React Query Best Practices

You are an expert in React Query, TypeScript, and React development. React Query (now TanStack Query) simplifies data fetching logic with built-in caching, background updates, and stale data management.

Core Principles

Use React Query for all data fetching and caching
Leverage React Query's built-in state management instead of useState for server data
Use React Context and useReducer for managing client-side global state
Avoid excessive API calls through proper caching strategies
Always handle loading states and errors properly

Project Structure

src/
  components/
    [Feature]/
      index.tsx
      queries.ts           # Feature-specific query hooks
      mutations.ts         # Feature-specific mutation hooks
  hooks/
    useAuth.ts
    useApi.ts
  services/
    api/
      client.ts            # Axios/fetch configuration
      users.ts             # User API functions
      posts.ts             # Post API functions
  providers/
    ReactQueryProvider.tsx
  types/
    index.ts

Setup

Provider Configuration

// providers/ReactQueryProvider.tsx
import { QueryClient, QueryClientProvider } from 'react-query';
import { ReactQueryDevtools } from 'react-query/devtools';

const queryClient = new QueryClient({
  defaultOptions: {
    queries: {
      staleTime: 5 * 60 * 1000,    // 5 minutes
      cacheTime: 30 * 60 * 1000,   // 30 minutes
      retry: 2,
      refetchOnWindowFocus: true,
    },
  },
});

export function ReactQueryProvider({ children }: { children: React.ReactNode }) {
  return (
    <QueryClientProvider client={queryClient}>
      {children}
      <ReactQueryDevtools />
    </QueryClientProvider>
  );
}

Query Patterns

Basic Query Hook

import { useQuery } from 'react-query';
import { fetchUser, User } from '@/services/api/users';

export function useUser(userId: string) {
  return useQuery<User, Error>(
    ['user', userId],
    () => fetchUser(userId),
    {
      enabled: !!userId,
      staleTime: 1000 * 60 * 10, // 10 minutes
    }
  );
}

Query with Error Handling

Services should throw user-friendly errors that React Query can catch and display:

// services/api/users.ts
export async function fetchUser(userId: string): Promise<User> {
  const response = await fetch(`/api/users/${userId}`);

  if (!response.ok) {
    // Throw user-friendly error message
    throw new Error('Unable to load user profile. Please try again.');
  }

  return response.json();
}

// Component usage
function UserProfile({ userId }: { userId: string }) {
  const { data: user, isLoading, error } = useUser(userId);

  if (isLoading) return <LoadingSpinner />;
  if (error) return <ErrorMessage message={error.message} />;

  return <ProfileCard user={user} />;
}

Dependent Queries

function useUserWithPosts(userId: string) {
  const userQuery = useUser(userId);

  const postsQuery = useQuery(
    ['posts', userId],
    () => fetchUserPosts(userId),
    {
      enabled: !!userQuery.data,
    }
  );

  return { userQuery, postsQuery };
}

Paginated Queries

function usePaginatedUsers(page: number, limit: number = 10) {
  return useQuery(
    ['users', 'list', { page, limit }],
    () => fetchUsers({ page, limit }),
    {
      keepPreviousData: true,
    }
  );
}

Infinite Scroll

import { useInfiniteQuery } from 'react-query';

function useInfiniteUsers() {
  return useInfiniteQuery(
    ['users', 'infinite'],
    ({ pageParam = 1 }) => fetchUsers({ page: pageParam }),
    {
      getNextPageParam: (lastPage) => lastPage.nextPage ?? undefined,
    }
  );
}

Mutation Patterns

Basic Mutation

import { useMutation, useQueryClient } from 'react-query';

function useCreateUser() {
  const queryClient = useQueryClient();

  return useMutation(createUser, {
    onSuccess: () => {
      queryClient.invalidateQueries(['users']);
    },
    onError: (error: Error) => {
      toast.error(error.message);
    },
  });
}

Optimistic Updates

function useUpdateUser() {
  const queryClient = useQueryClient();

  return useMutation(updateUser, {
    onMutate: async (updatedUser) => {
      await queryClient.cancelQueries(['user', updatedUser.id]);

      const previousUser = queryClient.getQueryData(['user', updatedUser.id]);

      queryClient.setQueryData(['user', updatedUser.id], updatedUser);

      return { previousUser };
    },
    onError: (err, updatedUser, context) => {
      if (context?.previousUser) {
        queryClient.setQueryData(['user', updatedUser.id], context.previousUser);
      }
    },
    onSettled: (data, error, updatedUser) => {
      queryClient.invalidateQueries(['user', updatedUser.id]);
    },
  });
}

State Management Integration

Combining with Context/Reducer

Use React Query for server state and Context/Reducer for client state:

// Client state with Context
const AppStateContext = createContext<AppState | undefined>(undefined);
const AppDispatchContext = createContext<Dispatch<Action> | undefined>(undefined);

function AppProvider({ children }: { children: React.ReactNode }) {
  const [state, dispatch] = useReducer(appReducer, initialState);

  return (
    <AppStateContext.Provider value={state}>
      <AppDispatchContext.Provider value={dispatch}>
        {children}
      </AppDispatchContext.Provider>
    </AppStateContext.Provider>
  );
}

// Server state with React Query
function UserDashboard() {
  const { theme } = useAppState();         // Client state
  const { data: user } = useUser(userId);  // Server state

  return <Dashboard theme={theme} user={user} />;
}

Combining with Zustand (Alternative)

import { create } from 'zustand';

// Client state store
const useStore = create((set) => ({
  theme: 'light',
  setTheme: (theme) => set({ theme }),
}));

// Component using both
function App() {
  const theme = useStore((state) => state.theme);
  const { data: user } = useUser(userId);

  return <Layout theme={theme} user={user} />;
}

Performance Optimization

Query Key Best Practices

// Structured query keys
const queryKeys = {
  users: {
    all: ['users'] as const,
    lists: () => [...queryKeys.users.all, 'list'] as const,
    list: (filters: Filters) => [...queryKeys.users.lists(), filters] as const,
    details: () => [...queryKeys.users.all, 'detail'] as const,
    detail: (id: string) => [...queryKeys.users.details(), id] as const,
  },
};

Selective Subscriptions

// Only subscribe to user name changes
function useUserName(userId: string) {
  return useUser(userId, {
    select: (user) => user.name,
  });
}

Prefetching

function UserListItem({ userId }: { userId: string }) {
  const queryClient = useQueryClient();

  const handleMouseEnter = () => {
    queryClient.prefetchQuery(
      ['user', userId],
      () => fetchUser(userId),
      { staleTime: 60000 }
    );
  };

  return (
    <li onMouseEnter={handleMouseEnter}>
      <Link to={`/users/${userId}`}>View Profile</Link>
    </li>
  );
}

Error Handling Patterns

Global Error Handler

const queryClient = new QueryClient({
  defaultOptions: {
    queries: {
      onError: (error: Error) => {
        console.error('Query error:', error);
      },
    },
    mutations: {
      onError: (error: Error) => {
        toast.error(error.message);
      },
    },
  },
});

Error Boundaries

import { QueryErrorResetBoundary } from 'react-query';
import { ErrorBoundary } from 'react-error-boundary';

function App() {
  return (
    <QueryErrorResetBoundary>
      {({ reset }) => (
        <ErrorBoundary
          onReset={reset}
          fallbackRender={({ error, resetErrorBoundary }) => (
            <div>
              <p>Something went wrong: {error.message}</p>
              <button onClick={resetErrorBoundary}>Try again</button>
            </div>
          )}
        >
          <UserProfile />
        </ErrorBoundary>
      )}
    </QueryErrorResetBoundary>
  );
}

Key Conventions

Use React Query DevTools to inspect cache and track query status
Group react-query hooks within feature-specific directories (feature-based organization)
Always handle errors properly with user-friendly messages and retry options
Fetch only required data - use API parameters to reduce data transfer
Avoid deeply nesting queries - flatten when possible for better performance
Use local state for component-specific data, global state for shared data
Leverage React Query's built-in caching and state management capabilities

Anti-Patterns to Avoid

Do not use useEffect for data fetching
Do not store server data in useState
Do not forget loading and error state handling
Do not create queries without proper cache invalidation strategies
Do not skip the enabled option for conditional queries
Do not ignore TypeScript types for query responses

react-query

Safety Notice

Copy this and send it to your AI assistant to learn