node syntax_error ai_generated true

SyntaxError: Unexpected token

ID: node/syntaxerror-unexpected-token

Also available as: JSON · Markdown
88%Fix Rate
86%Confidence
260Evidence
2023-01-01First Seen

Version Compatibility

VersionStatusIntroducedDeprecatedNotes
20 active — — —

Root Cause

JavaScript parser encountered invalid syntax. Common with JSON parse failures or ESM/CJS confusion.

generic

Workarounds

  1. 90% success Check if the file is valid JSON when using JSON.parse() 
    try { JSON.parse(data) } catch (e) { /* handle malformed input */ }

    Sources: https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/JavaScript/Reference/Global_Objects/JSON/parse

  2. 85% success Verify file extension matches the module system (.mjs for ESM, .cjs for CJS) 
    .mjs for ESM, .cjs for CJS

    Sources: https://nodejs.org/api/esm.html#enabling

Dead Ends

Common approaches that don't work:

  1. Add Babel to transpile 55% fail

    Adds unnecessary complexity if the issue is just a syntax typo or wrong file format

  2. Upgrade Node.js version 62% fail

    Usually not a version issue but a code or configuration error

Error Chain

Leads to:
Preceded by: