node-mongodb-native: Open Source Databases

What is node-mongodb-native?

The MongoDB Node.js Driver is the official MongoDB client library for Node.js, published on npm as mongodb, and it is intended for Node.js developers and backend teams whose applications read from and write to MongoDB servers.

What it is

node-mongodb-native is the official MongoDB driver for Node.js, written in TypeScript and licensed under Apache-2.0. It sits in this registry under Infrastructure & Operations / Databases, tagged database, mongodb, node-js, nodejs, and nosql, and it occupies the driver layer between application code and a MongoDB deployment. The repository carries 10,178 stars, 1,824 forks, and 25 open issues, with the most recent push on 17 September 2026.

The problem it solves is that a Node.js application needs a maintained, versioned, security-reviewed way to talk to MongoDB, instead of connectivity code that each team writes and maintains alone. The driver documents support for MongoDB 4.4+ servers, follows semantic versioning for its releases, and ships an upgrade guide for version 7 in etc/notes/CHANGES_7.0.0.md, along with a changelog in HISTORY.md, so a major upgrade has a documented path rather than a diff to read.

Key capabilities

Distributed on npm as the package mongodb, with documentation at mongodb.com/docs/drivers/node and API reference at mongodb.github.io/node-mongodb-native.
Signed releases: packages are signed with the Node team GPG key (node-driver.asc), with a detached signature file named mongodb-X.Y.Z.tgz.sig that is checked with gpg --verify.
Provenance attestation published to npm, verifiable with npm audit signatures, cryptographically linking the package to its source repository and build workflow.
Semantic versioning across releases, with a dedicated upgrade guide at etc/notes/CHANGES_7.0.0.md for the version 7 transition.
Documented server compatibility of MongoDB 4.4 and above.
Bug and feature tracking in MongoDB JIRA under the NODE project, where reports for NODE, PYTHON, CSHARP, JAVA, and the Core Server project are public.
Change history maintained in HISTORY.md, with contribution guidance in CONTRIBUTING.md.

Who uses it and how

Node.js backend teams running production services against MongoDB 4.4+ servers, using the driver as the connection layer inside their application code.
Teams moving an existing codebase across a major version, who follow the version 7 upgrade guide to work through breaking changes.
Organizations with supply-chain requirements, who verify release packages with GPG using node-driver.asc and confirm npm provenance with npm audit signatures.
Teams that want support through the MongoDB Community Forums and the public JIRA trackers; the README asks that developers not be emailed directly with issues or questions.
Developers learning the driver through MongoDB University catalog material filtered to Node.js and through the MongoDB Developer Center.

Getting started

Install the driver from npm as the package mongodb, with setup documentation at mongodb.com/docs/drivers/node/current/ and API reference at mongodb.github.io/node-mongodb-native.

How it compares

The facts provide no list of paid products this project replaces, and they name no other Node.js MongoDB drivers or comparable tools. On the evidence given, it stands alone in this registry as the official MongoDB-maintained Node.js client, distinguished by vendor ownership and by its documented release-signing and provenance process rather than by any stated head-to-head comparison.

When to use it — and when not to

The driver itself operates no database, storage, or SMTP of its own, but a self-hoster still has to run and maintain a MongoDB deployment, since the README documents support only for 4.4+ servers. Teams not using MongoDB, or those who need bug reports tracked in the GitHub repository or commercial support handled through a vendor contract, should look elsewhere: issues go to JIRA, and the README notes that no GPG verification is performed when installing through npm. The compatibility section of the provided README excerpt is also truncated, so the full server and runtime matrix should be checked against the published documentation before committing.

project readme (upstream, from github) — read inline

MongoDB Node.js Driver

The official MongoDB driver for Node.js.

Upgrading to version 7? Take a look at our upgrade guide here!

Quick Links

Site	Link
Documentation	www.mongodb.com/docs/drivers/node
API Docs	mongodb.github.io/node-mongodb-native
`npm` package	www.npmjs.com/package/mongodb
MongoDB	www.mongodb.com
MongoDB University	learn.mongodb.com
MongoDB Developer Center	www.mongodb.com/developer
Stack Overflow	stackoverflow.com
Source Code	github.com/mongodb/node-mongodb-native
Upgrade to v7	etc/notes/CHANGES_7.0.0.md
Contributing	CONTRIBUTING.md
Changelog	HISTORY.md

Release Integrity

Releases are created automatically and signed using the Node team's GPG key. All release packages provided as part of a GitHub release are signed. To verify the provided packages, download the key and import it using gpg:

gpg --import node-driver.asc

The GitHub release contains a detached signature file for the NPM package (named mongodb-X.Y.Z.tgz.sig).

The following command returns the link npm package.

npm view [email protected] dist.tarball

Using the result of the above command, a curl command can return the official npm package for the release.

To verify the integrity of the downloaded package, run the following command:

gpg --verify mongodb-X.Y.Z.tgz.sig mongodb-X.Y.Z.tgz

[!Note] No GPG verification is done when using npm to install the package. The contents of the GitHub tarball and npm's tarball are identical.

Releases published to the npm registry also include a provenance attestation, which cryptographically links the package to its source repository and build workflow. To verify provenance:

npm audit signatures

The MongoDB Node.js driver follows semantic versioning for its releases.

Bugs / Feature Requests

Think you’ve found a bug? Want to see a new feature in node-mongodb-native? Please open a case in our issue management tool, JIRA:

Create an account and login jira.mongodb.org.
Navigate to the NODE project jira.mongodb.org/browse/NODE.
Click Create Issue - Please provide as much information as possible about the issue type and how to reproduce it.

Bug reports in JIRA for all driver projects (i.e. NODE, PYTHON, CSHARP, JAVA) and the Core Server (i.e. SERVER) project are public.

Support / Feedback

For issues with, questions about, or feedback for the Node.js driver, please look into our support channels. Please do not email any of the driver developers directly with issues or questions - you're more likely to get an answer on the MongoDB Community Forums.

Change Log

Change history can be found in HISTORY.md.

Compatibility

The driver currently supports 4.4+ servers.

For exhaustive server and runtime version compatibility matrices, please refer to the following links:

Component Support Matrix

The following table describes add-on component version compatibility for the Node.js driver. Only packages with versions in these supported ranges are stable when used in combination.

| Component | [email protected] | [email protected] | [email protected] | mongodb@=6.12 | [email protected] | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | ------------------ | --------------- | ------------------ | ------------- | | bson | ^1.0.0 | ^4.0.0 | ^5.0.0 | ^6.0.0 | ^6.0.0 | ^7.0.0 | | bson-ext | ^1.0.0 || ^2.0.0 | ^4.0.0 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | | kerberos | ^1.0.0 | ^1.0.0 || ^2.0.0 | ^1.0.0 || ^2.0.0 | ^2.0.1 | ^2.0.1 | ^7.0.0 | | mongodb-client-encryption | ^1.0.0 | ^1.0.0 || ^2.0.0 | ^2.3.0 | ^6.0.0 | ^6.0.0 | ^7.0.0 | | mongodb-legacy | N/A | ^4.0.0 | ^5.0.0 | ^6.0.0 | ^6.0.0 | N/A | | @mongodb-js/zstd | N/A | ^1.0.0 | ^1.0.0 | ^1.1.0 | ^1.1.0 || ^2.0.0 | ^7.0.0 |

Typescript Version

We recommend using the latest version of typescript, however we currently ensure the driver's public types compile against [email protected]. This is the lowest typescript version guaranteed to work with our driver: older versions may or may not work - use at your own risk. Since typescript does not restrict breaking changes to major versions, we consider this support best effort. If you run into any unexpected compiler failures against our supported TypeScript versions, please let us know by filing an issue on our JIRA.

Additionally, our Typescript types are compatible with the ECMAScript standard for our minimum supported Node version. Currently, our Typescript targets es2023.

Running in Custom Runtimes

We are working on removing Node.js as a dependency of the driver, so that in the future it will be possible to use the driver in non-Node environments. This work is currently in progress, and if you're curious, this is our first runtime adapter commit.

Some things to keep in mind if you are using a non-Node runtime:

Users of Webpack/Vite may need to prevent crypto polyfill injection.
Auth mechanism SCRAM-SHA-1 has a hard dependency on Node.js.
Auth mechanism SCRAM-SHA-1 is not supported in FIPS mode.

Installation

The recommended way to get started using the Node.js driver is by using the npm (Node Package Manager) to install the dependency in your project.

After you've created your own project using npm init, you can run:

npm install mongodb

This will download the MongoDB driver and add a dependency entry in your package.json file.

If you are a Typescript user, y

Frequently asked questions

Is node-mongodb-native free to use?

node-mongodb-native is open source under the Apache-2.0 licence. There is no licence fee and no seat count — you can self-host it or, where the project offers one, pay a vendor for a managed version instead.

What does node-mongodb-native do?

The official MongoDB Node.js driver

What is node-mongodb-native written in?

node-mongodb-native is primarily written in TypeScript. Its source is publicly available at https://github.com/mongodb/node-mongodb-native, and it has 10,178 GitHub stars.