How to fix npm ERR! code EISGIT npm ERR! Cannot remove: it is a git repo in npm

Look at the error message to identify which package is causing the issue. The error will show a path like:

npm ERR! code EISGIT
npm ERR! path /path/to/node_modules/problematic-package
npm ERR! Appears to be a git repo or submodule.

Note the exact package name for the next steps.

Navigate to the specific package's directory and remove its .git folder:

On macOS/Linux:

rm -rf node_modules/problematic-package/.git

On Windows (PowerShell):

Remove-Item -Recurse -Force node_modules\problematic-package\.git

Replace problematic-package with the actual package name from the error message.

If multiple dependencies have .git folders, remove them all at once:

On macOS/Linux:

find node_modules -type d -name .git -exec rm -rf {} + 2>/dev/null

On Windows (PowerShell):

Get-ChildItem -Path node_modules -Filter .git -Recurse -Force | Remove-Item -Recurse -Force

This finds and removes all .git folders within node_modules without affecting your project's root .git folder.

Modify your package.json to use npm registry URLs instead of git sources:

Before (causes EISGIT):

{
  "dependencies": {
    "my-package": "git+ssh://[email protected]:user/repo.git#branch"
  }
}

After (uses npm registry):

{
  "dependencies": {
    "my-package": "^1.2.3"
  }
}

If removing individual .git folders doesn't resolve the issue, perform a clean reinstall:

# Remove entire node_modules directory
rm -rf node_modules

# Clear npm cache
npm cache clean --force

# Reinstall dependencies
npm install

After resolving the issue, verify your installation is clean:

# Check if git folders still exist
find node_modules -type d -name .git

# Should return nothing if successful

Then reinstall to update your lockfile:

npm install