Node.js 13.x: What's New, Release History & Support Lifecycle

What Is New in Node.js 13?

ES Modules -- Moving From Experimental to Mainstream

Node.js 13 significantly advances ESM support. Files with .mjs extension or "type": "module" in package.json are loaded as ES Modules by default. import/export syntax works without any flags.

// math.mjs
export const add = (a, b) => a + b;

// app.mjs
import { add } from './math.mjs';
console.log(add(1, 2));

This is a pivotal release for any team considering moving away from CommonJS. The ESM implementation is incomplete compared to later versions (no named exports from JSON, no import maps) but usable for pure JS projects.

Promise.allSettled() and String.matchAll()

Promise.allSettled() waits for all promises in an iterable to resolve or reject, and returns an array of outcome objects. Unlike Promise.all(), it never short-circuits on a rejection -- every promise runs to completion.

const results = await Promise.allSettled([fetchA(), fetchB(), fetchC()]);
for (const r of results) {
  if (r.status === 'fulfilled') process(r.value);
  else logError(r.reason);
}

String.matchAll() returns an iterator of all regex match objects with capture groups, replacing the awkward while+exec loop pattern.

TLS 1.3 as Default

Node.js 13 sets TLS 1.3 as the default protocol for new TLS connections. TLS 1.3 reduces handshake round-trips and removes several weak cipher suites mandatorily. Most modern servers support it, but older proxies or appliances may still require TLS 1.2 as a fallback.