diff --git a/.nvmrc b/.nvmrc
index b8626c4cff..45a4fb75db 100644
--- a/.nvmrc
+++ b/.nvmrc
@@ -1 +1 @@
-4
+8
diff --git a/docs/contributing/developing.rst b/docs/contributing/developing.rst
index 2554cf7866..2b7ccb886e 100644
--- a/docs/contributing/developing.rst
+++ b/docs/contributing/developing.rst
@@ -15,7 +15,7 @@ If you'd prefer to set up all the components manually, read on. These instructio
 Setting up the Wagtail codebase
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
-Install Node.js, version 4.x, 5.x or 6.x. Instructions for installing Node.js can be found on the `Node.js download page <https://nodejs.org/download/>`_.
+Install Node.js, version 8. Instructions for installing Node.js can be found on the `Node.js download page <https://nodejs.org/download/>`_.
 You can also use Node version manager (nvm) since Wagtail supplies a ``.nvmrc`` file in the root of the project with the minimum required Node version - see nvm's `installation instructions <https://github.com/creationix/nvm>`_.
 
 You will also need to install the **libjpeg** and **zlib** libraries, if you haven't done so already - see Pillow's `platform-specific installation instructions <http://pillow.readthedocs.org/en/latest/installation.html#external-libraries>`_.