CircleCI "orb not found" / Orb Not Loaded

CircleCI could not load an orb your config references. It is not declared under orbs:, the pinned version does not exist, it is uncertified and your org blocks those, or it is private and inaccessible.

What this error means

Validation fails resolving the orb itself (not an element inside it). The named orb or version cannot be fetched, so the whole config is rejected.

circleci

Error resolving orb 'circleci/node@9.9.9':
orb not found, or version does not exist
Error: config compilation contains errors

Common causes

Orb not declared or wrong version

You referenced node/... without adding node: under orbs:, or pinned a version (@9.9.9) that was never published. Only declared orbs and published versions resolve.

Uncertified orb blocked by org policy

Organization security settings can restrict pipelines to certified (CircleCI-namespace) orbs, so a third-party orb fails to resolve until allowed.

Private orb without access

A private namespace orb resolves only for pipelines in that org with access. Cross-org or fork pipelines cannot load it.

How to fix it

Declare the orb and pin a real version

.circleci/config.yml

version: 2.1
orbs:
  node: circleci/node@5.2.0

jobs:
  build:
    docker: [{ image: cimg/node:20.11 }]
    steps: [checkout, node/install-packages]

List versions or allow uncertified orbs

Run circleci orb info circleci/node to see published versions, then pin a real one.
For third-party orbs, enable "Allow uncertified orbs" in Organization Settings - Security if policy permits.
For private orbs, confirm the pipeline runs in the owning org with access.

Terminal

circleci orb info circleci/node

How to prevent it

Pin orbs to explicit published versions, never a guessed one.
Document your org's uncertified-orb policy for contributors.
Avoid private orbs in workflows that must run on fork PRs.