When was Angular launched? #
AngularJS, the original framework, was first released in 2010. Angular (Angular 2 and later), the complete rewrite most developers use today, was released on 14 September 2016.
The two are different frameworks that share a name. AngularJS (version 1.x) reached end of long-term support on 31 December 2021. Angular kept its name, dropped the "JS" suffix to mark the break, and has shipped a major version regularly ever since.
Key dates #
| Date | Release | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | AngularJS 1.0 era begins | The original framework, JavaScript-based, with two-way data binding |
| 14 Sep 2016 | Angular 2 | Ground-up rewrite in TypeScript with components; the start of modern Angular |
| Mar 2017 | Angular 4 | Version 3 was skipped so every package could share one version number |
| Feb 2020 | Angular 9 | The Ivy compiler and runtime became the default |
| Nov 2023 | Angular 17 | New @if/@for control flow, @defer, and the new angular.dev docs |
| Nov 2025 | Angular 21 | Zoneless change detection became the default for new apps |
| Jun 2026 | Angular 22 | Signal Forms and Angular Aria stable; majors move to a yearly cycle |
How often is Angular released? #
Until Angular 21, a new major version shipped roughly every six months. Starting with Angular 22, majors ship every twelve months, each with twelve months of active support followed by twelve months of long-term support. Minor and patch releases continue in between.
Why version 3 was skipped #
When Angular 2 was released, its router package was already at version 3.x. Rather than keep packages on different numbers, the team jumped straight to Angular 4 in March 2017, so every official package shares the same major version.
The full story #
For how Angular changed era by era, from the rewrite and Ivy to standalone components, signals, SSR and zoneless, with the same component written in 2016 and 2026 style, read 10 Years of Angular: From Angular 2 to Signals and Zoneless.
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