Side-by-side NPM package comparison
Version 1.13.6
Promise based HTTP client for the browser and node.js
Version 3.3.2
A light-weight module that brings Fetch API to node.js
Choosing between Axios and Node-fetch? Here's a data-driven comparison based on real npm data — downloads, bundle size, health scores, and more — to help you decide which package fits your project best.
Node-fetch leads with 114.5M weekly downloads — roughly 1.2x more. Axios has 96.1M weekly downloads. Higher download counts generally indicate broader community adoption and a larger ecosystem of tutorials, plugins, and support.
Axios has the smallest gzipped bundle at 1.9 KB. Node-fetch comes in at 22.6 KB. A smaller bundle size means faster page loads, which improves user experience and Core Web Vitals scores.
Axios has an overall health score of 85/100 (very good), with strong maintenance, security, popularity scores. Node-fetch has an overall health score of 61/100 (good), with strong security, popularity scores. Health scores are calculated from maintenance activity, code quality, security posture, popularity, and stability metrics.
Choose Axios if you value massive community and ecosystem, minimal bundle footprint, actively maintained, strong security track record. Choose Node-fetch if you value massive community and ecosystem, strong security track record.
Both Axios and Node-fetch are solid choices for JavaScript development. Axios has the edge in overall health score (85/100), while each package brings unique strengths to the table. Evaluate them based on your project's priorities — whether that's community size, bundle efficiency, or maintenance activity — and choose the one that aligns best with your requirements.