Redux State Management Libraries Comparison
@reduxjs/toolkit vs redux-starter-kit vs redux-toolkit
1 Year
@reduxjs/toolkitredux-starter-kitredux-toolkitSimilar Packages:
What's Redux State Management Libraries?

Redux state management libraries are essential tools for managing application state in JavaScript applications, particularly those built with React. They provide a predictable state container that helps developers manage the complexity of state changes in large applications. These libraries facilitate the implementation of Redux, a popular state management pattern, by offering various utilities and abstractions that simplify the setup and usage of Redux. The main benefits include improved maintainability, better debugging capabilities, and a more structured approach to handling state changes, which is crucial for building scalable applications.

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@reduxjs/toolkit4,021,31710,7695.6 MB27010 days agoMIT
redux-starter-kit20,12010,769-2705 years agoMIT
redux-toolkit3,5822-0--
Feature Comparison: @reduxjs/toolkit vs redux-starter-kit vs redux-toolkit

API Simplification

  • @reduxjs/toolkit:

    @reduxjs/toolkit provides a simplified API that reduces boilerplate code significantly. It introduces utilities like createSlice, which automatically generates action creators and action types, and createAsyncThunk for handling asynchronous logic, making it easier to manage state and side effects.

  • redux-starter-kit:

    redux-starter-kit aimed to simplify the Redux API by providing a set of utilities, but it lacks the comprehensive features and improvements found in @reduxjs/toolkit. It is now considered outdated and not the best choice for new projects.

  • redux-toolkit:

    redux-toolkit, while similar to @reduxjs/toolkit, does not include the latest enhancements and best practices. It offers some simplifications but is not as robust or feature-rich as the current toolkit.

Performance Optimization

  • @reduxjs/toolkit:

    @reduxjs/toolkit includes built-in performance optimizations, such as memoization and efficient state updates. It encourages the use of Immer for immutable state updates, which helps prevent unnecessary re-renders and improves application performance.

  • redux-starter-kit:

    redux-starter-kit provided some performance optimizations but is not as efficient as @reduxjs/toolkit. It lacks the modern features that enhance performance in complex applications.

  • redux-toolkit:

    redux-toolkit includes some performance optimizations but may not be as effective as @reduxjs/toolkit. It is essential to consider upgrading to the latest toolkit for better performance.

Community and Support

  • @reduxjs/toolkit:

    @reduxjs/toolkit is actively maintained and has strong community support, being the official Redux toolkit. It is well-documented and widely adopted, making it easier to find resources and help when needed.

  • redux-starter-kit:

    redux-starter-kit is deprecated and no longer receives updates or community support. Using it may lead to challenges in finding help or resources.

  • redux-toolkit:

    redux-toolkit has limited community support compared to @reduxjs/toolkit. While it may still have some resources available, it is not the recommended choice for new projects.

Learning Curve

  • @reduxjs/toolkit:

    @reduxjs/toolkit is designed to be beginner-friendly, with a focus on reducing complexity. Its clear API and built-in utilities make it easier for new developers to grasp Redux concepts without getting overwhelmed by boilerplate code.

  • redux-starter-kit:

    redux-starter-kit was intended to simplify the learning process but is now outdated. New developers may find it less intuitive compared to the current toolkit.

  • redux-toolkit:

    redux-toolkit has a moderate learning curve. While it simplifies some aspects of Redux, it may still present challenges for beginners compared to @reduxjs/toolkit.

Future-Proofing

  • @reduxjs/toolkit:

    @reduxjs/toolkit is the current standard for Redux development, ensuring that applications built with it will be compatible with future updates and improvements in the Redux ecosystem.

  • redux-starter-kit:

    redux-starter-kit is deprecated and should not be used for new projects, as it will not receive future updates or support.

  • redux-toolkit:

    redux-toolkit is not the latest version and may not include future enhancements. It is advisable to transition to @reduxjs/toolkit for ongoing support and updates.

How to Choose: @reduxjs/toolkit vs redux-starter-kit vs redux-toolkit
  • @reduxjs/toolkit:

    Choose @reduxjs/toolkit if you want the most up-to-date and officially recommended way to write Redux logic. It offers a simplified API, built-in best practices, and powerful tools like createSlice and createAsyncThunk, making it ideal for new projects or when refactoring existing code.

  • redux-starter-kit:

    Choose redux-starter-kit if you are looking for a legacy package that was an earlier attempt to simplify Redux usage. However, note that it is now deprecated in favor of @reduxjs/toolkit, so it is not recommended for new projects.

  • redux-toolkit:

    Choose redux-toolkit if you are working with an older codebase that still uses this naming convention. While it serves similar purposes as @reduxjs/toolkit, it may not have the latest features and improvements.

README for @reduxjs/toolkit

Redux Toolkit

GitHub Workflow Status npm version npm downloads

The official, opinionated, batteries-included toolset for efficient Redux development

Installation

Create a React Redux App

The recommended way to start new apps with React and Redux Toolkit is by using our official Redux Toolkit + TS template for Vite, or by creating a new Next.js project using Next's with-redux template.

Both of these already have Redux Toolkit and React-Redux configured appropriately for that build tool, and come with a small example app that demonstrates how to use several of Redux Toolkit's features.

# Vite with our Redux+TS template
# (using the `degit` tool to clone and extract the template)
npx degit reduxjs/redux-templates/packages/vite-template-redux my-app

# Next.js using the `with-redux` template
npx create-next-app --example with-redux my-app

We do not currently have official React Native templates, but recommend these templates for standard React Native and for Expo:

  • https://github.com/rahsheen/react-native-template-redux-typescript
  • https://github.com/rahsheen/expo-template-redux-typescript

An Existing App

Redux Toolkit is available as a package on NPM for use with a module bundler or in a Node application:

# NPM
npm install @reduxjs/toolkit

# Yarn
yarn add @reduxjs/toolkit

The package includes a precompiled ESM build that can be used as a <script type="module"> tag directly in the browser.

Documentation

The Redux Toolkit docs are available at https://redux-toolkit.js.org, including API references and usage guides for all of the APIs included in Redux Toolkit.

The Redux core docs at https://redux.js.org includes the full Redux tutorials, as well usage guides on general Redux patterns.

Purpose

The Redux Toolkit package is intended to be the standard way to write Redux logic. It was originally created to help address three common concerns about Redux:

  • "Configuring a Redux store is too complicated"
  • "I have to add a lot of packages to get Redux to do anything useful"
  • "Redux requires too much boilerplate code"

We can't solve every use case, but in the spirit of create-react-app, we can try to provide some tools that abstract over the setup process and handle the most common use cases, as well as include some useful utilities that will let the user simplify their application code.

Because of that, this package is deliberately limited in scope. It does not address concepts like "reusable encapsulated Redux modules", folder or file structures, managing entity relationships in the store, and so on.

Redux Toolkit also includes a powerful data fetching and caching capability that we've dubbed "RTK Query". It's included in the package as a separate set of entry points. It's optional, but can eliminate the need to hand-write data fetching logic yourself.

What's Included

Redux Toolkit includes these APIs:

  • configureStore(): wraps createStore to provide simplified configuration options and good defaults. It can automatically combine your slice reducers, add whatever Redux middleware you supply, includes redux-thunk by default, and enables use of the Redux DevTools Extension.
  • createReducer(): lets you supply a lookup table of action types to case reducer functions, rather than writing switch statements. In addition, it automatically uses the immer library to let you write simpler immutable updates with normal mutative code, like state.todos[3].completed = true.
  • createAction(): generates an action creator function for the given action type string. The function itself has toString() defined, so that it can be used in place of the type constant.
  • createSlice(): combines createReducer() + createAction(). Accepts an object of reducer functions, a slice name, and an initial state value, and automatically generates a slice reducer with corresponding action creators and action types.
  • combineSlices(): combines multiple slices into a single reducer, and allows "lazy loading" of slices after initialisation.
  • createListenerMiddleware(): lets you define "listener" entries that contain an "effect" callback with additional logic, and a way to specify when that callback should run based on dispatched actions or state changes. A lightweight alternative to Redux async middleware like sagas and observables.
  • createAsyncThunk(): accepts an action type string and a function that returns a promise, and generates a thunk that dispatches pending/resolved/rejected action types based on that promise
  • createEntityAdapter(): generates a set of reusable reducers and selectors to manage normalized data in the store
  • The createSelector() utility from the Reselect library, re-exported for ease of use.

For details, see the Redux Toolkit API Reference section in the docs.

RTK Query

RTK Query is provided as an optional addon within the @reduxjs/toolkit package. It is purpose-built to solve the use case of data fetching and caching, supplying a compact, but powerful toolset to define an API interface layer for your app. It is intended to simplify common cases for loading data in a web application, eliminating the need to hand-write data fetching & caching logic yourself.

RTK Query is built on top of the Redux Toolkit core for its implementation, using Redux internally for its architecture. Although knowledge of Redux and RTK are not required to use RTK Query, you should explore all of the additional global store management capabilities they provide, as well as installing the Redux DevTools browser extension, which works flawlessly with RTK Query to traverse and replay a timeline of your request & cache behavior.

RTK Query is included within the installation of the core Redux Toolkit package. It is available via either of the two entry points below:

import { createApi } from '@reduxjs/toolkit/query'

/* React-specific entry point that automatically generates
   hooks corresponding to the defined endpoints */
import { createApi } from '@reduxjs/toolkit/query/react'

What's included

RTK Query includes these APIs:

  • createApi(): The core of RTK Query's functionality. It allows you to define a set of endpoints describe how to retrieve data from a series of endpoints, including configuration of how to fetch and transform that data. In most cases, you should use this once per app, with "one API slice per base URL" as a rule of thumb.
  • fetchBaseQuery(): A small wrapper around fetch that aims to simplify requests. Intended as the recommended baseQuery to be used in createApi for the majority of users.
  • <ApiProvider />: Can be used as a Provider if you do not already have a Redux store.
  • setupListeners(): A utility used to enable refetchOnMount and refetchOnReconnect behaviors.

See the RTK Query Overview page for more details on what RTK Query is, what problems it solves, and how to use it.

Contributing

Please refer to our contributing guide to learn about our development process, how to propose bugfixes and improvements, and how to build and test your changes to Redux Toolkit.