Best Monorepo Tools in 2025: Turborepo vs Nx vs pnpm Workspaces

Why Monorepos?

Monorepos allow you to manage multiple packages in a single repository. Benefits include:

• Code Sharing: Reuse code across projects
• Atomic Changes: Update multiple packages together
• Unified Tooling: One config for all projects
• Better Collaboration: Everyone sees everything

Turborepo: Speed First

Turborepo focuses on build performance:

• Remote Caching: Share build cache across team
• Parallel Execution: Run tasks concurrently
• Incremental Builds: Only rebuild what changed
• Simple Setup: Minimal configuration

Turborepo Strengths

• Fastest build times
• Easy to adopt
• Works with any package manager
• Acquired by Vercel

Nx: Full-Featured

Nx provides a complete monorepo solution:

• Generators: Scaffold new packages
• Executors: Custom build commands
• Dependency Graph: Visualize project relationships
• Affected Commands: Only test what changed

Nx Strengths

• Most features
• Great for large teams
• Plugin ecosystem
• Enterprise support

pnpm Workspaces: Lightweight

pnpm workspaces offer a simple approach:

• Fast Installation: Efficient disk usage
• Strict Dependencies: Prevents phantom deps
• Native Workspaces: No extra tools needed
• Simple Configuration: Just package.json

pnpm Strengths

• No additional tooling
• Fastest package installation
• Strictest dependency management
• Smallest disk usage

Feature Comparison

Performance Benchmarks

For a typical monorepo with 10 packages:

When to Choose Each

Choose Turborepo When

• Build speed is priority
• Want minimal configuration
• Already using Vercel
• Migrating from single repo

Choose Nx When

• Need code generation
• Want plugin ecosystem
• Building enterprise apps
• Need advanced features

Choose pnpm Workspaces When

• Want simplicity
• Small to medium projects
• Don't need remote caching
• Already using pnpm

Combining Tools

Many teams combine tools:

• pnpm + Turborepo: Fast installs + fast builds
• pnpm + Nx: Fast installs + full features

Getting Started

For most teams, we recommend pnpm + Turborepo:

1. Initialize pnpm workspace
2. Add turbo.json configuration
3. Define task pipelines
4. Enable remote caching

Our Recommendation

Start with Turborepo for its simplicity and speed. Move to Nx if you need advanced features like code generation. Use pnpm as your package manager regardless.

Explore build tools in our Tools directory or compare options with our Compare tool.

Sources

• Turborepo Documentation
• Nx Documentation
• pnpm Workspaces
• Monorepo Tools Comparison