Based on the other answers above and some subtle issues, here is my attempt.

1. Check the file does not exist before hitting the network by using fs.access.
2. Only create the fs.createWriteStream if you get a 200 OK status code. This reduces the amount of fs.unlink commands required to tidy up temporary file handles.
3. Even on a 200 OK we can still possibly reject due to an EEXIST file already exists (imagine another process created the file whilst we were doing network calls).
4. Recursively call download if you get a 301 Moved Permanently or 302 Found (Moved Temporarily) redirect following the link location provided in the header.
5. The issue with some of the other answers recursively calling download was that they called resolve(download) instead of download(...).then(() => resolve()) so the Promise would return before the download actually finished. This way the nested chain of promises resolve in the correct order.
6. It might seem cool to clean up the temp file asynchronously, but I chose to reject only after that completed too so I know that everything start to finish is done when this promise resolves or rejects.

const https = require('https');
const fs = require('fs');

/**
 * Download a resource from `url` to `dest`.
 * @param {string} url - Valid URL to attempt download of resource
 * @param {string} dest - Valid path to save the file.
 * @returns {Promise<void>} - Returns asynchronously when successfully completed download
 */
function download(url, dest) {
  return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
    // Check file does not exist yet before hitting network
    fs.access(dest, fs.constants.F_OK, (err) => {

        if (err === null) reject('File already exists');

        const request = https.get(url, response => {
            if (response.statusCode === 200) {
       
              const file = fs.createWriteStream(dest, { flags: 'wx' });
              file.on('finish', () => resolve());
              file.on('error', err => {
                file.close();
                if (err.code === 'EEXIST') reject('File already exists');
                else fs.unlink(dest, () => reject(err.message)); // Delete temp file
              });
              response.pipe(file);
            } else if (response.statusCode === 302 || response.statusCode === 301) {
              //Recursively follow redirects, only a 200 will resolve.
              download(response.headers.location, dest).then(() => resolve());
            } else {
              reject(`Server responded with ${response.statusCode}: ${response.statusMessage}`);
            }
          });
      
          request.on('error', err => {
            reject(err.message);
          });
    });
  });
}

Hi，I think you can use child_process module and curl command.

const cp = require('child_process');

let download = async function(uri, filename){
    let command = `curl -o ${filename}  '${uri}'`;
    let result = cp.execSync(command);
};


async function test() {
    await download('http://zhangwenning.top/20181221001417.png', './20181221001417.png')
}

test()

In addition，when you want download large、multiple files，you can use cluster module to use more cpu cores.

Modern version (ES6, Promise, Node 12.x+ ) works for https/http. ALso it supports redirects 302 & 301. I decided do not use 3rd party libraries due to it can be easy done with standard Node.js libs.

// download.js
import fs from 'fs'
import https from 'https'
import http from 'http'
import { basename } from 'path'
import { URL } from 'url'

const TIMEOUT = 10000

function download (url, dest) {
  const uri = new URL(url)
  if (!dest) {
    dest = basename(uri.pathname)
  }
  const pkg = url.toLowerCase().startsWith('https:') ? https : http

  return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
    const request = pkg.get(uri.href).on('response', (res) => {
      if (res.statusCode === 200) {
        const file = fs.createWriteStream(dest, { flags: 'wx' })
        res
          .on('end', () => {
            file.end()
            // console.log(`${uri.pathname} downloaded to: ${path}`)
            resolve()
          })
          .on('error', (err) => {
            file.destroy()
            fs.unlink(dest, () => reject(err))
          }).pipe(file)
      } else if (res.statusCode === 302 || res.statusCode === 301) {
        // Recursively follow redirects, only a 200 will resolve.
        download(res.headers.location, dest).then(() => resolve())
      } else {
        reject(new Error(`Download request failed, response status: ${res.statusCode} ${res.statusMessage}`))
      }
    })
    request.setTimeout(TIMEOUT, function () {
      request.abort()
      reject(new Error(`Request timeout after ${TIMEOUT / 1000.0}s`))
    })
  })
}

export default download

Kudo to Andrey Tkachenko for his gist which I modified

Include it in another file and use

const download = require('./download.js')
const url = 'https://raw.githubusercontent.com/replace-this-with-your-remote-file'
console.log('Downloading ' + url)

async function run() {
  console.log('Downloading file')
  try {
    await download(url, 'server')
    console.log('Download done')
  } catch (e) {
    console.log('Download failed')
    console.log(e.message)
  }
}

run()

I prefer request() because you can use both http and https with it.

request('http://i3.ytimg.com/vi/J---aiyznGQ/mqdefault.jpg')
  .pipe(fs.createWriteStream('cat.jpg'))

✅So if you use pipeline, it would close all other streams and make sure that there are no memory leaks.

Working example:

const http = require('http');
const { pipeline } = require('stream');
const fs = require('fs');

const file = fs.createWriteStream('./file.jpg');

http.get('http://via.placeholder.com/150/92c952', response => {
  pipeline(
    response,
    file,
    err => {
      if (err)
        console.error('Pipeline failed.', err);
      else
        console.log('Pipeline succeeded.');
    }
  );
});

From my answer to "What's the difference between .pipe and .pipeline on streams".

Using the http2 Module

I saw answers using the http, https, and request modules. I'd like to add one using yet another native NodeJS module that supports either the http or https protocol:

Solution

I've referenced the official NodeJS API, as well as some of the other answers on this question for something I'm doing. The following was the test I wrote to try it out, which worked as intended:

import * as fs from 'fs';
import * as _path from 'path';
import * as http2 from 'http2';

/* ... */

async function download( host, query, destination )
{
    return new Promise
    (
        ( resolve, reject ) =>
        {
            // Connect to client:
            const client = http2.connect( host );
            client.on( 'error', error => reject( error ) );

            // Prepare a write stream:
            const fullPath = _path.join( fs.realPathSync( '.' ), destination );
            const file = fs.createWriteStream( fullPath, { flags: "wx" } );
            file.on( 'error', error => reject( error ) );

            // Create a request:
            const request = client.request( { [':path']: query } );

            // On initial response handle non-success (!== 200) status error:
            request.on
            (
                'response',
                ( headers/*, flags*/ ) =>
                {
                    if( headers[':status'] !== 200 )
                    {
                        file.close();
                        fs.unlink( fullPath, () => {} );
                        reject( new Error( `Server responded with ${headers[':status']}` ) );
                    }
                }
            );

            // Set encoding for the payload:
            request.setEncoding( 'utf8' );

            // Write the payload to file:
            request.on( 'data', chunk => file.write( chunk ) );

            // Handle ending the request
            request.on
            (
                'end',
                () =>
                {
                    file.close();
                    client.close();
                    resolve( { result: true } );
                }
            );

            /* 
                You can use request.setTimeout( 12000, () => {} ) for aborting
                after period of inactivity
            */

            // Fire off [flush] the request:
            request.end();
        }
    );
}

Then, for example:

/* ... */

let downloaded = await download( 'https://gitlab.com', '/api/v4/...', 'tmp/tmpFile' );

if( downloaded.result )
{
    // Success!
}

// ...

External References

• https://nodejs.org/api/http2.html#http2_client_side_example
• https://nodejs.org/api/http2.html#http2_clienthttp2session_request_headers_options

EDIT Information

• The solution was written for typescript, the function a class method - but with out noting this the solution would not have worked for the presumed javascript user with out proper use of the function declaration, which our contributor has so promptly added. Thanks!

download.js (i.e. /project/utils/download.js)

const fs = require('fs');
const request = require('request');

const download = (uri, filename, callback) => {
    request.head(uri, (err, res, body) => {
        console.log('content-type:', res.headers['content-type']);
        console.log('content-length:', res.headers['content-length']);

        request(uri).pipe(fs.createWriteStream(filename)).on('close', callback);
    });
};

module.exports = { download };

app.js

... 
// part of imports
const { download } = require('./utils/download');

...
// add this function wherever
download('https://imageurl.com', 'imagename.jpg', () => {
  console.log('done')
});

Writing my own solution since the existing didn't fit my requirements.

What this covers:

• HTTPS download (switch package to http for HTTP downloads)
• Promise based function
• Handle forwarded path (status 302)
• Browser header - required on a few CDNs
• Filename from URL (as well as hardcoded)
• Error handling

It's typed, it's safer. Feel free to drop the types if you're working with plain JS (no Flow, no TS) or convert to a .d.ts file

index.js

import httpsDownload from httpsDownload;
httpsDownload('https://example.com/file.zip', './');

httpsDownload.[js|ts]

import https from "https";
import fs from "fs";
import path from "path";

function download(
  url: string,
  folder?: string,
  filename?: string
): Promise<void> {
  return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
    const req = https
      .request(url, { headers: { "User-Agent": "javascript" } }, (response) => {
        if (response.statusCode === 302 && response.headers.location != null) {
          download(
            buildNextUrl(url, response.headers.location),
            folder,
            filename
          )
            .then(resolve)
            .catch(reject);
          return;
        }

        const file = fs.createWriteStream(
          buildDestinationPath(url, folder, filename)
        );
        response.pipe(file);
        file.on("finish", () => {
          file.close();
          resolve();
        });
      })
      .on("error", reject);
    req.end();
  });
}

function buildNextUrl(current: string, next: string) {
  const isNextUrlAbsolute = RegExp("^(?:[a-z]+:)?//").test(next);
  if (isNextUrlAbsolute) {
    return next;
  } else {
    const currentURL = new URL(current);
    const fullHost = `${currentURL.protocol}//${currentURL.hostname}${
      currentURL.port ? ":" + currentURL.port : ""
    }`;
    return `${fullHost}${next}`;
  }
}

function buildDestinationPath(url: string, folder?: string, filename?: string) {
  return path.join(folder ?? "./", filename ?? generateFilenameFromPath(url));
}

function generateFilenameFromPath(url: string): string {
  const urlParts = url.split("/");
  return urlParts[urlParts.length - 1] ?? "";
}

export default download;

For Node with Promise support, a simple Node shim for (part of the) Fetch API requires only a smattering of extra code compared to other answers:

const fs = require(`fs`);
const http = require(`http`);
const https = require(`https`);

module.exports = function fetch(url) {
  return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
    const data = [];
    const client = url.startsWith("https") ? https : http;
    client
      .request(url, (res) => {
        res.on(`data`, (chunk) => data.push(chunk));
        res.on(`end`, () => {
          const asBytes = Buffer.concat(data);
          const asString = asBytes.toString(`utf8`);
          resolve({
            arrayBuffer: async () => asBytes,
            json: async () => JSON.parse(asString),
            text: async () => asString,
          });
        });
        res.on(`error`, (e) => reject(e));
      })
      .end();
  });
};

Which you can then use for whatever you need, using normal fetch syntax:

const fetch = require(`./tiny-fetch.js`);

fetch(`https://placekitten.com/200/300`)
  .then(res => res.arrayBuffer())
  .then(bytes => fs.writeFileSync(`kitten.jpg`, bytes))
  .catch(e => console.error(e));

fetch(`https://jsonplaceholder.typicode.com/todos/1`)
  .then(res => res.json())
  .then(obj => console.log(obj))
  .catch(e => console.error(e));

// etc.

var fs = require('fs'),
    request = require('request');

var download = function(uri, filename, callback){
    request.head(uri, function(err, res, body){
    console.log('content-type:', res.headers['content-type']);
    console.log('content-length:', res.headers['content-length']);
    request(uri).pipe(fs.createWriteStream(filename)).on('close', callback);

    }); 
};   

download('https://www.cryptocompare.com/media/19684/doge.png', 'icons/taskks12.png', function(){
    console.log('done');
});

Here's yet another way to handle it without 3rd party dependency and also searching for redirects:

        var download = function(url, dest, cb) {
            var file = fs.createWriteStream(dest);
            https.get(url, function(response) {
                if ([301,302].indexOf(response.statusCode) !== -1) {
                    body = [];
                    download(response.headers.location, dest, cb);
                  }
              response.pipe(file);
              file.on('finish', function() {
                file.close(cb);  // close() is async, call cb after close completes.
              });
            });
          }

You can try using res.redirect to the https file download url, and then it will be downloading the file.

Like: res.redirect('https//static.file.com/file.txt');

I've found this approach to be the most helpful especially when it comes to pdfs and random other files.

import fs from "fs";

  fs.appendFile("output_file_name.ext", fileDataInBytes, (err) => {
    if (err) throw err;
    console.log("File saved!");
  });

I suggest you to use res.download same as follow:

app.get('/download', function(req, res){
  const file = `${__dirname}/folder/abc.csv`;
  res.download(file); // Set disposition and send it.
});