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wtf is validator.js?

validatorjs/validator.js — explained in plain English

Analysis updated 2026-06-21

23,751JavaScriptAudience · developerComplexity · 2/5Setup · easy

TL;DR

A JavaScript library with over 100 ready-made functions to check whether a string is a valid email, URL, credit card number, or postal code, and to strip dangerous characters from user input before storing or displaying it.

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((validator.js))
    What it does
      String validation
      Input sanitization
    Validators
      Email and URL
      Credit cards
      Postal codes
      IP addresses
    Tech stack
      JavaScript
      Node.js
    Use cases
      Form validation
      Security cleanup
      Locale checks

Code map

Detail Auto

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filefunction / class

Why would anyone build with this?

REASON 1

Validate form fields on a signup page by checking email format, URL validity, and numeric ranges

REASON 2

Sanitize user input before saving to a database to prevent cross-site scripting attacks

REASON 3

Check whether a string is a valid IBAN bank code, ISBN, or postal code in a specific country or locale

What's in the stack?

JavaScriptNode.js

How it stacks up

validatorjs/validator.jspure-css/pureprocessing/p5.js
Stars23,75123,74223,668
LanguageJavaScriptJavaScriptJavaScript
Setup difficultyeasyeasyeasy
Complexity2/51/52/5
Audiencedeveloperdeveloperdesigner

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you spin it up?

Difficulty · easy Time to first run · 5min

Wtf does this do

Validator.js is a JavaScript library that checks whether a piece of text matches a particular format and can also clean up text so it is safe to use. The problem it solves is simple: when users fill in forms on a website, you need to verify that an email address looks like an email address, a credit card number has the right structure, a date is a real date, and so on. Doing these checks from scratch is error-prone and repetitive, so validator.js provides ready-made functions for all of them. The library works entirely with strings, plain text, rather than numbers, dates, or other types. You call a function like isEmail, isCreditCard, isURL, or isPostalCode, pass in the text you want to check, and get back true or false. There are over a hundred such validators covering everything from IP addresses and ISBN numbers to Bitcoin wallet addresses and IBAN bank codes. Many accept locale options, so for example isAlpha can check that a string contains only letters according to the rules of Arabic, Japanese, German, or dozens of other languages. Alongside validation, the library offers sanitizer functions that strip or escape dangerous characters from user input before storing it in a database or displaying it on a page, helping prevent security problems like cross-site scripting. You would use it in any Node.js backend or browser-based form that needs to check user input. Install it with npm and call the functions directly. The tech stack is JavaScript, usable in Node.js or any browser.

Yoink these prompts

Prompt 1
Using validator.js in Node.js, write a function that validates a user registration form: checks the email format, ensures the password is at least 8 characters, and verifies the website field is a valid URL.
Prompt 2
Show me how to use validator.js to sanitize all user-submitted text fields before inserting them into a PostgreSQL database.
Prompt 3
I need to validate international phone numbers and postal codes for 5 different countries using validator.js. Show me how to pass locale options correctly.
Prompt 4
Write an Express.js middleware using validator.js that rejects any request body containing an invalid email or malformed credit card number.
Prompt 5
How do I use validator.js in the browser without Node.js? Show me how to include it in a plain HTML page and validate a form on submit.

Frequently asked questions

wtf is validator.js?

A JavaScript library with over 100 ready-made functions to check whether a string is a valid email, URL, credit card number, or postal code, and to strip dangerous characters from user input before storing or displaying it.

What language is validator.js written in?

Mainly JavaScript. The stack also includes JavaScript, Node.js.

How hard is validator.js to set up?

Setup difficulty is rated easy, with roughly 5min to a first successful run.

Who is validator.js for?

Mainly developer.

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