Beachball
Beachball is a free, MIT-licensed tool for automating semantic version bumps, changelog generation, and npm publishing for JavaScript packages.
What Beachball is
Beachball is a free, MIT-licensed tool for automating semantic version bumps, changelog generation, and npm publishing for JavaScript packages. It supports single-package repositories and monorepos, with a default setup that requires no extra configuration. The workflow uses `beachball change` to create change files, `beachball check` to validate them in pull requests, and `beachball publish` to release. Change files record a change type and description for review. Publishing can generate changelogs, publish to public or private npm registries, and push version and changelog updates to the Git remote. Beachball checks the Git repository and npm registry before publishing and keeps their versions synchronized. CI guidance covers GitHub Actions, Azure Pipelines, and other platforms. Token guidance recommends minimum permissions and release-only secrets. An included authentication helper creates and revokes repository-scoped GitHub App installation tokens, requiring Node 22.18 or later. Installation uses npm, Yarn, or npx.
Good
- Supports monorepos and single-package repositories
- Works without extra configuration by default
- Generates changelogs during publishing
- Publishes to public or private npm registries
- Free and MIT licensed
Watch out
- Auth helper requires Node 22.18 or later
- Azure DevOps trusted publishing is unsupported
- Failed partial publishes require `beachball sync`
Who it suits
Beachball suits JavaScript maintainers working in single-package repositories or monorepos. It is useful for teams that want pull-request change tracking and automated npm releases.
Verdict
Beachball provides a structured change-file workflow from pull request validation through npm publishing. Its free MIT license and no-configuration starting point suit JavaScript projects, with specific authentication limitations to plan around.
Plans and prices
From Beachball's own pricing page, checked 4 Oct 2026.
| Plan | Price | What it gives you |
|---|---|---|
| Beachball | Free | MIT licensed · install as a devDependency or run via npx |
The facts
Each one read from Beachball's own pages, with the date it was checked.
What it does
- AI support
- Beachball provides a change-file skill that can be installed for compatible AI agents, including GitHub Copilot and Claude Code.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Authentication
- The CI guidance recommends limiting token permissions and restricting release secrets to release builds or branches.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Authentication utility
- The package includes an auth helper that can create and revoke repository scoped GitHub App installation tokens.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Changelogs
- Beachball generates changelogs when it bumps package versions.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Change tracking
- Change files record the change type and description for package updates, and reviewers can inspect them in the pull request diff.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Configuration
- Beachball can be used without extra configuration by default, and supports repository and package configuration.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Installation
- The installation guide shows npm and Yarn commands and says Beachball can also be run with npx.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Integrations
- The CI documentation describes using Beachball with GitHub Actions and Azure Pipelines.checked 11 Oct 2026
- License
- Beachball is MIT licensed.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Notable limitation
- The documentation says Azure DevOps is not supported for npm trusted publishing, so token-based authentication is needed in that case.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Publishing
- Beachball can publish packages to public or private npm registries and push version and changelog updates to the Git remote.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Publishing limitation
- If a publish fails after some package versions have reached the registry, the documentation says to run `beachball sync` and commit the changes.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Purpose
- Beachball automates semantic version bumps, changelog generation, and npm publishing for JavaScript packages.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Registries
- Beachball can publish packages to public or private npm registries.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Repository support
- Beachball works with single-package repositories and monorepos.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Runtime requirement
- The auth helper requires Node 22.18 or later.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Security guidance
- For token based authentication, the CI guidance recommends minimum necessary permissions and storing tokens as secrets available only to release builds.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Validation
- Beachball checks the Git repository and npm registry before publishing.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Version syncing
- Beachball keeps versions in the Git repository and npm registry in sync during publishing.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Workflow
- Developers create change files, pull request builds can check that they are included, and releases run through CI or manually.checked 11 Oct 2026
The company
- Founded
- 2019checked 28 Sep 2026
- Maker
- The official site identifies Microsoft as the copyright holder; it does not state headquarters or founding year on the pages reviewed.checked 11 Oct 2026
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