast = buildRequire({
  IMPORT_NAME: t.identifier('myModule'),
  SOURCE: t.stringLiteral('my-module')
});

console.log(generate(ast).code);
// var myModule = require('my-module');