Frontend State Management

Overview

Patterns and best practices for managing state in frontend applications across different frameworks.

State Categories

Local vs Global State

Type	Scope	Examples	Solution
Local UI	Single component	Form inputs, modals, dropdowns	useState, ref
Shared UI	Component subtree	Theme, sidebar state	Context, provide/inject
Server	Cached API data	Users, products, orders	TanStack Query, SWR
Global App	Entire app	Auth, settings, notifications	Zustand, Pinia, Redux
URL	Browser URL	Filters, pagination, search	Router params/query

When to Use What

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Does only this component need it?                       │
│   YES → Local state (useState/ref)                      │
│   NO ↓                                                  │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Is it server data that needs caching/sync?              │
│   YES → Server state library (TanStack Query)           │
│   NO ↓                                                  │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Is it in the URL (shareable state)?                     │
│   YES → URL state (router)                              │
│   NO ↓                                                  │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ Is it needed across unrelated components?               │
│   YES → Global store (Zustand/Pinia)                    │
│   NO → Lift state up or Context                         │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Server State (TanStack Query)

Basic Query Pattern

// Define query
function useUsers(filters: UserFilters) {
  return useQuery({
    queryKey: ['users', filters],
    queryFn: () => api.getUsers(filters),
    staleTime: 5 * 60 * 1000, // 5 minutes
    gcTime: 30 * 60 * 1000,   // 30 minutes
  });
}

// Use in component
function UserList() {
  const [filters, setFilters] = useState<UserFilters>({});
  const { data, isLoading, error } = useUsers(filters);

  if (isLoading) return <Spinner />;
  if (error) return <Error message={error.message} />;
  return <List items={data} />;
}

Mutation Pattern

function useCreateUser() {
  const queryClient = useQueryClient();

  return useMutation({
    mutationFn: (data: CreateUserInput) => api.createUser(data),
    onSuccess: () => {
      // Invalidate and refetch
      queryClient.invalidateQueries({ queryKey: ['users'] });
    },
  });
}

// Usage
const createUser = useCreateUser();
await createUser.mutateAsync({ name: 'John', email: 'john@example.com' });

Optimistic Updates

function useUpdateUser() {
  const queryClient = useQueryClient();

  return useMutation({
    mutationFn: (data: UpdateUserInput) => api.updateUser(data),
    onMutate: async (newData) => {
      // Cancel outgoing refetches
      await queryClient.cancelQueries({ queryKey: ['user', newData.id] });

      // Snapshot previous value
      const previous = queryClient.getQueryData(['user', newData.id]);

      // Optimistically update
      queryClient.setQueryData(['user', newData.id], (old: User) => ({
        ...old,
        ...newData,
      }));

      return { previous };
    },
    onError: (err, newData, context) => {
      // Rollback on error
      queryClient.setQueryData(['user', newData.id], context?.previous);
    },
    onSettled: () => {
      queryClient.invalidateQueries({ queryKey: ['users'] });
    },
  });
}

Global State (Zustand)

Store Definition

interface AppStore {
  // State
  theme: 'light' | 'dark';
  sidebarOpen: boolean;
  notifications: Notification[];

  // Actions
  setTheme: (theme: 'light' | 'dark') => void;
  toggleSidebar: () => void;
  addNotification: (notification: Notification) => void;
  removeNotification: (id: string) => void;
}

export const useAppStore = create<AppStore>((set) => ({
  theme: 'light',
  sidebarOpen: true,
  notifications: [],

  setTheme: (theme) => set({ theme }),
  toggleSidebar: () => set((state) => ({ sidebarOpen: !state.sidebarOpen })),
  addNotification: (notification) =>
    set((state) => ({
      notifications: [...state.notifications, notification],
    })),
  removeNotification: (id) =>
    set((state) => ({
      notifications: state.notifications.filter((n) => n.id !== id),
    })),
}));

Selectors for Performance

// BAD: Re-renders on any store change
const { theme, notifications } = useAppStore();

// GOOD: Only re-renders when theme changes
const theme = useAppStore((state) => state.theme);

// GOOD: Multiple selectors with shallow comparison
const { theme, sidebarOpen } = useAppStore(
  (state) => ({ theme: state.theme, sidebarOpen: state.sidebarOpen }),
  shallow
);

Computed/Derived State

const useAppStore = create<AppStore>((set, get) => ({
  notifications: [],

  // Derived state as selector
  unreadCount: () => get().notifications.filter((n) => !n.read).length,

  // Or compute in selector
}));

// Usage with computed
const unreadCount = useAppStore((state) =>
  state.notifications.filter((n) => !n.read).length
);

Global State (Pinia for Vue)

export const useAppStore = defineStore('app', () => {
  // State
  const theme = ref<'light' | 'dark'>('light');
  const sidebarOpen = ref(true);
  const notifications = ref<Notification[]>([]);

  // Getters (computed)
  const unreadCount = computed(() =>
    notifications.value.filter((n) => !n.read).length
  );

  // Actions
  function setTheme(newTheme: 'light' | 'dark') {
    theme.value = newTheme;
  }

  function toggleSidebar() {
    sidebarOpen.value = !sidebarOpen.value;
  }

  return {
    theme,
    sidebarOpen,
    notifications,
    unreadCount,
    setTheme,
    toggleSidebar,
  };
});

URL State

Search Params

// React with react-router
function useSearchParams() {
  const [searchParams, setSearchParams] = useSearchParams();

  const filters = useMemo(
    () => ({
      page: parseInt(searchParams.get('page') || '1'),
      search: searchParams.get('search') || '',
      sort: searchParams.get('sort') || 'name',
    }),
    [searchParams]
  );

  const setFilters = (newFilters: Partial<typeof filters>) => {
    setSearchParams((prev) => {
      Object.entries(newFilters).forEach(([key, value]) => {
        if (value) prev.set(key, String(value));
        else prev.delete(key);
      });
      return prev;
    });
  };

  return [filters, setFilters] as const;
}

Benefits of URL State

• Shareable links
• Browser back/forward works
• Bookmarkable
• SEO-friendly
• Survives refresh

Best Practices

1. Colocate State

Keep state as close to where it's used as possible.

// BAD: Global state for local concern
const useGlobalStore = create(() => ({
  isModalOpen: false,
  toggleModal: () => {},
}));

// GOOD: Local state for local concern
function UserProfile() {
  const [isModalOpen, setModalOpen] = useState(false);
}

2. Single Source of Truth

Don't duplicate state across stores.

// BAD: Duplicated user in multiple places
const authStore = { user: { id: 1, name: 'John' } };
const profileStore = { user: { id: 1, name: 'John' } }; // Duplicated!

// GOOD: Reference by ID
const authStore = { userId: 1 };
const usersCache = { 1: { id: 1, name: 'John' } };

3. Derive Don't Store

Compute derived data instead of storing it.

// BAD: Storing derived state
const store = {
  items: [],
  itemCount: 0,           // Derived!
  filteredItems: [],      // Derived!
  totalPrice: 0,          // Derived!
};

// GOOD: Compute on demand
const store = {
  items: [],
};

// Compute when needed
const itemCount = items.length;
const filteredItems = items.filter(predicate);
const totalPrice = items.reduce((sum, i) => sum + i.price, 0);

4. Normalize Complex Data

// BAD: Nested data
const store = {
  orders: [
    {
      id: 1,
      user: { id: 1, name: 'John' },
      items: [{ id: 1, product: { id: 1, name: 'Widget' } }],
    },
  ],
};

// GOOD: Normalized
const store = {
  orders: { 1: { id: 1, userId: 1, itemIds: [1] } },
  users: { 1: { id: 1, name: 'John' } },
  items: { 1: { id: 1, productId: 1, orderId: 1 } },
  products: { 1: { id: 1, name: 'Widget' } },
};

5. Handle Loading/Error States

interface AsyncState<T> {
  data: T | null;
  loading: boolean;
  error: Error | null;
}

// Always handle all three states
function UserList({ state }: { state: AsyncState<User[]> }) {
  if (state.loading) return <Spinner />;
  if (state.error) return <Error error={state.error} />;
  if (!state.data?.length) return <Empty />;
  return <List items={state.data} />;
}

Anti-Patterns

1. Prop Drilling (Instead: Context or Store)

// BAD: Passing through many levels
<App theme={theme}>
  <Layout theme={theme}>
    <Sidebar theme={theme}>
      <MenuItem theme={theme} />  // 4 levels deep!
    </Sidebar>
  </Layout>
</App>

// GOOD: Context or store
const theme = useTheme();  // Access anywhere

2. Storing Server Data in Global State

// BAD: Manual cache management
const store = {
  users: [],
  fetchUsers: async () => {
    const users = await api.getUsers();
    set({ users });
  },
};

// GOOD: Use server state library
const { data: users } = useQuery(['users'], api.getUsers);

3. Mutating State Directly

// BAD: Direct mutation
state.users.push(newUser);
state.users[0].name = 'Updated';

// GOOD: Immutable updates
set({ users: [...state.users, newUser] });
set({
  users: state.users.map((u) =>
    u.id === id ? { ...u, name: 'Updated' } : u
  ),
});

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State management patterns for frontend applications