Valtio

Overview

Valtio makes React state management feel like plain JavaScript — mutate objects directly and React re-renders automatically. No reducers, no actions, no selectors. Wrap an object in proxy(), mutate it anywhere, and components that read the changed properties re-render. Based on JavaScript Proxy, it tracks which properties each component uses and only re-renders when those specific properties change.

When to Use

• Want the simplest possible state management
• Tired of Redux boilerplate or Zustand's set() function
• Sharing state between components without prop drilling
• State that's accessed/modified outside React (event handlers, WebSocket callbacks)
• Team prefers mutable patterns over immutable

Instructions

Setup

npm install valtio

Basic Store

// store/app.ts — Define state as a plain object
import { proxy, useSnapshot } from "valtio";

export const appState = proxy({
  user: null as { name: string; email: string } | null,
  theme: "light" as "light" | "dark",
  notifications: [] as Array<{ id: string; text: string; read: boolean }>,
  sidebar: { open: true, width: 280 },
});

// Mutate directly — React components auto-update
export function login(user: { name: string; email: string }) {
  appState.user = user;
}

export function toggleTheme() {
  appState.theme = appState.theme === "light" ? "dark" : "light";
}

export function addNotification(text: string) {
  appState.notifications.push({ id: crypto.randomUUID(), text, read: false });
}

export function markAllRead() {
  appState.notifications.forEach((n) => { n.read = true; });
}

export function toggleSidebar() {
  appState.sidebar.open = !appState.sidebar.open;
}

Use in Components

// components/Header.tsx — Read state with useSnapshot
import { useSnapshot } from "valtio";
import { appState, toggleTheme, toggleSidebar } from "@/store/app";

export function Header() {
  // useSnapshot creates a read-only snapshot
  // Component ONLY re-renders when `user` or `theme` changes
  // Changes to `notifications` or `sidebar` don't trigger re-render here
  const snap = useSnapshot(appState);

  return (
    <header className="flex items-center justify-between p-4">
      <button onClick={toggleSidebar}>☰</button>
      <span>{snap.user?.name ?? "Guest"}</span>
      <button onClick={toggleTheme}>
        {snap.theme === "light" ? "🌙" : "☀️"}
      </button>
    </header>
  );
}

// components/NotificationBell.tsx — Derived/computed values
import { useSnapshot } from "valtio";
import { appState, markAllRead } from "@/store/app";

export function NotificationBell() {
  const snap = useSnapshot(appState);
  const unread = snap.notifications.filter((n) => !n.read).length;

  return (
    <button onClick={markAllRead} className="relative">
      🔔
      {unread > 0 && (
        <span className="absolute -top-1 -right-1 bg-red-500 text-white text-xs rounded-full w-5 h-5 flex items-center justify-center">
          {unread}
        </span>
      )}
    </button>
  );
}

Computed Values with derive

// store/derived.ts — Computed values that auto-update
import { derive } from "valtio/utils";
import { appState } from "./app";

export const derived = derive({
  unreadCount: (get) => get(appState).notifications.filter((n) => !n.read).length,
  isDarkMode: (get) => get(appState).theme === "dark",
  isLoggedIn: (get) => get(appState).user !== null,
});

Subscribe Outside React

// Listen to state changes outside components
import { subscribe } from "valtio";
import { appState } from "./store/app";

// Log every state change
subscribe(appState, () => {
  console.log("State changed:", JSON.stringify(appState));
});

// Subscribe to specific property
subscribe(appState.sidebar, () => {
  localStorage.setItem("sidebar-open", String(appState.sidebar.open));
});

// Use in WebSocket handler
socket.on("notification", (data) => {
  appState.notifications.push(data);  // Components auto-update
});

Examples

Example 1: Build a shopping cart

User prompt: "Build a shopping cart with add/remove/update quantity using simple state management."

The agent will create a Valtio proxy for cart state, actions that directly mutate the array, and components that reactively display cart contents and total.

Example 2: Theme and layout preferences

User prompt: "Store user preferences (theme, language, sidebar state) that persist across page loads."

The agent will create a Valtio store with localStorage sync via subscribe, and components that read preferences reactively.

Guidelines

• proxy() for state, useSnapshot() for reading — always use snapshot in components
• Mutate directly — state.count++ works; no setState or set() needed
• Automatic render optimization — only re-renders when accessed properties change
• subscribe() for side effects — persist to localStorage, log, sync
• derive() for computed values — auto-recalculates when dependencies change
• Works outside React — mutate from event handlers, WebSocket, timers
• Snapshot is read-only — don't mutate snap, mutate the original proxy
• Arrays work naturally — push, splice, filter all trigger re-renders
• Nested objects tracked — state.user.name = "new" triggers re-render
• Devtools — import { devtools } from "valtio/utils" for Redux DevTools integration