State & Data Fetching
Client state and server data libraries compared — server cache, global stores, and async data hooks.
alternatives (4)
★ TanStack Query
Best for: Server state & caching
Powerful async state manager for server data — caching, background refetch, pagination, and mutations with minimal boilerplate.
- +Best server cache
- +DevTools
- +Mutations built-in
- −Server state only
- −not a global store
Zustand
Best for: Lightweight client state
Minimal global state for React — simple store API, no providers, works outside components, tiny bundle.
- +Tiny API
- +No boilerplate
- +Works outside React
- −Client state only
Redux Toolkit
Best for: Complex app state
Official Redux toolset — slices, Immer, RTK Query for data fetching, and DevTools for complex app state.
- +Predictable
- +RTK Query included
- +DevTools
- −More boilerplate than Zustand
SWR
Best for: Simple stale-while-revalidate
React Hooks for data fetching by Vercel — stale-while-revalidate strategy with a minimal API and good defaults.
- +Minimal API
- +SWR strategy
- +Vercel-backed
- −Less features than TanStack Query
Compare
Tick the ones you want to compare
| Alternative | Focus | Server state | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| ★TanStack Query | Server state | Excellent | API data caching |
| Zustand | Client state | No | Simple global state |
| Redux Toolkit | Client + server | Via RTK Query | Large complex apps |
| SWR | Server state | Good | Simple data hooks |