# Install babel with Homebrew, dnf Compiler for writing next generation JavaScript. Version 8.0.1 via Homebrew; verified 2026-06-18. ## Install ```sh sudo av install brew:babel ``` Additional install commands: ### macOS - Homebrew (100%): ```sh brew install babel ``` Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata ### Linux - dnf (92%): ```sh sudo dnf install babel ``` Evidence: Fedora Rawhide package metadata: babel from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst ## Package facts - **Package key:** brew:babel - **Package manager:** Homebrew - **Package manager page:** - **Version:** 8.0.1 - **Source summary:** Compiler for writing next generation JavaScript - **Homepage:** - **Repository:** - **Upstream docs:** - **License:** MIT - **Source archive:** - **Last updated:** 2026-06-18T13:21:43Z - **Generated:** 2026-07-08T18:08:21+00:00 ## Executables - babel (cli) - babel-external-helpers (cli) - babel (alias) - babel-external-helpers (alias) ## Dependencies - node ## Install behavior - Post-install hook: not defined - Bottle: available on arm64_linux, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, sonoma, x86_64_linux ## Freshness - Page generated: 2026-07-08 - Package-manager version: 8.0.1 - Package-manager updated: 2026-06-18 - Local data: ok - Upstream repository: https://babeljs.io/ - info: Release/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories. ## Project history and usage Babel is a JavaScript compiler and toolchain best known for transforming modern ECMAScript syntax into JavaScript that can run in older browsers and environments. It grew from the 6to5 transpiler into one of the central packages of the JavaScript build ecosystem. ### Project history Babel began as 6to5, a tool focused on compiling ES6-era JavaScript down to ES5. In February 2015 the project announced its rename to Babel, arguing that its parser and transpiler infrastructure would remain useful beyond a single ES6-to-ES5 migration window. The official documentation now describes Babel as a broader toolchain: it transforms syntax, supports missing features through third-party polyfills such as core-js, performs source-code transformations, supports JSX, Flow, and TypeScript syntax, and is built from composable plugins and presets. Major releases mark Babel's evolving role in the JavaScript ecosystem: Babel 6 modularized the package family, Babel 7 became the long-lived default generation for modern JavaScript tooling, and the official blog announced Babel 8 in 2026 with ESM-only packaging, dropped ES5 defaults, and a migration path for current users. ### Adoption history Babel's adoption followed the rise of ES2015+, React JSX, and npm-based frontend build pipelines. Its own 2015 rename post noted that 6to5 and 6to5-core were approaching half a million downloads and expected to pass a million soon, already signaling rapid uptake before the Babel name had fully settled. By 2021, the Babel project described itself as used by millions while discussing project funding. The package metadata in this batch is narrower because the Homebrew formula is only the CLI package, but the npm ecosystem around @babel/core, @babel/cli, presets, and plugins is the real adoption center. ### How it is used Developers use Babel through @babel/core, @babel/cli, bundler integrations, presets, and plugins. Typical use cases include compiling newer ECMAScript syntax, JSX, TypeScript or Flow syntax stripping, proposal syntax experiments, and custom codemods. Configuration is project-local and can live in babel.config.* files, .babelrc variants, or a babel key in package.json. That configurability is part of why Babel works both as a command-line package and as a library embedded by larger build tools. ### Why package nerds care Babel is one of the defining JavaScript package-manager stories: a compiler decomposed into many small npm packages, presets, plugins, helpers, parser packages, and runtime packages that are assembled by user configuration. For package nerds, Babel also demonstrates both the power and cost of ecosystem-scale toolchains. It made future JavaScript usable early, but it also made package graphs, peer dependencies, semver ranges, and build-step reproducibility central concerns for frontend projects. ### Timeline - 2015: 6to5 is renamed Babel on the official blog. - 2015: Babel 5 and Babel 6 release posts appear in the official blog archive. - 2018: Babel 7 is released, becoming the long-lived generation of the toolchain. - 2021: Babel publishes a funding update describing the project as used by millions. - 2026: Babel 8 is released with ESM-only packaging and changed defaults. ### Related projects - core-js is the polyfill project Babel documentation points to for missing runtime features. - ESTree, Acorn, Esprima, ESLint, and related parser projects shaped the JavaScript syntax tooling environment Babel grew up in. - React popularized JSX workflows that made Babel a default part of frontend builds. - TypeScript and Flow are type-syntax ecosystems Babel can parse or strip without doing type checking. ### Sources - - - - - - - ## Security Notes narrow executable package without higher-risk signals. - **Geiger risk:** green / low - narrow executable package without higher-risk signals ## Configuration and credential file locations These source-backed paths show where this package keeps local settings or durable credentials. Automic Vault can use them as review targets for secret scanning, migration, and command approval. ## Configuration files - Unix: babel.config.json, babel.config.js, babel.config.cjs, babel.config.mjs, babel.config.cts, .babelrc, .babelrc.json, .babelrc.js, .babelrc.cjs, .babelrc.mjs, .babelrc.cts, package.json (babel key) ## Source Database Details - **Source Database:** Homebrew formula API - **Tap:** homebrew/core - **Full Name:** babel - **Version Scheme:** 0 - **Revision:** 0 - **Bottle Stable Root URL:** - **Deprecated:** no - **Disabled:** no - **Keg Only:** no - **URL Keys:** stable ## Other Package-Manager Records - dnf - babel - 2.18.0-3.fc45: normalized package name match | Fedora Rawhide package metadata: babel from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst | Tools for internationalizing Python applications | https://babel.pocoo.org/ - dnf - babel-doc - 2.18.0-3.fc45: normalized package name match | Fedora Rawhide package metadata: babel-doc from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst | Documentation for Babel | https://babel.pocoo.org/ - dnf - python3-babel - 2.18.0-3.fc45: normalized package name match | Fedora Rawhide package metadata: python3-babel from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst | Library for internationalizing Python applications | https://babel.pocoo.org/ ## Related links - [Terminal utility packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/terminal-utilities/) - Matched terminal and command-line workflow metadata. - [Text processing packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/text-processing-tools/) - Matched text, document, or structured-data processing metadata. - [Developer build packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/developer-build-tools/) - Matched build, compiler, generator, or developer workflow metadata. - [Language runtime packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/language-runtime-packages/) - Matched language runtime, compiler, or interpreter metadata. - [node](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/node/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [closure-compiler](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/closure-compiler/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, compiler, developer-tools, javascript. - [emscripten](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/emscripten/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, compiler, developer-tools, javascript. - [gwt](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/gwt/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, compiler, developer-tools, javascript. - [lunarml](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/lunarml/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, compiler, developer-tools, javascript. - [marked](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/marked/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, compiler, developer-tools, javascript. - [ncc](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/ncc/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, compiler, developer-tools, javascript. - [swc](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/swc/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, compiler, developer-tools, javascript. - [aarch64-elf-gcc](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/aarch64-elf-gcc/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, compiler, developer-tools. ## Combined YAML source View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/babel.yml](https://github.com/automic-vault/db/blob/main/combined/babel.yml) ## Sources - Nucleus package database - Geiger risk classifier - package-page enrichment - curated configuration and credential file locations - curated package history - package version freshness - av.db category and tag curation - package relationship graph - external package-manager database matches - cross-ecosystem install command graph