What's the difference between ^ (caret) and ~ (tilde) in semver?

The caret (^) allows changes that don't modify the left-most non-zero digit. So ^1.2.3 means >=1.2.3 and =1.2.3 and <1.3.0 (only patch updates OK). The caret is more permissive and is npm's default when you run npm install.

Why does ^0.2.3 behave differently than ^1.2.3?

For versions below 1.0.0, the semver spec treats each increment as potentially breaking. So ^0.2.3 only allows patch updates: >=0.2.3 and <0.3.0. And ^0.0.3 pins to the exact version. This is because pre-1.0 packages are considered unstable, where even minor bumps might break things.

How does semver handle prerelease versions?

Prerelease versions (like 1.0.0-alpha.1) have lower precedence than the release version. So 1.0.0-alpha < 1.0.0. Prerelease identifiers are compared left to right: numeric identifiers are compared as numbers, string identifiers are compared lexically, and numeric always has lower precedence than string.

What does the || operator mean in a semver range?

The || (double pipe) means OR — a version satisfies the range if it matches either side. For example, ^1.0.0 || ^2.0.0 accepts any 1.x or 2.x version. This is commonly used when a package works with multiple major versions of a dependency.

Is this calculator compatible with npm's semver behavior?

Yes, this calculator implements the same semver range logic used by npm, including caret ranges, tilde ranges, hyphen ranges, X-ranges (wildcards), and comparator sets with AND/OR logic. The parsing and comparison follow the semver 2.0.0 specification that npm adheres to.

Developer Tools

Semver Calculator

Test semantic versioning ranges, compare versions, and explore semver syntax.

Version Range Tester

Semver Range

Expands to: >=1.2.3 and <2.0.0

Versions to test (one per line)

Results

1.5.0✓

1.2.3✓

2.0.0✗

1.9.9✓

0.9.0✗

Version Comparator

Version A

Version B

1.5.0<2.0.0major difference

Common Ranges Reference

Syntax	Meaning	Example Range	Notes
^1.2.3	Compatible with version	>=1.2.3, <2.0.0	Allows changes that do not modify the left-most non-zero digit
~1.2.3	Approximately equivalent	>=1.2.3, <1.3.0	Allows patch-level changes
1.2.3	Exact version	Only 1.2.3	Pins to a specific version
*	Any version	>=0.0.0	Matches everything
1.x / 1.*	Any minor/patch	>=1.0.0, <2.0.0	Wildcard for minor and patch
1.2.x	Any patch	>=1.2.0, <1.3.0	Wildcard for patch only
>=1.0.0	Greater or equal	1.0.0 and above	Lower bound, no upper limit
<=2.0.0	Less or equal	2.0.0 and below	Upper bound, no lower limit
>1.0.0 <2.0.0	Range (AND)	Between 1.0.0 and 2.0.0	Space-separated = AND
^1.0.0 \|\| ^2.0.0	Either range (OR)	1.x or 2.x	\|\| means union of ranges
1.0.0 - 2.0.0	Hyphen range	>=1.0.0, <=2.0.0	Inclusive on both ends

What Is Semantic Versioning (SemVer)?

Semantic Versioning (SemVer) is a versioning scheme that uses a three-part number format: MAJOR.MINOR.PATCH (e.g., 2.4.1). Each part conveys specific meaning: the major version increments for breaking changes, the minor version for new backward-compatible features, and the patch version for backward-compatible bug fixes.

SemVer is the standard versioning system used by npm, Cargo, Composer, Go modules, and most modern package managers. Understanding semver ranges is critical for managing dependencies — a misconfigured range in your package.json can either lock you out of important security patches or silently introduce breaking changes.

This semver calculator lets you test version ranges (caret ^, tilde ~, hyphen ranges, comparators, and OR/AND combinations), compare two versions side by side, and reference common range syntax — all with instant visual feedback. Everything runs in your browser with no dependencies or server calls.

How to Use the Semver Calculator

Test version ranges — Enter a semver range like ^1.2.3, ~2.0.0, or >=1.0.0 <3.0.0 in the range field. The tool shows what the range expands to in human-readable terms.
Enter versions to test — List versions (one per line) to check which ones satisfy your range. Each version gets a green checkmark (✓) or red cross (✗).
Compare two versions — Enter Version A and Version B to see which is greater, and whether the difference is major, minor, patch, or prerelease.
Reference the syntax table — Scroll to the Common Ranges Reference to look up caret, tilde, wildcard, hyphen, and comparison operator syntax with examples.

Key Features

Range expansion — See exactly what a range like ^1.2.3 expands to (e.g., >=1.2.3 and <2.0.0), removing the guesswork from dependency management.
Batch version testing — Test multiple versions against a range at once to quickly see which versions satisfy your constraints.
Version comparison — Compare two versions to determine ordering and identify whether the difference is a major, minor, patch, or prerelease change.
Full range syntax support — Supports caret (^), tilde (~), wildcards (x, *), hyphen ranges, comparators (>=, <, etc.), AND (space-separated), and OR (||) combinations.
Prerelease handling — Correctly handles prerelease versions like 1.0.0-alpha.1 and 2.0.0-rc.3 according to the SemVer spec.
100% client-side — No server calls, no npm registry lookups. Pure in-browser semver logic.

Common Use Cases

Debugging package.json ranges — Understand why npm or yarn is (or isn't) installing a specific version of a dependency by testing the range from your package.json.
Planning version bumps — Before publishing a new package version, check how it interacts with common ranges consumers might use.
Evaluating dependency updates — When Dependabot or Renovate suggests an update, check whether the new version falls within your existing range or requires a range change.
Learning semver syntax — Use the reference table and live tester to understand the difference between ^, ~, and fixed version ranges.
CI/CD version gating — Verify that your release version satisfies the version constraints defined in downstream projects before publishing.