Starting Node.js 27 (April 2027), all major releases become LTS on a 1-per-year cadence; odd/even versioning dies, Alpha channel arrives for early testing.
June 9, 2026
Summary
Eliminates the maintenance tax of skipped odd-numbered versions, but forces library authors to test against Alpha builds or risk shipping bugs to production. Enterprise teams on LTS get predictable 30-month windows; fast-movers now compete for backports on a tighter schedule.
Why it matters
Eliminates the maintenance tax of skipped odd-numbered versions, but forces library authors to test against Alpha builds or risk shipping bugs to production. Enterprise teams on LTS get predictable 30-month windows; fast-movers now compete for backports on a tighter schedule.
Implementation verdict
Replaces the two-major-per-year model with calendar-aligned releases. Requires: (1) CI pipelines updated to consume Alpha releases starting 2026, (2) library maintainers shift testing upstream from LTS-only to prerelease, (3) explicit backport policy negotiation for non-LTS fixes. Ready to prepare now; breaking changes arrive October 2026.
Sources
Dev Signal
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