Skip to main content
Version: 11.x

Set up with React Server Components

This guide is an overview of how one may use tRPC with a React Server Components (RSC) framework such as Next.js App Router. Be aware that RSC on its own solves a lot of the same problems tRPC was designed to solve, so you may not need tRPC at all.

There are also not a one-size-fits-all way to integrate tRPC with RSCs, so see this guide as a starting point and adjust it to your needs and preferences.

info

If you're looking for how to use tRPC with Server Actions, check out this blog post by Julius.

caution

Please read React Query's Advanced Server Rendering docs before proceeding to understand the different types of server rendering and what footguns to avoid.

Add tRPC to existing projects​

1. Install deps​

npm install @trpc/server@next @trpc/client@next @trpc/react-query@next @tanstack/react-query@latest zod client-only server-only

2. Create a tRPC router​

Initialize your tRPC backend in trpc/init.ts using the initTRPC function, and create your first router. We're going to make a simple "hello world" router and procedure here - but for deeper information on creating your tRPC API you should refer to the Quickstart guide and Backend usage docs for tRPC information.

info

The file names used here are not enforced by tRPC. You may use any file structure you wish.

View sample backend
trpc/init.ts
ts
import { initTRPC } from '@trpc/server';
import { cache } from 'react';
export const createTRPCContext = cache(async () => {
  /**
   * @see: https://trpc.io/docs/server/context
   */
  return { userId: 'user_123' };
});
// Avoid exporting the entire t-object
// since it's not very descriptive.
// For instance, the use of a t variable
// is common in i18n libraries.
const t = initTRPC.create({
  /**
   * @see https://trpc.io/docs/server/data-transformers
   */
  // transformer: superjson,
});
// Base router and procedure helpers
export const createTRPCRouter = t.router;
export const createCallerFactory = t.createCallerFactory;
export const baseProcedure = t.procedure;
trpc/init.ts
ts
import { initTRPC } from '@trpc/server';
import { cache } from 'react';
export const createTRPCContext = cache(async () => {
  /**
   * @see: https://trpc.io/docs/server/context
   */
  return { userId: 'user_123' };
});
// Avoid exporting the entire t-object
// since it's not very descriptive.
// For instance, the use of a t variable
// is common in i18n libraries.
const t = initTRPC.create({
  /**
   * @see https://trpc.io/docs/server/data-transformers
   */
  // transformer: superjson,
});
// Base router and procedure helpers
export const createTRPCRouter = t.router;
export const createCallerFactory = t.createCallerFactory;
export const baseProcedure = t.procedure;

trpc/routers/_app.ts
ts
import { z } from 'zod';
import { baseProcedure, createTRPCRouter } from '../init';
export const appRouter = createTRPCRouter({
  hello: baseProcedure
    .input(
      z.object({
        text: z.string(),
      }),
    )
    .query((opts) => {
      return {
        greeting: `hello ${opts.input.text}`,
      };
    }),
});
// export type definition of API
export type AppRouter = typeof appRouter;
trpc/routers/_app.ts
ts
import { z } from 'zod';
import { baseProcedure, createTRPCRouter } from '../init';
export const appRouter = createTRPCRouter({
  hello: baseProcedure
    .input(
      z.object({
        text: z.string(),
      }),
    )
    .query((opts) => {
      return {
        greeting: `hello ${opts.input.text}`,
      };
    }),
});
// export type definition of API
export type AppRouter = typeof appRouter;

note

The backend adapter depends on your framework and how it sets up API routes. The following example sets up GET and POST routes at /api/trpc/* using the fetch adapter in Next.js.

app/api/trpc/[trpc]/route.ts
ts
import { fetchRequestHandler } from '@trpc/server/adapters/fetch';
import { createTRPCContext } from '~/trpc/init';
import { appRouter } from '~/trpc/routers/_app';
const handler = (req: Request) =>
  fetchRequestHandler({
    endpoint: '/api/trpc',
    req,
    router: appRouter,
    createContext: createTRPCContext,
  });
export { handler as GET, handler as POST };
app/api/trpc/[trpc]/route.ts
ts
import { fetchRequestHandler } from '@trpc/server/adapters/fetch';
import { createTRPCContext } from '~/trpc/init';
import { appRouter } from '~/trpc/routers/_app';
const handler = (req: Request) =>
  fetchRequestHandler({
    endpoint: '/api/trpc',
    req,
    router: appRouter,
    createContext: createTRPCContext,
  });
export { handler as GET, handler as POST };

3. Create a Query Client factory​

Create a shared file trpc/query-client.ts that exports a function that creates a QueryClient instance.

trpc/query-client.ts
ts
import {
  defaultShouldDehydrateQuery,
  QueryClient,
} from '@tanstack/react-query';
import superjson from 'superjson';
export function makeQueryClient() {
  return new QueryClient({
    defaultOptions: {
      queries: {
        staleTime: 30 * 1000,
      },
      dehydrate: {
        // serializeData: superjson.serialize,
        shouldDehydrateQuery: (query) =>
          defaultShouldDehydrateQuery(query) ||
          query.state.status === 'pending',
      },
      hydrate: {
        // deserializeData: superjson.deserialize,
      },
    },
  });
}
trpc/query-client.ts
ts
import {
  defaultShouldDehydrateQuery,
  QueryClient,
} from '@tanstack/react-query';
import superjson from 'superjson';
export function makeQueryClient() {
  return new QueryClient({
    defaultOptions: {
      queries: {
        staleTime: 30 * 1000,
      },
      dehydrate: {
        // serializeData: superjson.serialize,
        shouldDehydrateQuery: (query) =>
          defaultShouldDehydrateQuery(query) ||
          query.state.status === 'pending',
      },
      hydrate: {
        // deserializeData: superjson.deserialize,
      },
    },
  });
}

We're setting a few default options here:

  • staleTime: With SSR, we usually want to set some default staleTime above 0 to avoid refetching immediately on the client.
  • shouldDehydrateQuery: This is a function that determines whether a query should be dehydrated or not. Since the RSC transport protocol supports hydrating promises over the network, we extend the defaultShouldDehydrateQuery function to also include queries that are still pending. This will allow us to start prefetching in a server component high up the tree, then consuming that promise in a client component further down.
  • serializeData and deserializeData (optional): If you set up a data transformer in the previous step, set this option to make sure the data is serialized correctly when hydrating the query client over the server-client boundary.

4. Create a tRPC client for Client Components​

The trpc/client.tsx is the entrypoint when consuming your tRPC API from client components. In here, import the type definition of your tRPC router and create typesafe hooks using createTRPCReact. We'll also export our context provider from this file.

trpc/client.tsx
tsx
'use client';
// ^-- to make sure we can mount the Provider from a server component
import type { QueryClient } from '@tanstack/react-query';
import { QueryClientProvider } from '@tanstack/react-query';
import { httpBatchLink } from '@trpc/client';
import { createTRPCReact } from '@trpc/react-query';
import { useState } from 'react';
import { makeQueryClient } from './query-client';
import type { AppRouter } from './routers/_app';
export const trpc = createTRPCReact<AppRouter>();
let clientQueryClientSingleton: QueryClient;
function getQueryClient() {
  if (typeof window === 'undefined') {
    // Server: always make a new query client
    return makeQueryClient();
  }
  // Browser: use singleton pattern to keep the same query client
  return (clientQueryClientSingleton ??= makeQueryClient());
}
function getUrl() {
  const base = (() => {
    if (typeof window !== 'undefined') return '';
    if (process.env.VERCEL_URL) return `https://${process.env.VERCEL_URL}`;
    return 'http://localhost:3000';
  })();
  return `${base}/api/trpc`;
}
export function TRPCProvider(
  props: Readonly<{
    children: React.ReactNode;
  }>,
) {
  // NOTE: Avoid useState when initializing the query client if you don't
  //       have a suspense boundary between this and the code that may
  //       suspend because React will throw away the client on the initial
  //       render if it suspends and there is no boundary
  const queryClient = getQueryClient();
  const [trpcClient] = useState(() =>
    trpc.createClient({
      links: [
        httpBatchLink({
          // transformer: superjson, <-- if you use a data transformer
          url: getUrl(),
        }),
      ],
    }),
  );
  return (
    <trpc.Provider client={trpcClient} queryClient={queryClient}>
      <QueryClientProvider client={queryClient}>
        {props.children}
      </QueryClientProvider>
    </trpc.Provider>
  );
}
trpc/client.tsx
tsx
'use client';
// ^-- to make sure we can mount the Provider from a server component
import type { QueryClient } from '@tanstack/react-query';
import { QueryClientProvider } from '@tanstack/react-query';
import { httpBatchLink } from '@trpc/client';
import { createTRPCReact } from '@trpc/react-query';
import { useState } from 'react';
import { makeQueryClient } from './query-client';
import type { AppRouter } from './routers/_app';
export const trpc = createTRPCReact<AppRouter>();
let clientQueryClientSingleton: QueryClient;
function getQueryClient() {
  if (typeof window === 'undefined') {
    // Server: always make a new query client
    return makeQueryClient();
  }
  // Browser: use singleton pattern to keep the same query client
  return (clientQueryClientSingleton ??= makeQueryClient());
}
function getUrl() {
  const base = (() => {
    if (typeof window !== 'undefined') return '';
    if (process.env.VERCEL_URL) return `https://${process.env.VERCEL_URL}`;
    return 'http://localhost:3000';
  })();
  return `${base}/api/trpc`;
}
export function TRPCProvider(
  props: Readonly<{
    children: React.ReactNode;
  }>,
) {
  // NOTE: Avoid useState when initializing the query client if you don't
  //       have a suspense boundary between this and the code that may
  //       suspend because React will throw away the client on the initial
  //       render if it suspends and there is no boundary
  const queryClient = getQueryClient();
  const [trpcClient] = useState(() =>
    trpc.createClient({
      links: [
        httpBatchLink({
          // transformer: superjson, <-- if you use a data transformer
          url: getUrl(),
        }),
      ],
    }),
  );
  return (
    <trpc.Provider client={trpcClient} queryClient={queryClient}>
      <QueryClientProvider client={queryClient}>
        {props.children}
      </QueryClientProvider>
    </trpc.Provider>
  );
}

Mount the provider in the root of your application (e.g. app/layout.tsx when using Next.js).

5. Create a tRPC caller for Server Components​

To prefetch queries from server components, we use a tRPC caller. The @trpc/react-query/rsc module exports a thin wrapper around createCaller that integrates with your React Query client.

trpc/server.tsx
tsx
import 'server-only'; // <-- ensure this file cannot be imported from the client
import { createHydrationHelpers } from '@trpc/react-query/rsc';
import { cache } from 'react';
import { createCallerFactory, createTRPCContext } from './init';
import { makeQueryClient } from './query-client';
import { appRouter } from './routers/_app';
// IMPORTANT: Create a stable getter for the query client that
//            will return the same client during the same request.
export const getQueryClient = cache(makeQueryClient);
const caller = createCallerFactory(appRouter)(createTRPCContext);
export const { trpc, HydrateClient } = createHydrationHelpers<typeof appRouter>(
  caller,
  getQueryClient,
);
trpc/server.tsx
tsx
import 'server-only'; // <-- ensure this file cannot be imported from the client
import { createHydrationHelpers } from '@trpc/react-query/rsc';
import { cache } from 'react';
import { createCallerFactory, createTRPCContext } from './init';
import { makeQueryClient } from './query-client';
import { appRouter } from './routers/_app';
// IMPORTANT: Create a stable getter for the query client that
//            will return the same client during the same request.
export const getQueryClient = cache(makeQueryClient);
const caller = createCallerFactory(appRouter)(createTRPCContext);
export const { trpc, HydrateClient } = createHydrationHelpers<typeof appRouter>(
  caller,
  getQueryClient,
);

Using your API​

Now you can use your tRPC API in your app. While you can use the React Query hooks in client components just like you would in any other React app, we can take advantage of the RSC capabilities by prefetching queries in a server component high up the tree. You may be familiar with this concept as "render as you fetch" commonly implemented as loaders. This means the request fires as soon as possible but without suspending until the data is needed by using the useQuery or useSuspenseQuery hooks.

app/page.tsx
tsx
import { trpc } from '~/trpc/server';
import { ClientGreeting } from './client-greeting';
export default async function Home() {
  void trpc.hello.prefetch();
  return (
    <HydrateClient>
      <div>...</div>
      {/** ... */}
      <ClientGreeting />
    </HydrateClient>
  );
}
app/page.tsx
tsx
import { trpc } from '~/trpc/server';
import { ClientGreeting } from './client-greeting';
export default async function Home() {
  void trpc.hello.prefetch();
  return (
    <HydrateClient>
      <div>...</div>
      {/** ... */}
      <ClientGreeting />
    </HydrateClient>
  );
}
app/client-greeting.tsx
tsx
'use client';
// <-- hooks can only be used in client components
import { trpc } from '~/trpc/client';
export function ClientGreeting() {
  const greeting = trpc.hello.useQuery();
  if (!greeting.data) return <div>Loading...</div>;
  return <div>{greeting.data.greeting}</div>;
}
app/client-greeting.tsx
tsx
'use client';
// <-- hooks can only be used in client components
import { trpc } from '~/trpc/client';
export function ClientGreeting() {
  const greeting = trpc.hello.useQuery();
  if (!greeting.data) return <div>Loading...</div>;
  return <div>{greeting.data.greeting}</div>;
}

Leveraging Suspense​

You may prefer handling loading and error states using Suspense and Error Boundaries. You can do this by using the useSuspenseQuery hook.

app/page.tsx
tsx
import { trpc } from '~/trpc/server';
import { Suspense } from 'react';
import { ErrorBoundary } from 'react-error-boundary';
import { ClientGreeting } from './client-greeting';
export default async function Home() {
  void trpc.hello.prefetch();
  return (
    <HydrateClient>
      <div>...</div>
      {/** ... */}
      <ErrorBoundary fallback={<div>Something went wrong</div>}>
        <Suspense fallback={<div>Loading...</div>}>
          <ClientGreeting />
        </Suspense>
      </ErrorBoundary>
    </HydrateClient>
  );
}
app/page.tsx
tsx
import { trpc } from '~/trpc/server';
import { Suspense } from 'react';
import { ErrorBoundary } from 'react-error-boundary';
import { ClientGreeting } from './client-greeting';
export default async function Home() {
  void trpc.hello.prefetch();
  return (
    <HydrateClient>
      <div>...</div>
      {/** ... */}
      <ErrorBoundary fallback={<div>Something went wrong</div>}>
        <Suspense fallback={<div>Loading...</div>}>
          <ClientGreeting />
        </Suspense>
      </ErrorBoundary>
    </HydrateClient>
  );
}
app/client-greeting.tsx
tsx
'use client';
import { trpc } from '~/trpc/client';
export function ClientGreeting() {
  const [data] = trpc.hello.useSuspenseQuery();
  return <div>{data.greeting}</div>;
}
app/client-greeting.tsx
tsx
'use client';
import { trpc } from '~/trpc/client';
export function ClientGreeting() {
  const [data] = trpc.hello.useSuspenseQuery();
  return <div>{data.greeting}</div>;
}

Getting data in a server component​

If you need access to the data in a server component, you can invoke the procedure directly instead of using .prefetch(), just like you use the normal server caller. Please note that this method is de-attached from your query client and does not store the data in the cache. This means that you cannot use the data in a server component and expect it to be available in the client. This is intentional and explained in more detail in the Advanced Server Rendering guide.

app/page.tsx
tsx
import { trpc } from '~/trpc/server';
export default async function Home() {
  // Use the caller directly without using `.prefetch()`
  const greeting = await trpc.hello();
  //    ^? { greeting: string }
  return <div>{greeting.greeting}</div>;
}
app/page.tsx
tsx
import { trpc } from '~/trpc/server';
export default async function Home() {
  // Use the caller directly without using `.prefetch()`
  const greeting = await trpc.hello();
  //    ^? { greeting: string }
  return <div>{greeting.greeting}</div>;
}