Fix GitHub Actions Build Failed Because of Node Version

A CI-only Node failure often means GitHub Actions is using a different Node version than local development. Pin the version with actions/setup-node and align it with package.json engines.

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Common symptoms

CI fails with unsupported engine or syntax errors.
The project builds locally but fails on ubuntu-latest.
Dependencies install differently in CI than locally.

What to check first

Platform: GitHub Actions
Error: Node version mismatch

A CI-only Node failure often means GitHub Actions is using a different Node version than local development. Pin the version with actions/setup-node and align it with package.json engines.

Step-by-step fix

Find your local version with node -v and compare it to the Actions log.
Use actions/setup-node with a specific version such as 20.x.
Use npm ci for reproducible installs when package-lock.json is committed.
If the project has engines in package.json, keep it consistent with the workflow.

- uses: actions/setup-node@v4
  with:
    node-version: 20
    cache: npm

- run: npm ci
- run: npm run build

Common mistake to avoid

Do not rely on the runner default Node version. Defaults change and can break old workflows.

Still stuck?

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