Hardhat Toolbox Viem

Hardhat toolbox: viem

This skill builds on the core hardhat skill. Load that first for test organization, the network.create() shape, networkHelpers, fixtures, and the typechecking workflow. Everything below hangs off the connection returned by network.create():

import { network } from "hardhat";
import { describe, it } from "node:test";
import assert from "node:assert/strict";

describe("Counter", async function () {
  const { viem, networkHelpers } = await network.create();
  // ...
});

viem: clients and contract interaction

// Clients
const publicClient = await viem.getPublicClient();
const [owner, alice, bob] = await viem.getWalletClients(); // default accounts
const testClient = await viem.getTestClient(); // dev-only operations

// Deploy a contract, returns a fully typed instance
const counter = await viem.deployContract("Counter");

// Read state (return type inferred from ABI)
const value = await counter.read.x();

// Write transactions. Args and options are type-checked against the ABI at
// compile time; passing wrong types, wrong argument counts, or `value` on a
// non-payable function is a TypeScript error
await counter.write.inc();
await counter.write.inc({ account: alice.account }); // different sender
await counter.write.incBy([3n]); // with args
await counter.write.deposit({ value: 10n ** 18n }); // no parameters and payable

// Attach to an already-deployed contract
const existing = await viem.getContractAt("Counter", "0xabc...");

Avoid using walletClient.writeContract to interact with contracts — it has no ABI typing, so wrong args slip through. Prefer the typed instance returned by viem.deployContract or viem.getContractAt.

Inside a loadFixture setup function (see the hardhat skill for the surrounding pattern), viem.deployContract is the canonical deploy step:

async function deployCounter() {
  const counter = await viem.deployContract("Counter");
  return { counter };
}

const { counter } = await networkHelpers.loadFixture(deployCounter);

viem.assertions: Ethereum-specific assertions

Use viem.assertions for contract-specific checks. Pass the unawaited transaction promise as the first argument:

// Reverts
await viem.assertions.revert(counter.write.inc({ account: banned }));
await viem.assertions.revertWith(
  counter.write.inc({ account: banned }),
  "Not authorized",
);
await viem.assertions.revertWithCustomError(
  counter.write.inc({ account: banned }),
  counter,
  "Unauthorized",
);
await viem.assertions.revertWithCustomErrorWithArgs(
  counter.write.inc({ account: banned }),
  counter,
  "Unauthorized",
  [banned],
);

// Events
await viem.assertions.emit(counter.write.inc(), counter, "Increment");
await viem.assertions.emitWithArgs(counter.write.inc(), counter, "Increment", [
  1n,
]);

// ETH balance changes (positive = received, negative = spent, before gas)
await viem.assertions.balancesHaveChanged(game.write.claim(), {
  [winner]: PRIZE,
  [loser]: -STAKE,
});

The *WithArgs matchers (revertWithCustomErrorWithArgs and emitWithArgs) accept a (value) => boolean predicate at any arg position, alongside concrete values. The plugin also ships an anyValue helper for positions you don't care about:

import { anyValue } from "@nomicfoundation/hardhat-toolbox-viem/predicates";

// Inline predicate at any arg position. Useful for ranges or computed conditions.
await viem.assertions.revertWithCustomErrorWithArgs(
  contract.write.failing(),
  contract,
  "BadValue",
  [(n: bigint) => n > 100n, "another error arg"],
);
await viem.assertions.emitWithArgs(
  counter.write.incBy([3n]),
  counter,
  "Increment",
  [(by: bigint) => by >= 1n],
);

// `anyValue` matches anything — handy for fields you don't care about.
await viem.assertions.revertWithCustomErrorWithArgs(
  contract.write.failing(),
  contract,
  "BadValue",
  [anyValue, "another error arg"],
);

For plain TypeScript assertions (equality, arrays, types), use node:assert/strict.