Node.js 27: one major a year, every release LTS
The Node.js Release team announced the change. Instead of two majors a year there's one, in April, with LTS promotion in October. Every release becomes LTS, and the version number matches the year: 27.0.0 in 2027, 28.0.0 in 2028.
| Line | Current | Enters LTS | End of life |
|---|---|---|---|
| 26 (last on the old model) | May 2026 | October 2026 | April 2029 |
| 27 | April 2027 | October 2027 | April 2030 |
| 28 | Apr 2028 | Oct 2028 | Apr 2031 |
A new Alpha channel takes the early-testing role of odd releases. It runs 6 months, from October to March, allows semver-major changes and isn't meant for production. The releases page already lists v27 as Alpha, first released Oct 29, 2026.
Example
Illustrative. You upgrade once a year in November. On the new model that's one fresh LTS each autumn: 27 in late 2027, 28 in late 2028. Total support for a line is 36 months, so you could also skip one.
Important
If you publish a library and test only on LTS, you can't report bugs early. The project asks library authors to add Alpha releases to CI. The schedule is not final and may be amended.
Update your plan
- ☐ Drop any odd/even rule from your docs
- ☐ Add the 27 dates to your roadmap
- ☐ Add an Alpha job to library CI
- ☐ Check your line's end of life
Timeline and roadmap — plan a year on one page →
Source: nodejs.org, Evolving the Node.js Release Schedule; Node.js Releases.