Getting error code 255 while running npm start command

[Finn_Mystery]

I keep getting exit code 255 whenever I try to execute npm start

This error happens every single time I attempt to launch my project. I’ve been stuck on this for hours and tried multiple solutions but nothing works.

What I’ve already attempted:

1. Completely removed node_modules folder and package-lock.json, then ran npm install again
2. Modified my package.json configuration file
3. Uninstalled and reinstalled webpack-dev-server package
4. Verified that port 3000 is completely free and not being used by any other process

The error logs show exit status 255 but I can’t figure out what’s causing this issue. Has anyone encountered this problem before? I’m running out of ideas and would really appreciate any help or suggestions on how to resolve this npm start failure.

[JumpingMountain]

I had this exact issue when my PATH variables got corrupted and pointed to old Node installs. Exit code 255 usually means permission problems or binary execution failures, not dependency issues. Run which node and which npm to see if they’re pointing to the right binaries. Check if you’ve got multiple Node versions from nvm, brew, or direct downloads - they clash with each other. Try sudo npm start to see if it’s a permissions thing. I ended up nuking all my Node installations and doing a clean install. That fixed the 255 error.

[Alice45]

what’s ur node version? had this exact issue last week - downgrading to node v16 fixed it. also, try npm cache clean --force b4 reinstalling, that might help too!

[OwenNebula55]

Check your package.json scripts section - the start script might be broken or pointing to files that don’t exist. I’ve hit exit code 255 when scripts try running missing commands or have syntax errors. Run your start script command directly in terminal to see if it works without npm. Also check for global package conflicts - I once had a global create-react-app fighting with my local version. Run npm ls to spot dependency conflicts or missing peer deps that aren’t showing in the error.