ts-node cannot be loaded and used, if you are running in pro

Error message

ts-node cannot be loaded and used, if you are running in production don't forget to set your NODE_ENV to production

What it means

The medusa-cli entry script tries to register ts-node and tsconfig-paths so it can run TypeScript source and resolve path aliases. If those modules are missing from node_modules (typically after a partial install or when a global install lacks devDependencies), it warns in non-production environments and falls back, which may cause later module-not-found errors for TS files or path aliases.

Source

Thrown at packages/cli/medusa-cli/cli.js:9

#!/usr/bin/env node

try {
  require("ts-node").register({})
  require("tsconfig-paths").register({})
} catch (e) {
  const isProduction = process.env.NODE_ENV === "production"
  if (!isProduction) {
    console.warn(
      "ts-node cannot be loaded and used, if you are running in production don't forget to set your NODE_ENV to production"
    )
    console.warn(e)
  }
}
require("dotenv").config()
require("./dist/index.js")

View on GitHub (pinned to 5e06e544a2)

Solutions

Set NODE_ENV=production when running in production so the warning is suppressed and behavior is expected
Ensure ts-node and tsconfig-paths are installed: npm/yarn install with devDependencies included
Prefer running the project-local medusa binary (npx medusa / yarn medusa) rather than a global install

Example fix

# before
medusa start

# after (production)
NODE_ENV=production medusa start

Defensive patterns

Strategy: fallback

Validate before calling

if (process.env.NODE_ENV !== "production" && !require.resolve("ts-node", { paths: [process.cwd()] })) {
  console.warn("ts-node missing — run a full install with devDependencies")
}

Prevention

Always set NODE_ENV=production in deployed environments
Install the CLI locally in the project rather than globally so devDependencies resolve

When it happens

Trigger: Requiring ts-node or tsconfig-paths throws MODULE_NOT_FOUND because they were pruned from node_modules (e.g. production install) while NODE_ENV is not set to production.

Common situations: Running a globally installed medusa CLI against a project; NODE_ENV unset in a production deployment; yarn install --production pruning devDependencies.

Related errors

AI-assisted analysis of medusajs/medusa@5e06e544a2 (2026-08-27). Data as JSON: /api/errors/b0db22fbc4670e05. Report an issue: GitHub.