Nestjs Vitest Setup

NestJS Vitest

Use this workflow to set up, migrate, or repair NestJS tests with Vitest.

Preflight checks (required)

1. Confirm Nest backend root by checking all required files exist:

• package.json
• tsconfig.json
• src/main.ts
• src/app.module.ts

2. Detect package manager from lockfile and keep command style consistent:

• package-lock.json -> npm
• pnpm-lock.yaml -> pnpm
• yarn.lock -> yarn

3. Confirm supported runtime:

• Prefer Node.js 20+.

4. Stop early if required files are missing and report exact missing path(s) before editing.

Install and baseline configuration

1. Install required dev dependencies:

npm install --save-dev vitest @vitest/coverage-v8 vite-tsconfig-paths

2. Ensure @nestjs/testing and supertest are available for Nest unit/e2e tests.
3. Create or update vitest.config.ts:

import { defineConfig } from 'vitest/config'
import tsconfigPaths from 'vite-tsconfig-paths'

export default defineConfig({
  plugins: [tsconfigPaths()],
  test: {
    globals: true,
    environment: 'node',
    include: ['src/**/*.spec.ts', 'test/**/*.e2e-spec.ts'],
    exclude: ['dist', 'node_modules'],
    setupFiles: ['test/vitest.setup.ts'],
    coverage: {
      provider: 'v8',
      reporter: ['text', 'html'],
      reportsDirectory: 'coverage',
    },
  },
})

4. Create or update test/vitest.setup.ts:

import { afterEach, vi } from 'vitest'

afterEach(() => {
  vi.restoreAllMocks()
  vi.clearAllMocks()
})

5. Update package.json scripts:

{
  "scripts": {
    "test": "vitest run",
    "test:watch": "vitest",
    "test:cov": "vitest run --coverage",
    "test:e2e": "vitest run test/**/*.e2e-spec.ts"
  }
}

6. Keep vite-tsconfig-paths when the project uses TS path aliases. If no aliases are present, the plugin is optional.

Migration from Jest

1. Convert Jest APIs in tests and helpers:

• jest.fn -> vi.fn
• jest.spyOn -> vi.spyOn
• jest.mock -> vi.mock
• jest.clearAllMocks -> vi.clearAllMocks
• jest.restoreAllMocks -> vi.restoreAllMocks
• jest.useFakeTimers -> vi.useFakeTimers
• jest.useRealTimers -> vi.useRealTimers
• jest.setSystemTime -> vi.setSystemTime

2. Remove Jest-only configuration once conversion is complete:

• jest.config.*
• ts-jest transforms
• scripts invoking jest

3. If Jest must remain temporarily (monorepo/shared tooling), document that as an intentional exception.

NestJS test patterns

1. Unit tests for providers/services:

• Build a TestingModule via Test.createTestingModule.
• Mock dependencies with useValue and vi.fn.
• Assert behavior at the service boundary.

2. Controller tests:

• Validate delegation and response shaping.
• Stub service methods with vi.fn instead of real external calls.

3. e2e tests:

• Create and initialize INestApplication with await app.init().
• Use supertest against app.getHttpServer().
• Always run await app.close() in afterAll.

See concrete snippets in examples.md.

Common pitfalls

• Path alias imports fail:
  • Add vite-tsconfig-paths and ensure aliases exist in tsconfig.json.
• Tests hang after completion:
  • Ensure await app.close() runs and fake timers are restored.
• Module mocks do not apply:
  • vi.mock is hoisted. Use patterns in reference.md for factory and hoisted values.
• Decorator or reflection issues:
  • Keep experimentalDecorators and emitDecoratorMetadata consistent with the app tsconfig.

Verification gates (required)

1. Run unit tests: test
2. Run e2e tests: test:e2e
3. Run coverage: test:cov
4. Confirm coverage/ was generated.
5. Confirm Jest-only config/scripts were removed or intentionally retained with reason documented.
6. Confirm at least one unit and one e2e spec pass with Vitest.
7. If any gate fails, report exact failing command and stop before claiming success.

Additional resources

• Advanced config and migration notes: reference.md
• Nest-focused example tests: examples.md