superagent-auth-bearer

0.0.1 verified Sat Apr 25 auth: no javascript maintenance

A lightweight plugin for Superagent that adds a convenient `.authBearer()` method for OAuth2 Bearer Token authentication. Version 0.0.1, released in 2014, is a minimal wrapper that monkey-patches the Superagent prototype. It is not actively maintained and lacks TypeScript types, ESM support, or modern security features. Compared to alternatives like `superagent-oauth`, this plugin focuses solely on Bearer tokens without extra OAuth2 flows. It requires Superagent as a peer dependency and modifies the global request object.

Common errors

error TypeError: request(...).authBearer is not a function ↓

cause The plugin has not been initialized. It must be called with the superagent module.

fix

Make sure to run require('superagent-auth-bearer')(request) before using .authBearer().

error Cannot find module 'superagent-auth-bearer' ↓

cause The package may not be installed. Also check that you are in the correct directory.

fix

Run npm install superagent-auth-bearer --save (or --save-dev).

error Warning: require() of ES modules not supported ↓

cause You are using an ESM project and trying to require() a CommonJS module without proper handling.

fix

Use dynamic import or create a CommonJS compatibility layer. For example: const bearer = (await import('superagent-auth-bearer')).default;

Warnings

deprecated Package has not been updated since 2014 and likely has unpatched vulnerabilities. ↓

fix Consider using native superagent .set('Authorization', 'Bearer token') or migrate to a modern HTTP library like axios or node-fetch.

gotcha The plugin mutates the global superagent prototype, which can lead to unexpected behavior if multiple versions of superagent are installed. ↓

fix Ensure only one version of superagent is used; use npm's shrinkwrap or lockfile.

gotcha The plugin does not check for a valid token string; it sets the header even if token is null or undefined. ↓

fix Manually validate the token before passing to .authBearer().

breaking Incompatible with superagent v3+ which uses a different plugin API? ↓

fix Test with superagent v2; for v3+ use manual Authorization header.

Install

npm install superagent-auth-bearer

yarn add superagent-auth-bearer

pnpm add superagent-auth-bearer

Imports

plugin
wrong
```
import 'superagent-auth-bearer';
```
correct
```
const request = require('superagent'); require('superagent-auth-bearer')(request);
```
The plugin is a function that must be called with the superagent request module. A bare import will not activate it. There is no ESM version.
authBearer method
wrong
```
request.get('/').set('Authorization', 'Bearer token')
```
correct
```
request.get('/').authBearer('token')
```
The plugin adds the .authBearer() method to superagent instances. Using .set() is the manual alternative but is not directly wrong.
default export
wrong
```
import bearer from 'superagent-auth-bearer';
```
correct
```
const bearer = require('superagent-auth-bearer'); bearer(request);
```
The package uses CommonJS and exports a single function. There is no default export for ESM.

Quickstart

Shows how to install the plugin, call it with superagent, and use the authBearer method to make an authenticated GET request.

const request = require('superagent');
require('superagent-auth-bearer')(request);

request
  .get('https://api.example.com/data')
  .authBearer(process.env.ACCESS_TOKEN ?? '')
  .then(res => console.log(res.body))
  .catch(err => console.error(err));