Jotai Expert

Jotai is a primitive and flexible state management library for React using an atomic approach. Always reference https://jotai.org/ for the latest API details.

Decision Tree

Need state management?
├── Simple local state → useState (no Jotai needed)
├── Shared state across components
│   ├── Few components, same tree → Context may suffice
│   └── Many components, complex → Use Jotai ✓
└── Global app state → Use Jotai ✓

Choosing atom type:
├── Static value → atom(initialValue)
├── Computed from other atoms → atom((get) => ...)
├── Need to modify other atoms → atom(null, (get, set) => ...)
├── Persist to storage → atomWithStorage()
├── List of items → splitAtom() or atoms-in-atom
└── Parameterized data → atomFamily()

Performance issue?
├── Component re-renders too often
│   ├── Only reading? → useAtomValue
│   ├── Only writing? → useSetAtom
│   ├── Large object? → selectAtom / focusAtom
│   └── List items? → splitAtom
└── Async loading states → loadable() or manual loading atoms

Core Patterns

Atom Types

import { atom } from 'jotai'

// 1. Primitive: holds value
const countAtom = atom(0)

// 2. Derived read-only: computed from others
const doubleAtom = atom((get) => get(countAtom) * 2)

// 3. Derived read-write: custom setter
const celsiusAtom = atom(0)
const fahrenheitAtom = atom(
  (get) => get(celsiusAtom) * 9/5 + 32,
  (get, set, newF: number) => set(celsiusAtom, (newF - 32) * 5/9)
)

// 4. Write-only (action): no read value
const incrementAtom = atom(null, (get, set) => {
  set(countAtom, get(countAtom) + 1)
})

Hook Selection

Need	Hook	Re-renders on change
Read only	`useAtomValue(atom)`	Yes
Write only	`useSetAtom(atom)`	No
Both	`useAtom(atom)`	Yes

Reference Stability

// ❌ WRONG: Creates new atom every render
function Component() {
  const myAtom = atom(0) // Unstable reference
}

// ✅ CORRECT: Define outside component
const myAtom = atom(0)
function Component() {
  const [value] = useAtom(myAtom)
}

// ✅ CORRECT: useMemo for dynamic atoms
function Component({ id }) {
  const itemAtom = useMemo(() => atom(items[id]), [id])
}

Performance Optimization

1. Granular Subscriptions

// ❌ BAD: Re-renders on any user field change
function UserProfile() {
  const [user] = useAtom(userAtom)
  return <h1>{user.name}</h1>
}

// ✅ GOOD: Only re-renders when name changes
import { selectAtom } from 'jotai/utils'
const nameAtom = selectAtom(userAtom, (u) => u.name)

function UserName() {
  const name = useAtomValue(nameAtom)
  return <h1>{name}</h1>
}

2. Efficient Lists with splitAtom

import { splitAtom } from 'jotai/utils'

const todosAtom = atom<Todo[]>([])
const todoAtomsAtom = splitAtom(todosAtom, (t) => t.id)

function TodoList() {
  const [todoAtoms] = useAtom(todoAtomsAtom)
  return todoAtoms.map((todoAtom) => (
    <TodoItem key={todoAtom.toString()} atom={todoAtom} />
  ))
}

// Each item updates independently
function TodoItem({ atom }) {
  const [todo, setTodo] = useAtom(atom)
  // Changes here don't re-render other items
}

3. Large Objects with focusAtom

import { focusAtom } from 'jotai-optics'

const formAtom = atom({ name: '', email: '', address: { city: '' } })

// Focused atoms for each field
const nameAtom = focusAtom(formAtom, (o) => o.prop('name'))
const cityAtom = focusAtom(formAtom, (o) => o.prop('address').prop('city'))

// Each field component only re-renders when its value changes

4. Async with loadable

import { loadable } from 'jotai/utils'

const asyncDataAtom = atom(async () => fetch('/api').then(r => r.json()))
const loadableDataAtom = loadable(asyncDataAtom)

function Component() {
  const data = useAtomValue(loadableDataAtom)
  if (data.state === 'loading') return <Spinner />
  if (data.state === 'hasError') return <Error />
  return <Data value={data.data} />
}

Anti-Patterns to Avoid

Heavy computation in components: Move to atom read functions or actions
Creating atoms in render: Define outside or use useMemo
Using useAtom when only reading/writing: Use useAtomValue/useSetAtom
Over-fragmenting frequently-updated data: Batch related updates
Nested Suspense for every async atom: Use strategic boundaries or loadable

References

Detailed documentation organized by topic:

references/core-api.md: atom, hooks, Store, Provider API details
references/utilities.md: atomWithStorage, loadable, splitAtom, selectAtom, atomFamily
references/performance.md: Optimization strategies, render control, large object handling
references/patterns.md: Organization, async patterns, testing, TypeScript, SSR, debugging

When implementing or reviewing Jotai code, load the relevant reference file for detailed guidance.

jotai-expert