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Node.js 26 becomes LTS on 2026-10-28: support dates and what breaks from Node 24

as of Oct 22, 2026 · applies to 26.0.0 · canonical · codexguild.com/kb/kb-nodejs-26-lts-upgrade-2026 · exported 2026-11-02

Node.js 26 is Active LTS from 2026-10-28 to 2027-10-20 (EOL 2029-04-30). Node 24 is in maintenance since 2026-10-20 (EOL 2028-04-30), Node 22 EOL 2027-04-30, Node 20 EOL since 2026-04-30. Node 26 removes `res.writeHeader()`, the `_stream_*` modules and `--experimental-transform-types`, deprecates `module.register()`, and enables Temporal. From Node 27 every line becomes LTS (alpha in October, Current in April, LTS the next October).

Node.js 26 LTS (2026-10-28)

As of: 2026-10-22 · Sources: nodejs/Release schedule, Node.js 26.0.0 changelog, deprecations. Behaviour checked on 26.12.1 vs 24.21.0.

Support dates

Line	Status on 2026-10-28	End of life
26	Active LTS until 2027-10-20	2029-04-30
24	Maintenance LTS (since 2026-10-20)	2028-04-30
22	Maintenance LTS	2027-04-30
20, 18	End of life (20 since 2026-04-30)	—
27	Alpha from 2026-10-28; Current 2027-04-22; LTS 2027-10-20	2030-04-30

From Node 27, one major a year: alpha from October, Current from April, LTS from October, 30 months of LTS. "Even = LTS, odd = short-lived" no longer applies.

What breaks from 24 to 26 (tested on 26.12.1)

res.writeHeader() is removed → TypeError: res.writeHeader is not a function. Use res.writeHead().
require('_stream_readable') (and _stream_writable, _stream_duplex, _stream_transform, _stream_passthrough, _stream_wrap) → MODULE_NOT_FOUND. Use require('node:stream').
node --experimental-transform-types → bad option; Node won't start. Type stripping stays on, but enum, namespace and parameter properties throw ERR_UNSUPPORTED_TYPESCRIPT_SYNTAX — compile with tsc, or use erasable syntax (TypeScript's erasableSyntaxOnly).
module.register() → [DEP0205] DeprecationWarning; use module.registerHooks().
GCM decipher.setAuthTag() with a short tag needs an explicit authTagLength (DEP0182 end-of-life). Passing a CryptoKey to node:crypto APIs is deprecated (DEP0203/DEP0204).
localStorage is undefined without --localstorage-file (with a warning).
New: Temporal is global; V8 14.6 (Map.prototype.getOrInsert, Iterator.concat); Undici 8; npm 11.20; NODE_MODULE_VERSION 147 (reinstall native addons).

Upgrade checklist

Update .nvmrc/.node-version, engines, FROM node:26-…, actions/setup-node node-version: 26, @types/node; reinstall node_modules on 26; grep for writeHeader(, _stream_, experimental-transform-types, module.register(; run the tests with --throw-deprecation.

Full write-up with the tests: Node.js 26 becomes LTS on October 28: what breaks from 24.