sqlite-cache

A simple, TTL-aware, size-bounded persistent cache for Node.js backed by SQLite via node-sqlite-map. No external database dependencies — just a file (or :memory:).

Requirements

• Node.js >= 22.5.0 (for node:sqlite)

Installation

npm install sqlite-cache
# or
pnpm add sqlite-cache

Quick Start

import { SQLiteCache } from "sqlite-cache"

const cache = new SQLiteCache({ path: "./cache.db" })

cache.set("user:1", { name: "Kyle", role: "admin" })
cache.get("user:1") // { name: "Kyle", role: "admin" }
cache.has("user:1") // true
cache.size // 1

Use :memory: for a non-persistent in-memory cache:

const cache = new SQLiteCache({ path: ":memory:" })

API

Constructor

new SQLiteCache<Key extends string, Value extends object>(options: CacheOptions)

CacheOptions

Option	Type	Default	Description
path	string	—	Path to SQLite database file, or ":memory:"
ttl	number	60000	Time-to-live in milliseconds
max	number	100	Maximum number of live entries

Core Methods

set(key, value): this

Inserts or replaces an entry with a fresh TTL. Automatically evicts expired and overflow entries before inserting. Returns this for chaining.

cache.set("a", { x: 1 }).set("b", { x: 2 })

get(key): Value | null

Returns the value if the key exists and has not expired, otherwise null.

cache.get("a") // { x: 1 }
cache.get("z") // null

has(key): boolean

Returns true if the key exists and is not expired.

cache.has("a") // true

delete(key): boolean

Removes the entry. Returns true if it existed, false otherwise.

cache.delete("a") // true
cache.delete("a") // false

clear(): void

Removes all entries (including expired ones).

cache.clear()
cache.size // 0

Iteration

All iteration methods only yield live (non-expired) entries.

keys(): IterableIterator<Key>

for (const key of cache.keys()) console.log(key)
console.log([...cache.keys()]) // ["a", "b"]

values(): IterableIterator<Value>

console.log([...cache.values()]) // [{ x: 1 }, { x: 2 }]

entries(): IterableIterator<[Key, Value]>

console.log([...cache.entries()]) // [["a", { x: 1 }], ["b", { x: 2 }]]

forEach(callback): void

cache.forEach((value, key, cache) => {
    console.log(key, value)
})

[Symbol.iterator]()

Makes the cache directly iterable — equivalent to entries().

for (const [key, value] of cache) {
    console.log(key, value)
}

Properties

size: number

Returns the count of live (non-expired) entries.

cache.size // 2

Eviction

Eviction happens automatically on every set() call:

1. Expired entries are removed first.
2. Overflow entries are removed oldest-first if the live count exceeds max.

Type Parameters

SQLiteCache<Key extends string, Value extends object>

Parameter	Constraint	Description
Key	string	Key type — must be a string
Value	object	Value type — must be a plain object (JSON-serializable)

Exported Types

export type CacheOptions = {
    path: string
    max?: number
    ttl?: number
}

export type CacheEntry<V> = {
    value: V
    expires: number
    createdAt: number
}

Errors

All validation errors throw SqliteCacheError:

import { SqliteCacheError } from "sqlite-cache"

try {
    cache.set("" as any, { x: 1 })
} catch (err) {
    if (err instanceof SqliteCacheError) {
        console.error(err.message) // "Cache key must be a valid string"
    }
}

Examples

API response cache

const cache = new SQLiteCache<string, { data: unknown }>({
    path: "./api-cache.db",
    ttl: 30_000,
    max: 500
})

async function fetchUser(id: string) {
    const cached = cache.get(`user:${id}`)
    if (cached) return cached.data

    const data = await api.getUser(id)
    cache.set(`user:${id}`, { data })
    return data
}

Session store

const sessions = new SQLiteCache<string, { userId: string; role: string }>({
    path: "./sessions.db",
    ttl: 3_600_000, // 1 hour
    max: 1000
})

sessions.set(sessionToken, { userId: "42", role: "admin" })
sessions.get(sessionToken) // { userId: "42", role: "admin" }

License

MIT — see LICENSE for details.

Links

Resource	URL
GitHub	https://github.com/xcfio/sqlite-cache
npm	https://www.npmjs.com/package/sqlite-cache
Issues	https://github.com/xcfio/sqlite-cache/issues

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Made with ❤️ by xcfio