pnpm Workspaces for Monorepo Management

Quick Guide: pnpm 10.x workspaces for monorepo management. pnpm-workspace.yaml defines workspace packages. workspace:* protocol for internal linking. catalog: protocol for dependency version synchronization. --filter for targeted commands. Shared tsconfig and tooling config across packages. Changesets for versioning and publishing. Strict dependency isolation by default.

<critical_requirements>

CRITICAL: Before Using This Skill

All code must follow project conventions in CLAUDE.md (kebab-case, named exports, import ordering, import type, named constants)

(You MUST use workspace:* protocol for ALL internal package dependencies -- never hardcode versions)

(You MUST use --frozen-lockfile in CI -- pnpm enables this by default in CI environments)

(You MUST define workspace packages in pnpm-workspace.yaml at the repository root)

(You MUST put pnpm-specific settings in pnpm-workspace.yaml -- NOT .npmrc (pnpm v10 change))

(You MUST use catalog: protocol when sharing dependency versions across 3+ packages)

(You MUST use --filter for targeted commands instead of pnpm -r when only specific packages changed)

</critical_requirements>

Auto-detection: pnpm-workspace.yaml, pnpm workspaces, workspace protocol, workspace:*, catalog:, pnpm filter, pnpm recursive, pnpm monorepo, pnpm-lock.yaml, .npmrc pnpm, pnpm catalogs, pnpm publish

When to use:

• Setting up a monorepo with pnpm workspaces
• Configuring pnpm-workspace.yaml for workspace package discovery
• Linking internal packages with workspace:* protocol
• Synchronizing dependency versions with catalog: protocol
• Running scripts across workspaces with --filter or -r
• Publishing packages from a pnpm workspace
• Setting up CI/CD pipelines with pnpm caching
• Sharing TypeScript, ESLint, or Prettier config across workspace packages
• Migrating from npm/yarn workspaces to pnpm

When NOT to use:

• Single-package projects with no shared code
• Projects using Bun or Yarn as their package manager
• Projects that need npm compatibility exclusively (e.g., npm workspaces)
• Task orchestration logic (use a dedicated task runner on top of pnpm)

Key patterns covered:

• pnpm-workspace.yaml setup and workspace package discovery
• Workspace protocol (workspace:*, workspace:^, workspace:~)
• Catalogs for dependency version synchronization
• Filtering commands (--filter, -F, glob patterns, dependency selectors)
• Running scripts across workspaces (-r, --parallel, --workspace-concurrency)
• Settings in pnpm-workspace.yaml (v10: settings moved from .npmrc)
• Publishing with publishConfig and changesets
• CI/CD with GitHub Actions, caching, and --frozen-lockfile
• Shared TypeScript configuration patterns
• Monorepo directory structure conventions

Detailed resources:

• Core Setup -- pnpm-workspace.yaml, .npmrc, directory structure, settings
• Shared Packages -- workspace protocol, catalogs, TypeScript/ESLint config
• Scripts & Filtering -- --filter, recursive execution, dependency management
• Publishing & Versioning -- changesets, publishConfig, Docker
• CI/CD Pipelines -- GitHub Actions, automated release
• Quick Command Reference -- condensed lookup table

Philosophy

pnpm workspaces provide strict, efficient monorepo management with content-addressable storage. Unlike npm/yarn, pnpm creates a non-flat node_modules where packages can only access their declared dependencies -- this strictness catches missing dependency declarations early. The workspace protocol (workspace:*) ensures internal packages always link locally, while catalogs (catalog:) centralize version management to eliminate version drift.

Core principles:

• Strict by default -- packages cannot access undeclared dependencies
• Disk efficient -- content-addressable store shares identical files across projects
• Security first -- v10 blocks lifecycle scripts by default to prevent supply chain attacks
• Single lockfile -- one pnpm-lock.yaml at the workspace root for all packages

When to use pnpm workspaces:

• Monorepos with multiple apps and shared packages
• Projects that need strict dependency isolation
• Teams that want disk-efficient dependency storage
• Publishing multiple related npm packages from one repo

When NOT to use:

• Single-package projects (no workspace benefits)
• Projects deeply invested in Yarn PnP or Berry features
• Environments where only npm is available (some CI/CD, restricted corporate setups)

Core Patterns

Pattern 1: Workspace Configuration (pnpm-workspace.yaml)

The pnpm-workspace.yaml file at the repository root defines which directories contain workspace packages. Every pnpm workspace MUST have this file.

# pnpm-workspace.yaml
packages:
  - "apps/*"
  - "packages/*"

In pnpm v10, settings moved from .npmrc to this file:

# pnpm-workspace.yaml (v10+)
packages:
  - "apps/*"
  - "packages/*"

linkWorkspacePackages: true
saveWorkspaceProtocol: rolling
disallowWorkspaceCycles: true

Why good: Single source of truth for workspace definition and settings

See examples/core.md for full workspace setup, directory structure, and all settings.

Pattern 2: Workspace Protocol (workspace:*)

The workspace protocol ensures internal packages always resolve to the local workspace version, never from the registry.

{
  "dependencies": {
    "@repo/ui": "workspace:*",
    "@repo/types": "workspace:*"
  }
}

Why good: Guarantees local linking, pnpm refuses to resolve externally, version conversion on publish ensures correct semver

{
  "dependencies": {
    "@repo/ui": "^1.0.0"
  }
}

Why bad: Hardcoded versions may install from npm registry instead of local workspace, version mismatches across packages

See examples/packages.md for protocol variants, aliasing, and internal package setup.

Pattern 3: Catalogs for Version Synchronization

Catalogs define dependency versions once in pnpm-workspace.yaml and reference them across all packages with catalog:.

# pnpm-workspace.yaml
catalog:
  react: ^19.0.0
  react-dom: ^19.0.0
  typescript: ^5.7.0

{
  "dependencies": {
    "react": "catalog:",
    "react-dom": "catalog:"
  }
}

Why good: Single version source of truth, updating one line updates all packages, eliminates merge conflicts

Named catalogs support version migration:

catalogs:
  react18:
    react: ^18.3.1
  react19:
    react: ^19.0.0

See examples/packages.md for named catalogs, strict enforcement, and full examples.

Pattern 4: Filtering Commands

--filter (or -F) restricts commands to specific packages instead of running across the entire workspace.

# Exact package
pnpm --filter @repo/web-app build

# Package and ALL its dependencies
pnpm --filter "web-app..." build

# Changed packages since main
pnpm --filter "...[origin/main]" test

# Exclude a package
pnpm --filter "!@repo/docs" build

Why good: Targeted execution saves CI time, dependency-aware filtering ensures correct build order

# BAD: Running everything when only one package changed
pnpm -r build

**Wh