How to Setup Shared TypeScript Config in Turborepo

"Bhai har project mein tsconfig.json copy karna band karo… welcome to reusability, the Turborepo way!"

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🧠 Why You Should Care

When working with monorepos, we often have multiple projects like:

• apps/server (Node.js backend)

• apps/web (Next.js frontend)

• packages/ui (component library)

Each project needs its own tsconfig.json. But repeating the same config is a waste of time (aur battery bhi 😤).
Solution: Use a shared TypeScript config package in packages/typescript-config.

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📁 Project Structure Snapshot

Here’s how your monorepo folder should look:

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🔧 Step-by-Step Guide

1. Create backend.json in packages/typescript-config

// packages/typescript-config/backend.json
{
  "$schema": "https://json.schemastore.org/tsconfig",
  "compilerOptions": {
    "target": "ES2020",
    "module": "CommonJS",
    "moduleResolution": "Node",
    "esModuleInterop": true,
    "allowSyntheticDefaultImports": true,
    "resolveJsonModule": true,
    "outDir": "dist",
    "rootDir": "src",
    "strict": true,
    "forceConsistentCasingInFileNames": true,
    "skipLibCheck": true,
    "declaration": true,
    "declarationMap": true,
    "sourceMap": true
  },
  "include": ["src/**/*"],
  "exclude": ["node_modules", "dist"]
}

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2. Edit package.json of typescript-config

// packages/typescript-config/package.json
{
  "name": "@repo/typescript-config",
  "version": "0.0.0",
  "private": true,
  "license": "MIT",
  "publishConfig": {
    "access": "public"
  },
  "exports": {
    "./base.json": "./base.json",
    "./backend.json": "./backend.json",
    "./nextjs.json": "./nextjs.json",
    "./react-library.json": "./react-library.json"
  },
  "files": [
    "base.json",
    "backend.json",
    "nextjs.json",
    "react-library.json"
  ]
}

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3. Use it in Your Server App

In apps/server/tsconfig.json, use:

{
  "extends": "@repo/typescript-config/backend.json",
  "include": ["src"],
  "exclude": ["node_modules", "dist"]
}

✅ Bonus tip: You can override or extend this config per project!

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4. Add It as a Dev Dependency

In apps/server/package.json:

"devDependencies": {
  "@repo/typescript-config": "workspace:*"
}

"workspace:*" means use the local version from packages.

Then install:

pnpm install

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5. Final Server package.json Example

{
  "name": "server",
  "version": "1.0.0",
  "private": true,
  "scripts": {
    "dev": "nodemon --exec ts-node src/index.ts",
    "build": "tsc",
    "start": "node dist/index.js",
    "check-types": "tsc --noEmit",
    "lint": "echo \"No linting configured\""
  },
  "dependencies": {
    "cors": "^2.8.5",
    "dotenv": "^17.0.0",
    "express": "^5.1.0",
    "socket.io": "^4.8.1"
  },
  "devDependencies": {
    "@repo/typescript-config": "workspace:*",
    "@types/express": "^5.0.3",
    "@types/node": "^22.15.3",
    "nodemon": "^3.1.10",
    "ts-node": "^10.9.2",
    "typescript": "^5.8.3"
  }
}

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🧠 Bonus: Why This Rocks

• ✅ No more copy-pasting tsconfig.json in every app

• ✅ Easy to maintain and version

• ✅ Clean and scalable monorepo setup

• ✅ Looks cool when explaining to your junior 😎

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💭 Final Thoughts

Once you get this pattern right, you can build and scale your Turborepo apps with a smile on your face (and fewer bugs 🐞).

Let your code be DRY, not your eyes. 🧂

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