Beads issue tracker - lightweight memory system for coding agents with native binary support
npm install @beads/bd

Give your coding agent a memory upgrade
Beads is a lightweight memory system for coding agents, using a graph-based issue tracker. This npm package provides easy installation of the native bd binary for Node.js environments, including Claude Code for Web.
``bash`
npm install -g @beads/bd
Or as a project dependency:
`bash`
npm install --save-dev @beads/bd
Beads is an issue tracker designed specifically for AI coding agents. It provides:
- ✨ Zero setup - bd init creates project-local database--json
- 🔗 Dependency tracking - Four dependency types (blocks, related, parent-child, discovered-from)
- 📋 Ready work detection - Automatically finds issues with no open blockers
- 🤖 Agent-friendly - flags for programmatic integration
- 📦 Git-versioned - JSONL records stored in git, synced across machines
- 🌍 Distributed by design - Share one logical database via git
After installation, initialize beads in your project:
`bash`
bd init
Then tell your AI agent to use bd for task tracking instead of markdown:
`bash`
echo "Use 'bd' commands for issue tracking instead of markdown TODOs" >> AGENTS.md
Your agent will automatically:
- Create and track issues during work
- Manage dependencies between tasks
- Find ready work with bd ready
- Keep long-term context across sessions
`bashFind ready work
bd ready --json
Claude Code for Web Integration
To auto-install bd in Claude Code for Web sessions, add to your SessionStart hook:
`bash
.claude/hooks/session-start.sh
npm install -g @beads/bd
bd init --quiet
``This ensures bd is available in every new session without manual setup.
This package downloads the appropriate native binary for your platform:
- macOS: darwin-amd64, darwin-arm64
- Linux: linux-amd64, linux-arm64
- Windows: windows-amd64
For complete documentation, see the beads GitHub repository:
- Complete README
- Quick Start Guide
- Installation Guide
- FAQ
- Troubleshooting
This npm package wraps the native bd binary rather than using WebAssembly because:
- ✅ Full SQLite support (no custom VFS needed)
- ✅ All features work identically to native bd
- ✅ Better performance (native vs WASM overhead)
- ✅ Simpler maintenance
MIT - See LICENSE for details.