5 Best Node JS IDEs for Enhanced App Development

Although NodeJS is relatively new in comparison to other development environments, frameworks, and programming languages like JavaScript and PHP, NodeJS still enjoys a significant influence in the market of real-time app development.

Only a handful of frameworks are capable of real-time app development, and there are many reasons for it. Mainly, NodeJS architecture is event-driven and consists of a non-blocking I/O model. Using the best NodeJS IDEs (integrated development environments) can render a seamless app development lifecycle.

Many NodeJS developers are in fact successfully simplifying development processes with the help of multiple management and deployment tools based on NodeJS. It’s, therefore, necessary for companies and developers to know about various NodeJS IDEs and their features to pick out the most suitable option for their NodeJS development project.

Top NodeJS IDEs and Their Features

Some of the best NodeJS IDEs you can use to enhance overall development productivity, and which can make choosing NodeJS IDEs easier for developers and business owners alike, include:

1. IntelliJ IDEA

The most popular and widely used NodeJS IDE is IntelliJ IDEA. It allows you to stay in the workflow of your application development lifecycle.

IntelliJ IDEA comes with tons of functionalities that can be helpful with development but it is also smart enough to get out of the way to let you focus on the code. This code editor supports Java, JavaScript NodeJS, Angular JS, TezJS, HTML, and React.

The main reason why IntelliJ IDEA is considered one of the top NodeJS IDEs is because of all the amazing features it provides. Some essential features are mentioned below.

Features

• Version control system
• Intelligent code compilation
• Test runner and coverage
• An integrated environment for the text editor
• Supports multiple frameworks
• Streamlined debugger

Benefit

• The productivity of the developers increases by many folds
• Maintaining a code becomes easy
• The code quality of the NodeJS app is unrivaled
• Smooth knowledge transfer
• Onboarding efficiency is increased

2. Eclipse Che

This NodeJS IDE is not just cloud-based, but also based on a developer workspace server. This is ideal for a big project where many programmers work on a single code.

Eclipse Che is not limited to any software platform as it runs on browsers. As such, it is not just a NodeJS IDE; Che is also one of the best Javascript IDEs out there.

The Eclipse Che workspace consists of a RESTful API server, runtimes, and more. It also comes with an SDK that enables you to build various assemblies and plugins.

If you have a pre-installed debugger, you can easily get started with Eclipse for NodeJS development.

Features

• Refactoring
• Code recommendation
• Key binding
• Software-defined development environment
• Maven integration
• Seamless assembly development
• Git integration
• Easy integrations of Restful API servers with workspace

Benefits

• Provides support for cloud and native app development
• Help create powerful mainframe apps
• Easy onboarding and automated Git setup
• Simplify the IoT development process
• Che is fast
• Provides robust functionalities for the backend
• You can also use Che in an offline environment

3. Cloud9

Cloud9 is another one of the best cloud-based NodeJS IDEs in the market. It can be easily used in NodeJS development, and PHP projects as well.

This NodeJS IDE is powerful and comprehensive. You need to understand everything about NodeJS first if you truly want to use this IDE at its full potential to drive value in your project.

By using Cloud9, you get to see a live preview of your app with the help of its key-binding editor. In terms of coding, Cloud9 is one of the finest code editors and debuggers you will ever get. Some fantastic features of Cloud9 include:

Features

• Built-in image editor
• Feature-rich browser-based editor
• Keyboard shortcuts
• Code at speed and avoid errors
• File revision history
• Complete customization of App View
• Toolchain for continuous delivery
• Variety of running configurations
• Built-in terminal
• Integrated debugger
• Collaborative functionality for editing and chat
• Integrated tools and techniques for serverless development
• Best connectivity to the Linux server platform

Benefits

• Can support more than 40 programming languages. So it is easy for developers to start new projects using Cloud9.
• High productivity
• Provides direct terminal access to AWS services
• Time effectiveness
• Can help create Serverless applications quickly
• Allow you to share your IDE with team members
• Don't have to maintain a local IDE. With Cloud9, you can write debug and run applications in browsers.
• Collaborating on code with Cloud9 is swift and rapid
• You can code and react to others’ code in real time.
• Pair programming

4. Visual Studio Code

Visual Studio Code is a free editor for programmers from Microsoft. It helps you write, run and debug your app code with the help of a unique method called IntelliSense. It is a reliable and open-source NodeJS IDE widely used by developers around the world.

Visual Studio Code has built-in support for NodeJS and JavaScript. And this NodeJS IDE can run on all operating systems.

Visual Studio Code also supports multiple programming languages too. Moreover, this IDE can be used with JavaScript tools and extensions.

Features

• Command line
• Easily edit and debug your code with its editor
• Built-in terminal
• Zen mode and split view
• Can save or pull instances by connecting with GIt or any other repository.
• Multiple third-party extensions
• Built-in support for NodeJS development for programming languages such as JavaScript and TypeScript
• Multi-root workspaces

Benefits

• Cross-platform support
• Available for Android, macOS, and Windows
• Support multiple programming languages
• Extensible and robust architecture
• Customize each feature as per the development requirement

5. Komodo IDE

Komodo IDE is a feature-rich and robust NodeJS IDE. It is an all-inclusive IDE that supports all programming languages,including CSS, PHP, HTML, Python, GO, JavaScript, Perl, Ruby, and so on.

Creating applications with unique configurations is easy for NodeJS developers with Komodo IDE. Running regular commands, tracking, and changing commands is now effortless with Komodo IDE.

If you want to build a high-performing NodeJS application, then Komodo IDE possesses all the capabilities that can help you accomplish that.

Features

• Refactoring
• Multi-user editing with code collaboration
• Split view and multi-window feature
• Support multiple programming languages like Python and PHP for code profiling
• Autocomplete feature
• Customizable UI
• The advanced editor can perform multiple selections, variable highlighting, key bindings, and track changes.

Benefits

• Strengthen the capabilities of a development team
• Smart language detection
• Provides best add-ons
• Easy customization
• Integrated tools
• Version control
• File and workflow management
• Graphical debugging
• Code intelligence with third-party library support, DOM viewer, XML autocompletion, and symbol browser.

In Conclusion

NodeJS IDEs are indispensable tools in the field of application development. With top NodeJS IDEs, software developers can create top-notch quality, robust, real-time, and lightweight applications, while enhancing development productivity.

The integrated development environments can also be used to simplify the entire development lifecycle. You just have to match their features with your project requirements to find the most well-suited NodeJS IDE for you.