State Management Has Simplified

React state management in 2026 is simpler than it was five years ago. Redux is no longer the default choice. React Server Components eliminate much client-side state. Modern libraries provide focused solutions for specific state types. At Nexis Limited, we match state management tools to the specific needs of each application.

Types of State

Understanding the type of state you are managing is the key to choosing the right tool:

  • UI state: Modal open/closed, form inputs, selected tab, accordion expanded. Local and ephemeral.
  • Server state: Data fetched from APIs — user profiles, product lists, dashboard data. Needs caching, synchronization, and invalidation.
  • Global application state: Theme, locale, authentication status. Shared across many components.
  • URL state: Current route, query parameters, hash. Already managed by the router.

Built-in React State

useState

For simple, local UI state — form inputs, toggles, counters. No state management library needed. This should be your default. Most applications need far less global state than developers assume.

useReducer

For complex local state with multiple actions — multi-step forms, complex UI interactions, state machines. Use when useState becomes unwieldy with multiple related state variables and complex update logic.

React Context

For sharing state across a component subtree without prop drilling — theme, locale, authentication. Context is not a state management solution — it is a dependency injection mechanism. Avoid putting frequently-changing state in Context (it re-renders all consumers on every change).

Server State Libraries

TanStack Query (React Query)

The standard solution for server state. Handles data fetching, caching, background refetching, pagination, optimistic updates, and cache invalidation. Eliminates the need to manually manage loading states, error states, and stale data. If you fetch data from APIs, use TanStack Query.

SWR

Vercel's data fetching library with a simpler API than TanStack Query. Good for straightforward data fetching. TanStack Query provides more features for complex use cases (mutations, optimistic updates, infinite queries).

Global State Libraries

Zustand

Minimal, un-opinionated state management. Create stores with plain JavaScript objects and functions. No boilerplate, no providers, no actions/reducers ceremony. Supports selectors for preventing unnecessary re-renders. Our preferred choice for global client state.

Jotai

Atomic state management — define independent atoms of state that components can subscribe to individually. Derived atoms compute values from other atoms. Extremely fine-grained re-rendering control. Good for applications with many independent, interrelated state values.

Redux Toolkit

If you need Redux (large, complex application state with strict unidirectional data flow), use Redux Toolkit. It eliminates the boilerplate that made Redux painful. But for most new applications, Zustand or Jotai provides the same benefits with less complexity.

React Server Components Impact

React Server Components in Next.js App Router fetch data on the server. Data fetching state (loading, error, data) is handled during server rendering, not in client-side state. This eliminates much of the client-side state management that was previously necessary. Many components that used TanStack Query or Redux for data now fetch data directly as server components.

Practical Recommendations

  1. Start with useState. Most state is local. Do not reach for a library until you have a clear need.
  2. Use TanStack Query for server data. If you fetch API data on the client, TanStack Query handles caching and synchronization better than manual state management.
  3. Use Zustand or Jotai for global client state that genuinely needs to be shared across many components (theme, user preferences, complex UI state).
  4. Use URL state for shareable state. Search filters, pagination, and view modes should be in the URL (query parameters or path segments), not in client state.
  5. Leverage React Server Components. Data that can be fetched on the server should be — eliminating client-side state management for that data entirely.

Conclusion

The best state management is the least state management. Use the simplest tool that solves your specific problem — useState for local state, TanStack Query for server data, and Zustand for the small amount of genuinely global client state. Avoid over-engineering state management before the complexity justifies it.

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