ubuntu-latest default Node.js 20.20.1 end-of-life on 2026-04-30 #13833
Description
Description
Node.js 20 transitions into end-of-life on 2026-04-30, with the lowest supported Node.js version moving up to Node.js 22.
ubuntu-latest, equivalent to ubuntu-24.04, sets Node.js 20 as the default installed version. macOS and Windows latest runner images already use Node.js 22.
ubuntu-latest should provide a runner image that sets the installed Node.js version to 22 to align with other *-latest tags.
| Runner | Alias | Node.js default |
|---|---|---|
| ubuntu-24.04 | ubuntu-latest | 20.20.1 |
| macos-15 | macos-latest | 22.22.0 |
| windows-2025 | windows-latest | 22.22.0 |
Platforms affected
- Azure DevOps
- GitHub Actions - Standard Runners
- GitHub Actions - Larger Runners
Runner images affected
- Ubuntu 22.04
- Ubuntu 24.04
- Ubuntu Slim
- macOS 14
- macOS 14 Arm64
- macOS 15
- macOS 15 Arm64
- macOS 26
- macOS 26 Arm64
- Windows Server 2022
- Windows Server 2025
- Windows Server 2025 with Visual Studio 2026
Image version and build link
Image: ubuntu-24.04
Version: 20260309.50.1
Included Software: https://github.com/actions/runner-images/blob/ubuntu24/20260309.50/images/ubuntu/Ubuntu2404-Readme.md
Image Release: https://github.com/actions/runner-images/releases/tag/ubuntu24%2F20260309.50
Is it regression?
No
Expected behavior
Provide an ubuntu-latest image which defaults to a Node.js version that has continued support after 2026-04-30. That would be either Node.js 22 (Maintenance LTS) or Node.js 24 (Active LTS).
Actual behavior
The default installed version of ubuntu-latest is Node.js 20.20.1. Although this is currently still supported, in a few weeks, on 2026-04-30, it transitions into end-of-life status.
Repro steps
name: ci
on:
workflow_dispatch:
jobs:
test:
runs-on: ubuntu-latest
steps:
- name: Node version
run: node -v