loader-runner assists webpack loaders in various ways. It provides utilities for running loaders in a simulated webpack environment, handling asynchronous operations, and managing loader contexts. This simplifies testing and debugging loaders independently from a full webpack build. Additionally, it facilitates inspecting the interaction between loaders, ensuring they function correctly and efficiently. Think of it as a loader development and testing sandbox, allowing for iterative improvement and reliable performance.
The loader-runner npm package had releases between January 2016 and April 2022, with varying frequency. The most releases occurred in January 2016 (3 versions). There were periods of no releases, particularly from late 2017 to 2018, and again from late 2022 onwards. No releases have occurred in 2023, 2024, and until September 2025.
Loader-runner's npm package downloads saw consistent growth from March 2024, peaking in June 2025 at 128 million. Downloads remained high through August 2025, before showing a significant drop to 48 million in September 2025, likely due to incomplete data for the current month.
