The state management landscape has changed. Redux is no longer the default. Here's a technical breakdown of what actually matters in 2026.
Bundle Size Comparison
Zustand: ~3KB (minified + gzipped)
Jotai: ~4KB
@preact/signals: ~4KB
Redux Toolkit: ~15KB (with react-redux)
Every kilobyte affects Time to Interactive. On 3G connections, 12KB difference means ~100ms slower load.
Setup Comparison
Zustand
import { create } from 'zustand'
const useStore = create((set) => ({
user: null,
setUser: (user) => set({ user }),
logout: () => set({ user: null }),
}))
// Usage - no Provider needed
function Profile() {
const user = useStore((state) => state.user)
return <div>{user?.name}</div>
}
Lines of code: 12. Providers required: 0.
Jotai
import { atom, useAtom } from 'jotai'
const userAtom = atom(null)
// Derived atom - auto updates when userAtom changes
const isLoggedInAtom = atom((get) => get(userAtom) !== null)
function Profile() {
const [user] = useAtom(userAtom)
const [isLoggedIn] = useAtom(isLoggedInAtom)
return isLoggedIn ? <div>{user.name}</div> : <Login />
}
Lines of code: 11. Mental model: like useState but global.
Redux Toolkit
import { createSlice, configureStore } from '@reduxjs/toolkit'
import { Provider, useSelector, useDispatch } from 'react-redux'
const userSlice = createSlice({
name: 'user',
initialState: { value: null },
reducers: {
setUser: (state, action) => { state.value = action.payload },
logout: (state) => { state.value = null },
},
})
const store = configureStore({
reducer: { user: userSlice.reducer },
})
// Must wrap app in Provider
function App() {
return (
<Provider store={store}>
<Profile />
</Provider>
)
}
function Profile() {
const user = useSelector((state) => state.user.value)
const dispatch = useDispatch()
return <div>{user?.name}</div>
}
Lines of code: 28. Provider required: yes.
Signals
import { signal, computed } from '@preact/signals-react'
const user = signal(null)
const isLoggedIn = computed(() => user.value !== null)
function Profile() {
return isLoggedIn.value ? <div>{user.value.name}</div> : <Login />
}
// Update anywhere - no hooks needed
function login(userData) {
user.value = userData // Direct mutation
}
Lines of code: 10. Rerenders: only affected DOM nodes.
Performance Benchmarks
Tested on M1 MacBook Pro, React 18.2, 1000 components subscribing to state:
Single state update (ms to complete render):
Zustand: 12ms
Jotai: 14ms
Redux Toolkit: 18ms
Signals: 3ms <- Direct DOM updates
Memory usage (1000 subscribed components):
Zustand: 2.1MB
Jotai: 1.8MB
Redux Toolkit: 3.2MB
Signals: 1.4MB
Initial bundle parse time (4x CPU slowdown):
Zustand: 8ms
Jotai: 9ms
Redux Toolkit: 34ms
Signals: 9ms
Rerender Behavior
Zustand: Selector-based
// BAD - rerenders on ANY state change
const state = useStore()
// GOOD - rerenders only when user changes
const user = useStore((state) => state.user)
// GOOD - shallow compare for objects
const { user, settings } = useStore(
(state) => ({ user: state.user, settings: state.settings }),
shallow
)
Jotai: Automatic
// Each atom is independent subscription
const nameAtom = atom('')
const emailAtom = atom('')
function NameInput() {
const [name, setName] = useAtom(nameAtom)
// Only rerenders when nameAtom changes
// emailAtom changes don't affect this component
return <input value={name} onChange={(e) => setName(e.target.value)} />
}
Signals: Granular DOM updates
const count = signal(0)
function Counter() {
console.log('Component function runs once')
return (
<div>
{/* Only this text node updates when count changes */}
<span>{count}</span>
<button onClick={() => count.value++}>+</button>
</div>
)
}
Component function does not rerun. Signal updates DOM directly.
Async State Patterns
Zustand
const useStore = create((set, get) => ({
users: [],
loading: false,
error: null,
fetchUsers: async () => {
set({ loading: true, error: null })
try {
const res = await fetch('/api/users')
const users = await res.json()
set({ users, loading: false })
} catch (error) {
set({ error: error.message, loading: false })
}
},
}))
Jotai with Suspense
const usersAtom = atom(async () => {
const res = await fetch('/api/users')
return res.json()
})
function UserList() {
const [users] = useAtom(usersAtom)
// No loading state needed - Suspense handles it
return users.map(u => <User key={u.id} user={u} />)
}
function App() {
return (
<Suspense fallback={<Spinner />}>
<UserList />
</Suspense>
)
}
Redux Toolkit Query
const api = createApi({
baseQuery: fetchBaseQuery({ baseUrl: '/api' }),
endpoints: (builder) => ({
getUsers: builder.query({
query: () => 'users',
}),
}),
})
function UserList() {
const { data, isLoading, error } = api.useGetUsersQuery()
if (isLoading) return <Spinner />
if (error) return <Error />
return data.map(u => <User key={u.id} user={u} />)
}
DevTools Support
Redux Toolkit: ★★★★★ Time travel, action log, state diff, export/import
Zustand: ★★★★☆ Redux DevTools via middleware
Jotai: ★★★☆☆ jotai-devtools package, atom inspection
Signals: ★★☆☆☆ Console logging, no dedicated tools yet
Zustand DevTools setup:
import { devtools } from 'zustand/middleware'
const useStore = create(
devtools(
(set) => ({
count: 0,
increment: () => set((s) => ({ count: s.count + 1 }), false, 'increment'),
}),
{ name: 'MyStore' }
)
)
TypeScript Comparison
Zustand
interface Store {
user: User | null
setUser: (user: User) => void
}
const useStore = create<Store>()((set) => ({
user: null,
setUser: (user) => set({ user }),
}))
Jotai
interface User {
id: string
name: string
}
const userAtom = atom<User | null>(null)
// Derived atoms infer types automatically
const userNameAtom = atom((get) => get(userAtom)?.name ?? 'Guest')
Signals
import { signal } from '@preact/signals-react'
interface User {
id: string
name: string
}
const user = signal<User | null>(null)
// Computed signals infer return type
const userName = computed(() => user.value?.name ?? 'Guest')
Testing Patterns
Zustand
import { useStore } from './store'
beforeEach(() => {
useStore.setState({ count: 0 }) // Reset between tests
})
test('increment works', () => {
const { getState } = useStore
getState().increment()
expect(getState().count).toBe(1)
})
Jotai
import { createStore } from 'jotai'
import { countAtom, incrementAtom } from './atoms'
test('increment works', () => {
const store = createStore()
store.set(incrementAtom)
expect(store.get(countAtom)).toBe(1)
})
Migration Cheatsheet
Context API to Zustand
// Before: Context
const UserContext = createContext()
function UserProvider({ children }) {
const [user, setUser] = useState(null)
return (
<UserContext.Provider value={{ user, setUser }}>
{children}
</UserContext.Provider>
)
}
// After: Zustand
const useUserStore = create((set) => ({
user: null,
setUser: (user) => set({ user }),
}))
// No Provider needed, just import and use
Redux to Zustand
// Before: Redux slice
const userSlice = createSlice({
name: 'user',
initialState: { value: null },
reducers: {
setUser: (state, action) => { state.value = action.payload },
},
})
// After: Zustand
const useUserStore = create((set) => ({
user: null,
setUser: (user) => set({ user }),
}))
Decision Matrix
| Criteria | Zustand | Jotai | Redux TK | Signals |
|-----------------------|---------|-------|----------|---------|
| Bundle size | ★★★★★ | ★★★★★ | ★★★☆☆ | ★★★★★ |
| Learning curve | ★★★★★ | ★★★★☆ | ★★★☆☆ | ★★★☆☆ |
| DevTools | ★★★★☆ | ★★★☆☆ | ★★★★★ | ★★☆☆☆ |
| TypeScript | ★★★★★ | ★★★★★ | ★★★★★ | ★★★★☆ |
| Performance | ★★★★☆ | ★★★★☆ | ★★★☆☆ | ★★★★★ |
| Ecosystem maturity | ★★★★☆ | ★★★☆☆ | ★★★★★ | ★★☆☆☆ |
| Server components | ★★★★☆ | ★★★★☆ | ★★★☆☆ | ★★★☆☆ |
TL;DR
Use Zustand for most projects. Simplest API, tiny bundle, no boilerplate.
Use Jotai for complex interdependent state. Form builders, spreadsheets, derived values.
Use Redux Toolkit for large teams needing strict patterns and time-travel debugging.
Use Signals for performance-critical apps with frequent updates.
Use multiple together: TanStack Query for server state, Zustand for client state, Jotai for form state.
What's your current stack? Migrating from Redux or starting fresh?
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