np is a command-line tool that transforms the npm publishing process into a guided, interactive experience with built-in safeguards. Instead of manually managing version bumps, running tests, and pushing tags, np handles the entire workflow while preventing common publishing mistakes.

Key capabilities include:

Interactive UI that walks you through each publishing step
Automatic validation of your working directory, ensuring it's clean and up-to-date before publishing
Dependency verification by reinstalling node_modules to confirm compatibility with the latest dependency tree
Version compatibility checks for Node.js and npm versions across your project and dependencies
Automated testing to catch issues before they reach npm
Smart version bumping that updates package.json and creates git tags automatically
Pre-release protection preventing accidental publishing of beta versions to the latest dist-tag
Two-factor authentication support with automatic enablement on new packages
Dry-run mode to preview exactly what will execute without making any changes
Rollback capability that reverts your project if publishing fails
GitHub Releases integration with prefilled drafts after successful publishing
Multi-package manager support for npm 9+, Yarn, pnpm 8+, and Bun

The tool is designed for local interactive use by developers, not for CI environments. It includes warnings about extraneous files and supports GitHub Packages and custom dist-tags for flexible release strategies.