How to Fix “-bash: ng: command not found”

If you are receiving the error message “-bash: ng: command not found” then it is likely that your package manager has failed to install one of the required packages. This can happen for some reasons, so let’s look at how to fix this problem.

What is Angular ng Command?

The Angular ng command is the Angular Command Line Interface (CLI) to use Angular. Creating a new Angular workspace with the ng command will give you an application skeleton. The initial app created by this process is at the top of your folder.

How to Check the Version of ng?

The first thing you want to do is check if the ng command is installed on your computer. To do so, run this command:

$ ng version
-bash: ng: command not found

If you get the error message above, it means the ng command cannot be located.

Run the ng Command Directly

If the path to the ng command is not set, you can still run ng by providing the full path to the program. Depending on the operating system you are running, type the following command:

On Debian Linux:

On macOS:

$ /usr/local/lib/node_modules/@angular/cli/bin/ng.js version
 
     _                      _                 ____ _     ___
    / \   _ __   __ _ _   _| | __ _ _ __     / ___| |   |_ _|
   / ? \ | '_ \ / _` | | | | |/ _` | '__|   | |   | |    | |
  / ___ \| | | | (_| | |_| | | (_| | |      | |___| |___ | |
 /_/   \_\_| |_|\__, |\__,_|_|\__,_|_|       \____|_____|___|
                |___/
    

Angular CLI: 13.1.1
Node: 16.13.1
Package Manager: npm 8.1.2
OS: darwin x64

Angular: 
... 

Package                      Version
------------------------------------------------------
@angular-devkit/architect    0.1301.1 (cli-only)
@angular-devkit/core         13.1.1 (cli-only)
@angular-devkit/schematics   13.1.1 (cli-only)
@schematics/angular          13.1.1 (cli-only)

If the above command succeeds, the path to the ng command is missing. Follow the next section to fix your environment variable.

Update Your Environment Variables

The path to the ng command is missing from your environment variable. Depending on your operating system, follow the operations listed below.

On Windows:

• Go to Control Panel and select System and Security option.

• When a new dialog box opens, click on System.
• Click on the Advanced system settings.
• On the Advanced tab, click on Environment Variables.
• Select PATH and click Edit.
• Click New and add a new path for the ng program.

C:\Program Files\nodejs

On Debian Linux:

Add the path to the Linux environment variable:

export PATH="/usr/bin:$PATH"

On macOS:

Add the path to the macOS environment variable:

export PATH="/usr/local/bin:$PATH"

After adding the path, you should be able to run the ng command now.

Install the Angular CLI

You can install the Angular CLI using the npm command as shown below:

sudo npm install -g @angular/cli

Check the version of the ng command again by following the previous section. If successful, the ng version will be shown.

Re-install the Angular CLI

If the previous method doesn’t work, the installation may have corrupted due to a bad cache. You can uninstall and re-install the Angular CLI again.

sudo npm uninstall -g @angular/cli
sudo npm cache clean
sudo npm install -g @angular/cli

After the re-installation, you should be able to run the ng command.

How to Check the Version of Angular CLI?

To find the version of Angular CLI you have installed, run this command:

ng version

Frequently Asked Questions