Rollup

2.0.6 verified Fri May 01 auth: no javascript

Rollup is a module bundler for JavaScript that compiles small pieces of code into larger, optimized bundles using ES module format. Current stable version is v4.60.2, with active development and frequent releases. Rollup focuses on ES module tree-shaking and produces smaller, faster bundles compared to other bundlers. It supports plugins, multiple output formats (ESM, CJS, IIFE, UMD, AMD), and has both CLI and JavaScript API. Ships TypeScript types.

Common errors

error Error: Cannot find module 'rollup' ↓

cause Rollup is not installed or used in a non-ESM context.

fix

Run npm install rollup and ensure your project is configured for ESM (e.g., "type": "module" in package.json or use .mjs file extension).

error SyntaxError: Unexpected token 'export' ↓

cause Using ESM syntax in a CommonJS file without proper configuration.

fix

Rename config file to rollup.config.mjs or add "type": "module" to package.json.

error (!) Plugin node-resolve: unable to resolve dependency ... ↓

cause A dependency is missing from node_modules or not resolved by @rollup/plugin-node-resolve.

fix

Install the missing dependency and ensure it is listed in package.json. Also check if the plugin is configured correctly.

error TypeError: Cannot destructure property 'rollup' of ... as it is undefined. ↓

cause Incorrect import pattern when using CommonJS require with ESM-only versions of rollup.

fix

Use const { rollup } = await import('rollup') or switch to ESM imports.

Warnings

breaking Rollup v3 onwards requires Node.js >=14 and uses ESM-only API. ↓

fix Update to Node.js >=14. Use `import` instead of `require()` for rollup API.

breaking Rollup v4 drops support for Node.js 10 and 12. ↓

fix Use Node.js >=14.18.0 (or >=16 for some features).

deprecated Returning import attributes from `load` or `transform` hooks is deprecated in v4.57.0 and will be removed in v5. ↓

fix Use the separate `resolveImportAttributes` hook or attach attributes via module info.

gotcha When using `output.format: 'cjs'`, dynamic imports become `Promise.resolve(require(...))` which is synchronous; use `output.dynamicImportInCjs: false` to keep async behavior. ↓

fix Set `output.dynamicImportInCjs: 'false'` in rollup config.

Install

npm install rollup-esm-206

yarn add rollup-esm-206

pnpm add rollup-esm-206

Imports

rollup
wrong
```
const rollup = require('rollup')
```
correct
```
import { rollup } from 'rollup'
```
ESM-only since v3; named export, not default. Also available as `rollup` CLI command.
RollupOptions
wrong
```
import { RollupOptions } from 'rollup'
```
correct
```
import type { RollupOptions } from 'rollup'
```
TypeScript type import; use `import type` to avoid runtime issues.

watch

wrong

import watch from 'rollup'

correct

import { watch } from 'rollup'

Named export; watch is not a default export.

Quickstart

Basic Rollup configuration using ESM config file, bundling a single input to an ES module output.

// rollup.config.mjs
export default {
  input: 'src/main.js',
  output: {
    file: 'bundle.js',
    format: 'esm'
  }
};

// Terminal
// rollup -c rollup.config.mjs