I’ve been thinking about how we build software lately. Not just the code itself, but the structure around it—the scaffolding that holds everything together. As projects grow, what starts as a single application often branches into multiple services, shared libraries, and tools. Managing this sprawl across separate repositories creates friction. It slows down development, complicates testing, and makes sharing code a chore. This is why I’ve been exploring a specific setup that has changed how I approach large projects: using pnpm and Turborepo together.

Let’s talk about why this combination works so well. pnpm is a package manager with a clever approach to handling dependencies. Instead of copying the same package files into every node_modules folder, it stores them once on your disk. It then creates links to that single source. This means installing dependencies is faster and uses significantly less disk space. When you organize your code into a monorepo—a single repository containing multiple packages—pnpm’s “workspaces” feature helps manage the connections between them.

Now, add Turborepo to the mix. While pnpm handles the dependencies, Turborepo handles the tasks. Think about your typical workflow: you run build, test, or lint. In a monorepo with many packages, running these tasks everywhere is slow and wasteful. Turborepo understands the relationships between your packages. It knows that if Package A depends on Package B, it must build B before A. More importantly, it knows that if nothing in Package B has changed since the last build, it can skip building it entirely. This is its caching magic.

Have you ever waited minutes for a CI build, only to realize you just changed a README file? Turborepo fixes that.

Setting this up is straightforward. First, you initialize your project with pnpm and define your workspace. Your root package.json might look like this:

{
  "name": "my-monorepo",
  "private": true,
  "scripts": {
    "build": "turbo run build"
  },
  "workspaces": ["apps/*", "packages/*"]
}

This structure says, “Look for packages inside the apps and packages folders.” Next, you add Turborepo and create its configuration file, turbo.json. This is where you define your pipeline—the tasks you want to optimize.

{
  "pipeline": {
    "build": {
      "dependsOn": ["^build"],
      "outputs": ["dist/**"]
    },
    "test": {
      "dependsOn": ["build"],
      "outputs": []
    },
    "lint": {
      "outputs": []
    }
  }
}

This configuration is powerful in its simplicity. The "dependsOn": ["^build"] line under the build task is key. The caret (^) means “dependencies.” So, it tells Turborepo: “Before you build any package, first build all of its dependencies.” This ensures the build order is always correct. The outputs field tells Turborepo what files to cache. If those files already exist from a previous run, the task is skipped.

The developer experience is where this truly shines. In your terminal, you run pnpm build. Turborepo takes over. It constructs a graph of your packages, figures out what needs to run and in what order, then executes tasks in parallel where possible. You see a clean, real-time output of what’s building and what’s cached. It feels fast, because it is.

But what about when you work with a team? This is where remote caching becomes a game-changer. You can connect Turborepo to a remote cache (like Vercel’s or a self-hosted one). When your colleague builds a package, the results are stored remotely. When you pull their changes and run a build, Turborepo can pull those cached artifacts instead of rebuilding from scratch. It’s like sharing the answer key. This can cut CI build times from ten minutes to one.

Let’s consider a real scenario. You have a React app (apps/web), a Node.js API (apps/api), and a shared UI component library (packages/ui). You make a change to a button component in packages/ui. When you run pnpm build, Turborepo will build the ui package. Then, because the web app depends on ui, it will build apps/web. The apps/api package, which doesn’t depend on ui, will be skipped entirely—its previous build is pulled from cache. This intelligent selectivity is the core of the speed boost.

Does this mean you should put every project into one giant repo? Not necessarily. This setup excels when your projects are truly interconnected—when they share code, are versioned together, and deployed as part of a larger system. It’s perfect for full-stack applications, design systems, or platforms with microservices.

There are, of course, things to keep in mind. You’re committing to a specific toolchain. The team needs to be comfortable with pnpm and the monorepo concept. Debugging can sometimes mean hopping between packages. However, the gains in consistency, speed, and collaboration often far outweigh these costs.

For me, the biggest win is the reduction in mental overhead. I don’t have to think about publishing private packages to a registry just to share a utility function. I don’t have to manually orchestrate build orders. The tools handle the complexity, letting me focus on writing code. The feedback loop is tight; I see the results of my changes quickly, which makes development more fluid and less frustrating.

In the end, building software is about creating value, not wrestling with tools. Finding a setup that removes friction is crucial. Combining pnpm’s efficient dependency management with Turborepo’s intelligent task execution creates a foundation that scales. It supports both the individual developer and the entire team, from the first commit to a codebase with hundreds of packages. It turns a potential management nightmare into a streamlined, productive workflow.

If you’ve struggled with slow builds or fragmented codebases, I encourage you to give this integration a try. Start small, see how it feels, and let it grow with your project. What bottlenecks are you facing in your current workflow? Could a unified structure help? I’d love to hear about your experiences—share your thoughts in the comments below.

---

As a best-selling author, I invite you to explore my books on Amazon. Don’t forget to follow me on Medium and show your support. Thank you! Your support means the world!

---

101 Books

101 Books is an AI-driven publishing company co-founded by author Aarav Joshi. By leveraging advanced AI technology, we keep our publishing costs incredibly low—some books are priced as low as $4—making quality knowledge accessible to everyone.

Check out our book Golang Clean Code available on Amazon.

Stay tuned for updates and exciting news. When shopping for books, search for Aarav Joshi to find more of our titles. Use the provided link to enjoy special discounts!

---

📘 Checkout my latest ebook for free on my channel!
Be sure to like, share, comment, and subscribe to the channel!

---

Our Creations

Be sure to check out our creations:

Investor Central | Investor Central Spanish | Investor Central German | Smart Living | Epochs & Echoes | Puzzling Mysteries | Hindutva | Elite Dev | JS Schools

---

We are on Medium

Tech Koala Insights | Epochs & Echoes World | Investor Central Medium | Puzzling Mysteries Medium | Science & Epochs Medium | Modern Hindutva