Redux Toolkit vs Zustand

Strengths

• Predictable, testable state with a strict data flow
• Best-in-class DevTools (time travel, action logs)
• RTK Query solves data fetching/caching too
• Battle-tested at massive scale

Trade-offs

• More ceremony than lighter alternatives
• Steeper learning curve for newcomers
• Can feel heavy for small apps

Strengths

• Minimal boilerplate — a store is just a hook
• No providers or context wrapping required
• Tiny bundle size (~1KB)
• Plays well with React outside of strict Redux patterns

Trade-offs

• Less structure can hurt discipline on large teams
• DevTools/middleware ecosystem is smaller
• No built-in data-fetching layer like RTK Query