Could Node.js 20.x be installed on the build server? At the time of publishing this, the latest version is 20.10.0 paired with npm version 10.2.3.

18.x is now in Maintenance LTS (installed following this request). 20.x is now Active LTS until October 2024 when it will enter Maintenance LTS until April of 2026. While remaining on 18.x is fine, updating to the latest of 20.x is preferable because this will allow both CoreCore Core is the set of software required to run WordPress. The Core Development Team builds WordPress. and GutenbergGutenberg The Gutenberg project is the new Editor Interface for WordPress. The editor improves the process and experience of creating new content, making writing rich content much simpler. It uses ‘blocks’ to add richness rather than shortcodes, custom HTML etc. https://wordpress.org/gutenberg/ to use the latest version of Node.js, as well as completely skipping 18.x and eliminating the need for 16.x.

The current breakdown for WordPress versions to Node.js is as follows:

• WP/Gutenberg trunk: Node.js 16.x with plans to upgrade to 18.x during the 6.5 cycle.
• WP 6.4: Node.js 16.x.
• WP <= 6.3: Node.js 14.x.

If 20.x is made available, WP trunk and the 6.4 branch can be upgraded to both use Node.js 20.x, essentially eliminating the need for both 16.x and 18.x on the build server from the perspective of Core and Gutenberg. I’ve confirmed that there are no changes to the built files after updating to 20.x as seen in the linked PR. Older branches of Core (6.3 and earlier) will remain on Node.js 14.x.