Error Handling in Node.js: Beyond Try/Catch (2026) Good error handling isn't about catching errors — it's about handling them gracefully so your app stays running. The Philosophy Bad error handling: → try/catch everything silently → bugs disappear, no one knows why → console.error(err) and move on → logs nobody reads → process.exit(1) on any error → crashes production → Return null/undefined → caller doesn't know WHY it failed Good error handling: → Every error has a code and context → debugging is fast → Errors are categorized → different types get different treatment → Recovery is automatic where possible → self-healing apps → Users see helpful messages → not stack traces or "something went wrong" Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode Custom Error Classes // Base application error class AppError extends Error { constructor ( message , statusCode = 500 , code = ' INTERNAL_ERROR ' ) { super ( message ); this . name = ' AppError ' ; this . statusCode = statusCode ; this . code = code ; this .…