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Apache Maven VS npm

Compare Apache Maven VS npm and see what are their differences

Apache Maven logo Apache Maven

Apache Maven is a project comprehension and management software tool.

npm logo npm

npm is a package manager for Node.
  • Apache Maven Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-05-11
  • npm Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-03

Apache Maven features and specs

  • Dependency Management
    Maven simplifies the process of including third-party libraries in your project. It automatically downloads the libraries your project depends on and also their dependencies transitively.
  • Standardized Project Structure
    Maven enforces a standard project structure. This makes it easier for developers to understand and navigate newly joined projects.
  • Reproducible Builds
    With Maven, builds are more consistent and reproducible across different environments, thanks to its strict configuration and dependency management.
  • Extensive Plugin Ecosystem
    Maven has a rich ecosystem of plugins for tasks like compiling code, packaging software, running tests, and generating documentation, which can be easily integrated into the build process.
  • Multi-Module Projects
    Maven supports multi-module projects, allowing for better organization and separation of concerns within large projects that might consist of multiple interdependent subprojects.

Possible disadvantages of Apache Maven

  • XML Configuration
    Maven uses XML for its configuration, which can become verbose and cumbersome, especially for complex projects with numerous dependencies and plugins.
  • Learning Curve
    New users may find Maven's concepts and configurations challenging to learn and understand, particularly the dependency management and lifecycle phases.
  • Performance Issues
    The build process in Maven can sometimes be slow, particularly for large projects with extensive dependencies, as it needs to download and check for updates in the repository.
  • Lack of Flexibility
    Maven's conventions and structures might be overly rigid for some projects. Custom build requirements may sometimes require awkward workarounds or even external tools.
  • Potential for Dependency Conflicts
    While Maven manages dependencies well, complex projects can still encounter issues with conflicting versions of transitive dependencies, leading to build errors and runtime issues.

npm features and specs

  • Large Ecosystem
    npm boasts an extensive library of packages, making it easier for developers to find existing solutions for a wide array of tasks.
  • Active Community
    A vibrant and active community ensures continuous updates, support, and improvements for various packages.
  • Integration with Node.js
    Seamless integration with Node.js, which makes it the default package manager for Node.js projects.
  • Version Control
    Provides robust version control, enabling developers to specify and manage dependencies precisely.
  • Scripts
    Allows automation of tasks through custom scripts defined in the package.json file, enhancing development workflow.

Possible disadvantages of npm

  • Security Issues
    The open nature can potentially lead to dependency on unvetted or insecure packages, posing security risks.
  • Deprecation and Abandonment
    Packages may be deprecated or abandoned by their maintainers, which can disrupt projects that depend on them.
  • Complex Dependency Management
    Managing complex dependencies and resolving conflicts between them can sometimes be challenging and time-consuming.
  • Performance Overhead
    The sheer size of the node_modules directory can lead to performance overhead and large project sizes.
  • Quality Variability
    The quality of packages on npm can vary widely, with some lacking sufficient documentation or tests.

Apache Maven videos

Apache Maven - Review of Concepts & Theory!

More videos:

  • Review - Apache Maven - Introduction || Automation || Episode 01

npm videos

Artis bus NPM Mr marcha sopir ny ramah,Review detail bus baru yang berangkat dari Payakumbuh~Jakarta

More videos:

  • Review - Review bus baru NPM,, V15 Mr marcha ft kru kece,, berangkat Payakumbuh menuju Jakarta
  • Review - Analysis of an Exploited NPM Package || Jarrod Overson

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Apache Maven and npm)
DevOps Tools
100 100%
0% 0
Front End Package Manager
Continuous Integration
100 100%
0% 0
JS Build Tools
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Apache Maven and npm

Apache Maven Reviews

35+ Of The Best CI/CD Tools: Organized By Category
Apache Maven is a software build automation and project management tool. It’s popular among the open-source and Java community. Maven allows you to build and deploy code in Scala, Ruby, Java, C#, Python, etc.

npm Reviews

Repository Management Tools
There are three components to npm, they are the website, registry and the cli. The npm website is the place where developers discover packages, set up their profiles and also manage the other aspects of npm. The npm registry is the huge database that contains all the dependencies and stuff whereas the npm cli is the one that is used by most of the developers to interact with...
Source: mindmajix.com
What is Artifactory?
All packages are organized so that you can keep track of all of the dependencies and their various versions. The registry, website, and command-line interface, or CLI, are the three components of npm. The npm website is where developers can find packages, create profiles, and manage other elements of the npm project. The npm registry is an extensive database that holds all...

Social recommendations and mentions

npm might be a bit more popular than Apache Maven. We know about 64 links to it since March 2021 and only 56 links to Apache Maven. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Apache Maven mentions (56)

  • Testing the startup time for your Fire OS app
    Install Maven Hint: The instructions on Maven’s website can be a bit confounding, so: If you’re on a Mac, use Homebrew to install it by running brew install maven in the terminal If you’re on Windows, check out this blog post. - Source: dev.to / 6 months ago
  • Tutorial: Build a Java SDK based on OpenAPI Spec
    Maven: If you're more familiar with Maven and don't need custom build logic, it’s a Solid, well-established Option. Maven is known for its simplicity, strong dependency management, and extensive ecosystem. It integrates easily With package distribution platforms like Maven Central. - Source: dev.to / 8 months ago
  • My Journey with AWS CDK and Java: What You Need to Know
    From what I’ve seen, adopting the CDK in Java is relatively easy for most of these teams as they already understand the language and the ecosystem. Integrating the CDK with their existing build tools like Maven and Gradle is well documented, which leaves them with the learning curve of understanding how to work with infrastructure as code, how to structure a CDK project and when to use L1, L2 and L3 constructs. - Source: dev.to / 8 months ago
  • Install Apache Maven
    Visit the official Maven website to download the latest version of Maven. - Source: dev.to / 9 months ago
  • How to secure Python Flask applications
    In addition, Snyk can be easily integrated with various IDEs, including Visual Studio Code and PyCharm, as well as CI pipelines, such as Jenkins, CircleCI, and Maven, and workflows. - Source: dev.to / 12 months ago
View more

npm mentions (64)

  • A Gentle Introduction to WebAssembly in Rust (2025 Edition)
    If your WASM code is self contained in Rust, you can build it in production mode and publish it on npmjs.com right now. The wasm-pack tool creates all the TypeScript types, package.json skeleton and anything else needed for a complete package. It is recommended that you review and update your package.json file prior to publishing. - Source: dev.to / 4 months ago
  • Publishing To NPM For The First Time
    First, I signed up for an account on npmjs.com and authenticated my npm CLI with my account using a "publish" type access token generated from the website. - Source: dev.to / 6 months ago
  • How to Publish an npm Package
    Congratulations,now you package on npm you can check using go npmjs check your profile. - Source: dev.to / 10 months ago
  • A step-by-step guide on how to create and publish and npm package
    To begin, you will need to choose a name for your package. Note: Your package name must be unique. Using the exact or similar name of an existing package will return an error when publishing the package to npm. To ensure the uniquenesses of your package name, head over to npmjs.com and search for any existing packages with a similar name. If there’s an exact match or a similar name, consider changing the name... - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
  • Caching RESTful API requests with Heroku’s Redis Add-on
    By using Fastify, you can quickly get a Node.js application up and running to handle requests. Assuming you have Node.js installed, you’ll start by initializing a new project. We’ll use npm as our package manager. - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Apache Maven and npm, you can also consider the following products

Gradle - Accelerate developer productivity. Gradle helps teams build, automate and deliver better software, faster. DocsExplore the documentation of Gradle. Find installation ..

Yarn - Yarn is a package manager for your code.

CircleCI - CircleCI gives web developers powerful Continuous Integration and Deployment with easy setup and maintenance.

Webpack - Webpack is a module bundler. Its main purpose is to bundle JavaScript files for usage in a browser, yet it is also capable of transforming, bundling, or packaging just about any resource or asset.

Jenkins - Jenkins is an open-source continuous integration server with 300+ plugins to support all kinds of software development

Ender - Frontend Development