Preferred NPM Packages

Preferred NPM Packages

When working on Roy's projects, default to the packages below. If a task requires a library not listed here, pick the simplest option and mention the choice — don't silently pull in something heavyweight.

Language

• TypeScript — always. No plain JS files in new projects.

Runtime & Package Manager

• Bun — use bun commands for running, installing, and testing. Not node, npm, yarn, or pnpm.

Meta-framework

• TanStack Start — full-stack React framework. Use this for new web apps. Docs: https://tanstack.com/llms.txt

HTTP

• Native fetch — Bun and modern runtimes support it natively. Avoid axios, ky, got, or any HTTP client library. No install needed.

Validation

• zod — schema definition, validation, and TypeScript type inference. Use it at API boundaries, form inputs, and environment variables. Always use the latest major version. Import as import * as z from "zod"; Docs: https://zod.dev/llms.txt

  bun add zod
  

Dates

• date-fns — functional, tree-shakeable date utilities. Avoid moment.js, dayjs, luxon. Use the bootstrap skill to set up date-fns.

Formatting & Linting

• oxfmt + oxlint — formatting and linting. Avoid Prettier and ESLint. Use the bootstrap skill to set up oxfmt and oxlint.

Styling

• Tailwind CSS + shadcn/ui — utility-first styling with shadcn for component primitives. Avoid styled-components, CSS modules, or other CSS-in-JS solutions.

  bun add tailwindcss @tailwindcss/vite
  bunx shadcn@latest init
  bunx shadcn@latest add <component>
  

Database / ORM

• Drizzle ORM + Bun SQLite — for local and embedded databases. Use Drizzle's query builder; avoid Prisma, Knex, TypeORM. Docs: https://orm.drizzle.team/llms.txt Bun SQLite is built-in (import { Database } from 'bun:sqlite'), no install needed. Use the bootstrap skill to set up Drizzle.

Utility Functions

• es-toolkit — modern lodash alternative with built-in TypeScript types, significantly smaller bundle size, and faster runtime. Import specific functions (import { groupBy } from 'es-toolkit'). Docs: https://es-toolkit.dev/llms.txt

  bun add es-toolkit
  

Testing

• Bun test runner (bun test) — built-in, no install needed.
• React Testing Library + HappyDOM — add these when testing React components. Use HappyDOM as the DOM environment (not jsdom). Use the bootstrap skill to set up React Testing Library.
• Avoid Jest and Vitest in new projects (acceptable in legacy codebases that already use them).