A CI/CD pipeline that catches bugs before deploy, builds reproducible Docker images, and ships to production with zero downtime is table stakes for any serious Node.js project. GitHub Actions makes all of this achievable with YAML configuration — but the defaults are slow, insecure, and fragile. This guide shows you every pattern you need, from caching to rollback.
Looking for production-ready Node.js templates? Browse WOWHOW Tools and the full product catalog for starter kits with CI/CD baked in.
Workflow Basics
Every workflow lives in .github/workflows/. The file name becomes the workflow name in the UI. Events trigger runs; jobs define what runs; steps are the individual commands.
# .github/workflows/ci.yml
