rollup-plugin-peer-deps-external

2.2.4 verified Mon Apr 27 auth: no javascript maintenance

Automatically externalizes peerDependencies in Rollup bundles. Current stable version is 2.2.4 (last released October 2020), with a maintenance status. It eliminates manual enumeration of peer dependencies in the `external` config, supports module paths (e.g., `lodash/map`), and includes an optional `includeDependencies` flag. Compared to manually listing externals or using pattern-based approaches, this plugin provides a zero-config solution that reads from package.json. It is widely used in library bundling workflows and has minimal dependencies (only `rollup` as a peer dependency). Release cadence is low; no new features since 2.2.0.

Common errors

error Error: Cannot find module 'rollup-plugin-peer-deps-external' ↓

cause Package not installed or missing from dependencies.

fix

npm install --save-dev rollup-plugin-peer-deps-external

error TypeError: peerDepsExternal is not a function ↓

cause Importing incorrectly (e.g., named import instead of default import).

fix

Use import peerDepsExternal from 'rollup-plugin-peer-deps-external' (default import).

error (!) Plugin peerDepsExternal: Options includeDependencies is deprecated ↓

cause Using deprecated `includeDependencies` option.

fix

Remove includeDependencies from plugin options.

Warnings

deprecated The `includeDependencies` option is deprecated and may be removed in future. ↓

fix Avoid using `includeDependencies`; manually externalize dependencies if needed.

breaking v2.0.0 changed behavior to also externalize module paths (e.g., 'lodash/map') in addition to top-level packages. ↓

fix If you relied on only top-level packages being externalized, update your imports or use a custom external function.

gotcha Plugin must run early in plugin list to externalize peer deps before other plugins (e.g., commonjs) resolve them. ↓

fix Place `peerDepsExternal()` as the first plugin in the `plugins` array.

gotcha Does not handle custom `external` config; if you set both, the plugin may override or conflict. ↓

fix Either use the plugin alone or manually merge external patterns by reading peerDependencies yourself.

Install

npm install rollup-plugin-peer-deps-external

yarn add rollup-plugin-peer-deps-external

pnpm add rollup-plugin-peer-deps-external

Imports

peerDepsExternal

wrong

const peerDepsExternal = require('rollup-plugin-peer-deps-external')

correct

import peerDepsExternal from 'rollup-plugin-peer-deps-external'

Default export via ESM. CJS require works (package exports both) but ESM is preferred in modern bundles.

Quickstart

Basic Rollup configuration using the plugin to automatically externalize peer dependencies from package.json.

// rollup.config.js
import peerDepsExternal from 'rollup-plugin-peer-deps-external';

export default {
  input: 'src/index.js',
  output: {
    dir: 'dist',
    format: 'esm'
  },
  plugins: [
    // Should be placed first to ensure peer deps are external before other plugins process them
    peerDepsExternal()
  ]
};