In React, state refers to any data that can change over time and affect how a component behaves or renders. This could include user input, fetched data, UI toggles, or internal logic. In large and complex applications, managing state can be challenging using a manual approach. State management libraries lighten the developer's workload.
The management part defines how the state will be created, updated, and shared across different parts of the system (or app).
React provides built-in options, such as useState and useReducer hooks, for the same purpose. But, these in-built options are built for heavy lifting in complex applications.
This is where you may look for third-party state management libraries, as they are easier to track, design, and update logic with.
You may need to use a state management library when your application becomes complex. Chances are, you are unable to manage pop-drilling. There could be many different reasons why developers look at state managers, beyond React's built-in tools.
Although useState and useReducer are excellent for managing local state, they work particularly well in small to medium-sized applications. However, when data is deeply interconnected through prop drilling, it becomes challenging to manage the state through data.
Let's understand it with this example. Suppose you have built a dashboard where multiple components rely on the same user data. In that case, if you fetch it once and make it global, it stops redundant API calls. A popular example is a shopping cart in an e-commerce application that is displayed on multiple pages.
There is a multitude of state management libraries that you can use in different kinds of applications. The selection of a library purely depends on your unique needs, as there is no perfect one-size-fits-all option. We've rounded up eight popular libraries. Some are easy to pick up, while others are better suited for advanced use cases.
Redux was created in 2015 by the acclaimed Facebook developer and a core React team member when no other libraries were available. Since then, it has continued to be a renowned library, providing a clean separation between state and actions.
It is inspired by "Flux Architecture" and leverages a centralized store for global state. State updates occur through "actions" and "reducer functions".
Its maintainability, performance, and testability are highly valued, alongside a rich ecosystem and powerful debugging tools. Redux is well-suited for large-scale applications with complex state logic. However, it can require significant boilerplate and has a steep learning curve, also needing custom implementation for loading/error states.
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It features powerful debugging tools and benefits from a large, active community. Its framework-agnostic nature also means its logic can be reused outside of React, and it supports middleware. With its browser DevTools, developers can view the history of state changes, invaluable for complex projects. However, Redux might be overkill for simpler applications.
Backed by Facebook, Recoil is the latest and newest offering by the React team. It is an experimental library with core concepts that revolve around atoms and selectors. An atom is a shared-state unit that represents a single-state property that components can subscribe to. And selectors are pure functions that derive their values from atoms or other selectors. This kind of model gives precise control over each part of state. Recoil natively integrates with React Suspense and ErrorBoundary which makes it feel like an extension of React.
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Based on the flux pattern, Zustand was developed by experts who built Jotai. It is termed as one of the smallest libraries. Designed for small-to-medium-sized applications, it is very easy to use. Its simplicity and minimalism are what make it one of the most popular state management libraries in 2025. It is a go-to option for small apps where every byte counts.
It utilizes a store to hold the application state. Thus allowing hooks to directly read and modify it.
Its state is stored externally, enabling updates outside React components. Its core functionality revolves around a create function that returns a hook for components.
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Jotai offers a modern and minimal approach to state management in React. It centers around the idea of atoms, an independent unit of state that can be created, modified, and shared across components.
This design enables precise control, allowing components to subscribe only to the state they rely on. It is another library inspired by Recoil and takes a bottom-up approach. Its core principles are primitive (simple, basic interface like useState) and flexible (derived atoms can combine other atoms and enable useReducer style with side effects). Jotai can be used as a replacement for useState and useContext (React Context).
It focuses on primitive APIs, similar to Zustand, is TypeScript oriented, and depends on atom object referential identities.
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It in a UI-agnostic library that can be used not only with React, but also Vue, Angular, and Vanilla.js. Mobx is based on the reactive programming model. It utilizes observables to manage and track state changes. Unlike the actions and reducers approach, it takes a different path, following the OOP paradigm (or observer-observable pattern) to manage the state.
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React's Context API is designed to share data that can be considered "global" for a tree of React components, avoiding the need to manually pass props down through every level. The state resides within the React component tree. It is typically implemented using createContext, Provider, and useContext hooks. While capable of sharing state, it's often described as a dependency injector rather than a full-fledged state manager, offering a lightweight way to make values available to nested components.
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XState doesn’t just manage state, it structures it. By using state machines and statecharts, it enforces clear, well-defined transitions between states, which makes application behavior more predictable and easier to reason about.
This approach really shines in complex, state-heavy interfaces like multi-step forms, onboarding flows, or anything with conditional logic and timing. It also gives you a visual map of your state, so you can actually see how things change, which is a huge help when debugging. For larger apps, XState supports nested and hierarchical machines, keeping things organized without turning into a tangle of conditionals.
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Valtio takes a different route from typical state management libraries. Instead of relying on immutable structures or boilerplate-heavy patterns, it uses JavaScript proxies to let you work with state directly, just like regular objects.
But behind the scenes, it keeps track of what changes and which components need to update. You don’t have to define actions or reducers. The result is a lightweight, reactive system that feels natural to use. Valtio also supports derived state and snapshots, making it easier to handle complex logic or temporary data without clutter.
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For many, picking the right React state manager can be confusing. The reality is that no perfect solution exists. When choosing a library, consider the following factors to find the most suitable one. It depends on your or your team's expertise, experience, and familiarity with different concepts—and most importantly, the type of project you're building. Below is the guide to help you choose the right option for your next project.
The scale and architecture of your application should be key factors when selecting a library for state management
State updates and re-renders can have a significant impact on application speed and responsiveness.
The learning curve of a React state manager can affect both productivity and onboarding speed.
As the React ecosystem evolves, so does the way we think about managing state. One of the biggest shifts in recent years is the introduction of React Server Components (RSC), which challenge traditional ideas.
With React leaning into async rendering, Suspense, and concurrent features, state management libraries are evolving in response. There's growing momentum behind patterns like atomic and scoped state, reactive data graphs, and state machines.
Choosing the right state management approach is a crucial decision. Simpler tools like Zustand or Jotai can be effective in early stages, while libraries such as Redux Toolkit, XState, or Akita provide structure for more complex needs. The point is to align your state management with your app's architecture, team expertise, and long-term goals.
At Brilworks, we've helped engineering teams build scalable, maintainable React applications by selecting and implementing the right state patterns from the start. If you're evaluating your options or facing growing pains in your current setup, it might be time to rethink your approach.
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