axios vs node-fetch

node-fetch is downloaded 1.3× more often than axios (596,360,386 vs 447,209,128 per month), so it has the larger community and more answered questions online. Both projects are actively maintained.

Metric	axios	node-fetch
Weekly downloads	109,136,509	141,594,834✓
Monthly downloads	447,209,128	596,360,386✓
GitHub stars	109,089✓	8,857
Minified size	40.2 kB	—
Minified + gzipped	15.5 kB	—
Dependencies	4	—
Open issues	146✓	247
Last commit	2026-06-01✓	2026-05-12
Latest version	1.16.1	3.3.2
License	MIT	MIT

When to choose which

axios

The full-featured HTTP client for browser and Node.

Choose it when: You want interceptors, wide browser support and a huge ecosystem of plugins and examples.

+ Interceptors
+ Works everywhere
+ Massive ecosystem
- Larger than fetch wrappers
- XHR-based in the browser

node-fetch

A fetch() polyfill for older Node.js.

Choose it when: Legacy Node before v18. On Node 18+ fetch is global, so you usually no longer need this.

+ Familiar fetch API
+ Lightweight
- Redundant on Node 18+
- Manual JSON parsing
- No interceptors

Feature comparison

Feature	axios	node-fetch
Runtime	Browser + Node	Node only
Built on	XHR / http	fetch polyfill
Interceptors / hooks	✓ Yes	✗ No
Automatic JSON	✓ Yes	✗ No
Built-in retries	✗ No	✗ No

axios

Promise based HTTP client for the browser and node.js

Details GitHub npm

node-fetch

A light-weight module that brings Fetch API to node.js

Details GitHub npm

Related comparisons

axios vs ky axios vs got axios vs superagent axios vs wretch axios vs redaxios axios vs undici ky vs node-fetch got vs node-fetch

Embed this comparison

A live badge for your README — it updates as the numbers change.

[![axios vs node-fetch](https://devcompare.dev/badge/axios-vs-node-fetch.svg)](https://devcompare.dev/compare/axios-vs-node-fetch)

Data from npm, Bundlephobia and GitHub. Last updated 2026-06-02.