vitest-dev/vitest · error · Error

invalid globalSetup file ${file}. Must export setup, teardow

Error message

invalid globalSetup file ${file}. Must export setup, teardown or have a default export

What it means

loadGlobalSetupFile (globalSetup.ts:47) requires the module to export at least one of: default, setup, or teardown. If none is present, vitest can't know what to run for global setup and throws.

Source

Thrown at packages/vitest/src/node/globalSetup.ts:47

        `invalid export in globalSetup file ${file}: ${exp} must be a function`,
      )
    }
  }
  if (m.default) {
    return {
      file,
      setup: m.default,
    }
  }
  else if (m.setup || m.teardown) {
    return {
      file,
      setup: m.setup,
      teardown: m.teardown,
    }
  }
  else {
    throw new Error(
      `invalid globalSetup file ${file}. Must export setup, teardown or have a default export`,
    )
  }
}

View on GitHub (pinned to d568f8ce37)

Solutions

1. Add export default function setup() { ... } (or named setup/teardown) to the file.
2. Verify the path configured in test.globalSetup points at the intended file.
3. If you only need teardown, export an empty setup and a real teardown.

Example fix

// before (globalSetup file)
export const utils = { ... } // no setup/teardown/default

// after
export default function setup() { /* init */ }

const mod = await runner.import(file)
if (typeof mod.default !== 'function' && typeof mod.setup !== 'function' && typeof mod.teardown !== 'function') {
  throw new Error(`globalSetup file ${file} must export default/setup/teardown`)
}

function hasGlobalSetupExport(mod: any): boolean {
  return typeof mod?.default === 'function'
    || typeof mod?.setup === 'function'
    || typeof mod?.teardown === 'function'
}

When it happens

Trigger: A globalSetup file that has no default export and no setup/teardown named exports — e.g. an empty file, a file with only side effects, or one with differently-named exports.

Common situations: Forgetting to add a setup function; pointing globalSetup at the wrong file; file that only re-exports helpers.

Related errors

• invalid export in globalSetup file ${file}: ${exp} must be a
• Environment "${name}" is not a valid environment. Path "${pa
• Tag "${tag.name}": priority must be a non-negative number.
• Unknown value for "test.listTags": ${listTags}
• Expected config.test.coverage.thresholds to be an object

AI-assisted analysis of vitest-dev/vitest@d568f8ce37 (2026-08-03). Data as JSON: /data/errors/82ea749a308d8ace.json. Report an issue: GitHub.