The externals configuration option provides a way of excluding dependencies from the output bundles. Instead, the created bundle relies on that dependency to be present in the consumer's (any end-user application) environment. This feature is typically most useful to library developers, however there are a variety of applications for it.

externals

string object function RegExp [string, object, function, RegExp]

Prevent bundling of certain imported packages and instead retrieve these external dependencies at runtime.

For example, to include jQuery from a CDN instead of bundling it:

index.html

<script
  src="https://code.jquery.com/jquery-3.1.0.js"
  integrity="sha256-slogkvB1K3VOkzAI8QITxV3VzpOnkeNVsKvtkYLMjfk="
  crossorigin="anonymous"
></script>

webpack.config.js

module.exports = {
  //...
  externals: {
    jquery: 'jQuery',
  },
};

This leaves any dependent modules unchanged, i.e. the code shown below will still work:

import $ from 'jquery';

$('.my-element').animate(/* ... */);

The property name jquery specified under externals in the above webpack.config.js indicates that the module jquery in import $ from 'jquery' should be excluded from bundling. In order to replace this module, the value jQuery will be used to retrieve a global jQuery variable, as the default external library type is var, see externalsType.

While we showed an example consuming external global variable above, the external can actually be available in any of these forms: global variable, CommonJS, AMD, ES2015 Module, see more in externalsType.

string

Depending on the externalsType, this could be the name of the global variable (see 'global', 'this', 'var', 'window') or the name of the module (see amd, commonjs, module, umd).

You can also use the shortcut syntax if you're defining only 1 external:

module.exports = {
  //...
  externals: 'jquery',
};

equals to

module.exports = {
  //...
  externals: {
    jquery: 'jquery',
  },
};

You can specify the external library type to the external with the ${externalsType} ${libraryName} syntax. It will override the default external library type specified in the externalsType option.

For example, if the external library is a CommonJS module, you can specify

module.exports = {
  //...
  externals: {
    jquery: 'commonjs jquery',
  },
};

[string]

module.exports = {
  //...
  externals: {
    subtract: ['./math', 'subtract'],
  },
};

subtract: ['./math', 'subtract'] allows you select part of a module, where ./math is the module and your bundle only requires the subset under the subtract variable.

When the externalsType is commonjs, this example would translate to require('./math').subtract; while when the externalsType is window, this example would translate to window["./math"]["subtract"];

Similar to the string syntax, you can specify the external library type with the ${externalsType} ${libraryName} syntax, in the first item of the array, for example:

module.exports = {
  //...
  externals: {
    subtract: ['commonjs ./math', 'subtract'],
  },
};

object

module.exports = {
  //...
  externals: {
    react: 'react',
  },

  // or

  externals: {
    lodash: {
      commonjs: 'lodash',
      amd: 'lodash',
      root: '_', // indicates global variable
    },
  },

  // or

  externals: {
    subtract: {
      root: ['math', 'subtract'],
    },
  },
};

This syntax is used to describe all the possible ways that an external library can be made available. lodash here is available as lodash under AMD and CommonJS module systems but available as _ in a global variable form. subtract here is available via the property subtract under the global math object (e.g. window['math']['subtract']).

function

• function ({ context, request, contextInfo, getResolve }, callback)
• function ({ context, request, contextInfo, getResolve }) => promise 5.15.0+

It might be useful to define your own function to control the behavior of what you want to externalize from webpack. webpack-node-externals, for example, excludes all modules from the node_modules directory and provides options to allowlist packages.

Here're arguments the function can receive:

• ctx (object): Object containing details of the file.
  • ctx.context (string): The directory of the file which contains the import.
  • ctx.request (string): The import path being requested.
  • ctx.contextInfo (object): Contains information about the issuer (e.g. the layer and compiler)
  • ctx.getResolve 5.15.0+: Get a resolve function with the current resolver options.
• callback (function (err, result, type)): Callback function used to indicate how the module should be externalized.

The callback function takes three arguments:

• err (Error): Used to indicate if there has been an error while externalizing the import. If there is an error, this should be the only parameter used.
• result (string [string] object): Describes the external module with the other external formats (string, [string], or object)
• type (string): Optional parameter that indicates the module external type (if it has not already been indicated in the result parameter).

As an example, to externalize all imports where the import path matches a regular expression you could do the following:

webpack.config.js

module.exports = {
  //...
  externals: [
    function ({ context, request }, callback) {
      if (/^yourregex$/.test(request)) {
        // Externalize to a commonjs module using the request path
        return callback(null, 'commonjs ' + request);
      }

      // Continue without externalizing the import
      callback();
    },
  ],
};

Other examples using different module formats:

webpack.config.js

module.exports = {
  externals: [
    function (ctx, callback) {
      // The external is a `commonjs2` module located in `@scope/library`
      callback(null, '@scope/library', 'commonjs2');
    },
  ],
};

webpack.config.js

module.exports = {
  externals: [
    function (ctx, callback) {
      // The external is a global variable called `nameOfGlobal`.
      callback(null, 'nameOfGlobal');
    },
  ],
};

webpack.config.js

module.exports = {
  externals: [
    function (ctx, callback) {
      // The external is a named export in the `@scope/library` module.
      callback(null, ['@scope/library', 'namedexport'], 'commonjs');
    },
  ],
};

webpack.config.js

module.exports = {
  externals: [
    function (ctx, callback) {
      // The external is a UMD module
      callback(null, {
        root: 'componentsGlobal',
        commonjs: '@scope/components',
        commonjs2: '@scope/components',
        amd: 'components',
      });
    },
  ],
};

RegExp

Every dependency that matches the given regular expression will be excluded from the output bundles.

webpack.config.js

module.exports = {
  //...
  externals: /^(jquery|\$)$/i,
};

In this case, any dependency named jQuery, capitalized or not, or $ would be externalized.

Combining syntaxes

Sometimes you may want to use a combination of the above syntaxes. This can be done in the following manner:

webpack.config.js

module.exports = {
  //...
  externals: [
    {
      // String
      react: 'react',
      // Object
      lodash: {
        commonjs: 'lodash',
        amd: 'lodash',
        root: '_', // indicates global variable
      },
      // [string]
      subtract: ['./math', 'subtract'],
    },
    // Function
    function ({ context, request }, callback) {
      if (/^yourregex$/.test(request)) {
        return callback(null, 'commonjs ' + request);
      }
      callback();
    },
    // Regex
    /^(jquery|\$)$/i,
  ],
};

For more information on how to use this configuration, please refer to the article on how to author a library.

byLayer

function object

Specify externals by layer.

webpack.config.js

module.exports = {
  externals: {
    byLayer: {
      layer: {
        external1: 'var 43',
      },
    },
  },
};

externalsType

string = 'var'

Specify the default type of externals. amd, umd, system and jsonp externals depend on the output.libraryTarget being set to the same value e.g. you can only consume amd externals within an amd library.

Supported types:

• 'amd'
• 'amd-require'
• 'assign' - same as 'var'
• 'commonjs'
• 'commonjs-module'
• 'global'
• 'import' - uses import() to load a native EcmaScript module (async module)
• 'jsonp'
• 'module'
• 'node-commonjs'
• 'promise' - same as 'var' but awaits the result (async module)
• 'self'
• 'system'
• 'script'
• 'this'
• 'umd'
• 'umd2'
• 'var'
• 'window'

webpack.config.js

module.exports = {
  //...
  externalsType: 'promise',
};

externalsType.commonjs

Specify the default type of externals as 'commonjs'. Webpack will generate code like const X = require('...') for externals used in a module.

Example

import fs from 'fs-extra';

webpack.config.js

module.exports = {
  // ...
  externalsType: 'commonjs',
  externals: {
    'fs-extra': 'fs-extra',
  },
};

Will generate into something like:

const fs = require('fs-extra');

Note that there will be a require() in the output bundle.

externalsType.global

Specify the default type of externals as 'global'. Webpack will read the external as a global variable on the globalObject.

Example

import jq from 'jquery';
jq('.my-element').animate(/* ... */);

webpack.config.js

module.exports = {
  // ...
  externalsType: 'global',
  externals: {
    jquery: '$',
  },
  output: {
    globalObject: 'global',
  },
};

Will generate into something like

const jq = global['$'];
jq('.my-element').animate(/* ... */);

externalsType.module

Specify the default type of externals as 'module'. Webpack will generate code like import * as X from '...' for externals used in a module.

Make sure to enable experiments.outputModule first, otherwise webpack will throw errors.

Example

import jq from 'jquery';
jq('.my-element').animate(/* ... */);

webpack.config.js

module.exports = {
  experiments: {
    outputModule: true,
  },
  externalsType: 'module',
  externals: {
    jquery: 'jquery',
  },
};

Will generate into something like

import * as __WEBPACK_EXTERNAL_MODULE_jquery__ from 'jquery';

const jq = __WEBPACK_EXTERNAL_MODULE_jquery__['default'];
jq('.my-element').animate(/* ... */);

Note that there will be an import statement in the output bundle.

externalsType.node-commonjs

Specify the default type of externals as 'node-commonjs'. Webpack will import createRequire from 'module' to construct a require function for loading externals used in a module.

Example

import jq from 'jquery';
jq('.my-element').animate(/* ... */);

webpack.config.js

module.export = {
  experiments: {
    outputModule: true,
  },
  externalsType: 'node-commonjs',
  externals: {
    jquery: 'jquery',
  },
};

Will generate into something like

import { createRequire } from 'module';

const jq = createRequire(import.meta.url)('jquery');
jq('.my-element').animate(/* ... */);

Note that there will be an import statement in the output bundle.

externalsType.promise

Specify the default type of externals as 'promise'. Webpack will read the external as a global variable (similar to 'var') and await for it.

Example

import jq from 'jquery';
jq('.my-element').animate(/* ... */);

webpack.config.js

module.exports = {
  // ...
  externalsType: 'promise',
  externals: {
    jquery: '$',
  },
};

Will generate into something like

const jq = await $;
jq('.my-element').animate(/* ... */);

externalsType.self

Specify the default type of externals as 'self'. Webpack will read the external as a global variable on the self object.

Example

import jq from 'jquery';
jq('.my-element').animate(/* ... */);

webpack.config.js

module.exports = {
  // ...
  externalsType: 'self',
  externals: {
    jquery: '$',
  },
};

Will generate into something like

const jq = self['$'];
jq('.my-element').animate(/* ... */);

externalsType.script

Specify the default type of externals as 'script'. Webpack will load the external as a script exposing predefined global variables with HTML <script> element. The <script> tag would be removed after the script has been loaded.

Syntax

module.exports = {
  externalsType: 'script',
  externals: {
    packageName: [
      'http://example.com/script.js',
      'global',
      'property',
      'property',
    ], // properties are optional
  },
};

You can also use the shortcut syntax if you're not going to specify any properties:

module.exports = {
  externalsType: 'script',
  externals: {
    packageName: 'global@http://example.com/script.js', // no properties here
  },
};

Note that output.publicPath won't be added to the provided URL.

Example

Let's load a lodash from CDN:

webpack.config.js

module.exports = {
  // ...
  externalsType: 'script',
  externals: {
    lodash: ['https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/[email protected]/lodash.min.js', '_'],
  },
};

Then use it in code:

import _ from 'lodash';
console.log(_.head([1, 2, 3]));

Here's how we specify properties for the above example:

module.exports = {
  // ...
  externalsType: 'script',
  externals: {
    lodash: [
      'https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/[email protected]/lodash.min.js',
      '_',
      'head',
    ],
  },
};

Both local variable head and global window._ will be exposed when you import lodash:

import head from 'lodash';
console.log(head([1, 2, 3])); // logs 1 here
console.log(window._.head(['a', 'b'])); // logs a here

externalsType.this

Specify the default type of externals as 'this'. Webpack will read the external as a global variable on the this object.

Example

import jq from 'jquery';
jq('.my-element').animate(/* ... */);

webpack.config.js

module.exports = {
  // ...
  externalsType: 'this',
  externals: {
    jquery: '$',
  },
};

Will generate into something like

const jq = this['$'];
jq('.my-element').animate(/* ... */);

externalsType.var

Specify the default type of externals as 'var'. Webpack will read the external as a global variable.

Example

import jq from 'jquery';
jq('.my-element').animate(/* ... */);

webpack.config.js

module.exports = {
  // ...
  externalsType: 'var',
  externals: {
    jquery: '$',
  },
};

Will generate into something like

const jq = $;
jq('.my-element').animate(/* ... */);

externalsType.window

Specify the default type of externals as 'window'. Webpack will read the external as a global variable on the window object.

Example

import jq from 'jquery';
jq('.my-element').animate(/* ... */);

webpack.config.js

module.exports = {
  // ...
  externalsType: 'window',
  externals: {
    jquery: '$',
  },
};

Will generate into something like

const jq = window['$'];
jq('.my-element').animate(/* ... */);

externalsPresets

object

Enable presets of externals for specific targets.

Option	Description	Input Type
electron	Treat common electron built-in modules in main and preload context like electron, ipc or shell as external and load them via require() when used.	boolean
electronMain	Treat electron built-in modules in the main context like app, ipc-main or shell as external and load them via require() when used.	boolean
electronPreload	Treat electron built-in modules in the preload context like web-frame, ipc-renderer or shell as external and load them via require() when used.	boolean
electronRenderer	Treat electron built-in modules in the renderer context like web-frame, ipc-renderer or shell as external and load them via require() when used.	boolean
node	Treat node.js built-in modules like fs, path or vm as external and load them via require() when used.	boolean
nwjs	Treat NW.js legacy nw.gui module as external and load it via require() when used.	boolean
web	Treat references to http(s)://... and std:... as external and load them via import when used. (Note that this changes execution order as externals are executed before any other code in the chunk).	boolean
webAsync	Treat references to http(s)://... and std:... as external and load them via async import() when used (Note that this external type is an async module, which has various effects on the execution).	boolean

Note that if you're going to output ES Modules with those node.js-related presets, webpack will set the default externalsType to node-commonjs which would use createRequire to construct a require function instead of using require().

Example

Using node preset will not bundle built-in modules and treats them as external and loads them via require() when used.

webpack.config.js

module.exports = {
  // ...
  externalsPresets: {
    node: true,
  },
};