Bluebird
A JavaScript promise library with extra utilities, mostly superseded by native promises.
- Stars
- 20.5k
- Forks
- 2.3k
- Licence
- MIT
- Language
- JavaScript
- Last update
- 2.0 years ago
- Type
- Library
No commits in over a year — check for forks or alternatives before adopting.
What it is
Bluebird is a JavaScript library for working with promises, which are objects that represent a result that will arrive later, such as data from a network request. It adds extra features and utilities on top of the standard promise behavior. The README says its maintainers now recommend native JavaScript promises instead, and suggests Bluebird mainly for very old browsers, end-of-life Node.js, or as a debugging aid.
- Wrapping asynchronous operations in promises with utilities such as .map
- Adding warnings to help find promise-related bugs during development
- Supporting older browsers that lack native promise support
Great for
- Maintainers of legacy codebases that already depend on Bluebird
- Projects that must support very old browsers or end-of-life Node.js versions
- Developers using Bluebird's warnings or monitoring to track down promise bugs
Not ideal for
- New projects, since the README says to use native promises if at all possible
- Developers on modern browsers or supported Node.js versions, who already have native promises with similar utilities
- Anyone looking for a current, actively promoted choice, because the README steers users toward native alternatives
How to get it
- 1
Install with a package manager
You'll need: Node.js or a browser environment
Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/petkaantonov/bluebird - 2
Run it
- Read the official documentation at bluebirdjs.com/docs/getting-started.html
- Import or require the library in your project
- Create a promise and chain .then calls as you would with native promises
- 3
Get the most out of it
- Check the API reference at bluebirdjs.com/docs/api-reference.html for available utilities
- Use the README's suggestion to find bugs with warnings and monitoring during development
- Ask questions on StackOverflow under the tags promise and bluebird rather than in GitHub issues
Downloads
Strengths
- Long-established library with a MIT license and a large star count on GitHub
- The README reports a test coverage badge of 98% and Promises/A+ compliance
- Offers utilities beyond the basic promise API
Trade-offs
- The README itself recommends native promises instead for most uses
- Last push date is November 2024, and the README points to documentation on an external website
- Documentation and install steps are not detailed in the README, so setup is sparsely described here
How it compares
| Project | Stars | Type | Level | Updated | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| bluebird (this) | 20.5k | Library | beginner | 2.0 years ago | Maintainers of legacy codebases that already depend on Bluebird |
| q | 15k | Library | intermediate | 3.0 years ago | Developers maintaining older codebases that already depend on Q |
Stats synced from GitHub. The assessment above was drafted with AI from the project's README on 2026-10-29 and may miss recent changes — check the README before relying on a command. MIT licence: free to use, modify and distribute, including commercially, as long as you keep the copyright notice.