@arcmantle/vite-plugin-html-module

A Vite plugin that enables importing HTML files as modules, supporting the HTML Modules proposal. Transform HTML files into JavaScript modules that export DOM nodes for use in your applications.

Features

• 🏗️ HTML Module Support: Import HTML files directly as JavaScript modules
• 🔍 Element ID Export: Optionally export elements with IDs as named exports
• 📦 TypeScript Support: Includes TypeScript declarations for seamless integration
• ⚡ Vite Integration: Built specifically for Vite with hot reload support
• 🎯 Standards-Based: Follows the emerging HTML Modules web standard

Installation

npm install @arcmantle/vite-plugin-html-module
# or
pnpm add @arcmantle/vite-plugin-html-module
# or
yarn add @arcmantle/vite-plugin-html-module
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Usage

Basic Setup

Add the plugin to your vite.config.ts:

import { htmlModules } from '@arcmantle/vite-plugin-html-module';
import { defineConfig } from 'vite';

export default defineConfig({
  plugins: [
    htmlModules()
  ]
});
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TypeScript Configuration

Include the client types in your tsconfig.json:

{
  "compilerOptions": {
    "types": ["@arcmantle/vite-plugin-html-module/client"]
  }
}
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Importing HTML Files

Import HTML files using the with { type: 'html' } syntax:

import template from './template.html' with { type: 'html' };

// The default export is a Document object
console.log(template); // Document

// Use the document as needed
document.body.appendChild(template.body.firstElementChild);
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With Element ID Exports

Enable element ID exports in your configuration:

import { htmlModules } from '@arcmantle/vite-plugin-html-module';

export default defineConfig({
  plugins: [
    htmlModules({ exportIds: true })
  ]
});
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Given an HTML file like this:

<!-- template.html -->
<div id="container">
  <h1 id="title">Hello World</h1>
  <button id="my-button">Click me</button>
</div>
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You can import both the document and individual elements:

import template, { container, title } from './template.html' with { type: 'html' };

// Access the full document
console.log(template); // Document

// Access individual elements by their IDs
console.log(container); // <div id="container">...</div>
console.log(title); // <h1 id="title">Hello World</h1>

// Elements with invalid JavaScript identifiers are exported with quotes
import template, { 'my-button': myButton } from './template.html' with { type: 'html' };
console.log(myButton); // <button id="my-button">Click me</button>
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Configuration Options

exportIds

• Type: boolean
• Default: false
• Description: When enabled, elements with id attributes are exported as named exports. Elements with valid JavaScript identifiers are exported directly, while others are exported with quoted names.

htmlModules({
  exportIds: true  // Enable ID-based exports
})
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How It Works

1. Detection: The plugin detects imports of .html files that use the with { type: 'html' } import assertion
2. Parsing: HTML content is parsed using parse5 to extract element information
3. Transformation: The HTML is transformed into a JavaScript module that:
   • Creates a DOMParser instance
   • Parses the HTML string into a Document
   • Exports the document as the default export
   • Optionally exports individual elements by their IDs
4. Type Safety: TypeScript declarations ensure proper typing for imported HTML modules

Browser Compatibility

This plugin transforms HTML modules at build time, so the generated code runs in any environment that supports:

• DOMParser API (all modern browsers)
• ES modules

Requirements

• Node.js >= 22
• Vite >= 7.0.0

Dependencies

• parse5: HTML parser for processing HTML files
• @parse5/tools: Additional tools for HTML parsing and manipulation

License

Apache-2.0

Contributing

This package is part of the Arcmantle Weave monorepo. Contributions are welcome!

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Note: This plugin implements support for the HTML Modules proposal, which is still evolving. The syntax and behavior may change as the specification develops.