Node.js exit codes: 1, 9, 13, 124 and 128+ explained

updated 2026-10-20

tool: Node.js
versions: Node.js 20+
os: any

Node.js exits with 0 when no asynchronous work is left, and with 1 when an exception is never caught. Other codes are rarer: 9 for an invalid command-line option, 13 for a top-level await that never settles, and 128 plus the signal number when a signal kills the process.

Exit code table

Code	Name	When
0	Success	No more pending work, or process.exit() / process.exitCode = 0
1	Uncaught Fatal Exception	An exception was not caught by any handler
3	Internal JavaScript Parse Error	Bootstrapping code failed to parse (Node.js development only)
4	Internal JavaScript Evaluation Failure	Bootstrapping code did not return a function
5	Fatal Error	Unrecoverable V8 error, printed with FATAL ERROR (for example out of memory)
6	Non-function Internal Exception Handler	The internal fatal exception handler is not a function
7	Internal Exception Handler Run-Time Failure	An 'uncaughtException' handler itself threw
9	Invalid Argument	Unknown option, or an option without its value
10	Internal JavaScript Run-Time Failure	Bootstrapping function threw
12	Invalid Debug Argument	--inspect port invalid or unavailable
13	Unsettled Top-Level Await	A top-level await waits on a promise that never settles
14	Snapshot Failure	Building a V8 startup snapshot failed
124	Process Timeout	--process-timeout elapsed (Node.js 26.11+)
>128	Signal Exits	Killed by a fatal signal: 128 + signal number (137 = SIGKILL, 143 = SIGTERM)

Codes 2 and 8 are unused (2 is reserved by shells for builtin misuse; 8 was used by old Node.js versions).

See them happen

bash

node -e "throw new Error('boom')" 2>/dev/null; echo "uncaught exception -> $?"
node --not-a-real-flag 2>/dev/null; echo "invalid argument -> $?"
node --input-type=module -e "await new Promise(() => {})" 2>/dev/null; echo "unsettled top-level await -> $?"
node -e "process.exitCode = 42"; echo "process.exitCode = 42 -> $?"

Output

uncaught exception -> 1
invalid argument -> 9
unsettled top-level await -> 13
process.exitCode = 42 -> 42

Set your own exit code

Prefer process.exitCode = n over process.exit(n): it lets pending output and asynchronous work finish before the process ends.

Sources

errors · nodejsError: Cannot find module '…' in Node.jsNode.js throws Cannot find module when require() or import cannot resolve a path or package. Install the package, fix the relative path or add the extension.changes · nodejsNode.js 24 to 26: breaking changes and migrationUpgrading from Node.js 24 to 26: Temporal on by default, V8 14.6, Undici 8, fs.F_OK and SlowBuffer removed, legacy _stream modules gone, native addons rebuilt.config · nodejspackage.json "type": "module": ES modules in Node.jsSetting "type": "module" in package.json makes Node.js load .js files as ES modules: import and export work, require is undefined, and .cjs stays CommonJS.

Exit code table

See them happen

Set your own exit code

Sources

Related pages