pnpm/action-setup

Install the pnpm package manager, so setup-node can cache the pnpm store.

Community actionCategory: Language & Toolchain SetupLatest v4View on GitHub

What it does

pnpm/action-setup installs pnpm and puts it on PATH. Because setup-node reads pnpm to locate the store for caching, this action must run first.

It can also run install directly, but the common pattern is setup pnpm, then setup-node with cache: pnpm.

Usage

workflow (.yml)

steps:
  - uses: actions/checkout@v4
  - uses: pnpm/action-setup@v4
    with:
      version: 9
  - uses: actions/setup-node@v4
    with:
      node-version: 20
      cache: 'pnpm'
  - run: pnpm install --frozen-lockfile

Inputs

Input	Description	Default	Required
`version`	pnpm version to install.	`from packageManager field`	No
`run_install`	Run pnpm install as part of the action.	`null`	No
`package_json_file`	package.json to read the pnpm version from.	`package.json`	No

Notes

Order matters: install pnpm before setup-node so cache: pnpm can find the store.

Common errors

Unable to locate executable file: pnpm from setup-node means action-setup ran after setup-node (or not at all). Put it first.

Security and pinning

Pin to a commit SHA and pin the pnpm version for reproducible installs.

Alternatives and related

actions/setup-nodeInstall a specific Node.js version and cache your npm, yarn, or pnpm dependencies.

Frequently asked questions

Why does setup-node say it cannot find pnpm?

setup-node needs the pnpm binary to compute the store cache. Run pnpm/action-setup before setup-node.