tomevault-io Rails Pagination with Kaminari
Kaminari is a scope and engine-based pagination library that provides a clean, powerful, customizable paginator for Rails applications. It's non-intrusive, chainable with ActiveRecord, and highly customizable.
Quick Setup
# Add to Gemfile
bundle add kaminari
# Generate configuration file (optional)
rails g kaminari:config
# Generate view templates for customization (optional)
rails g kaminari:views default
Basic Usage
Controller Pagination
# app/controllers/posts_controller.rb
class PostsController < ApplicationController
def index
@posts = Post.order(:created_at).page(params[:page])
# Returns 25 items per page by default
end
end
View Helper
<!-- app/views/posts/index.html.erb -->
<%= paginate @posts %>
That's it! Kaminari automatically adds pagination links.
Core Methods
Page Scope
# Basic pagination
User.page(1) # First page, 25 items
User.page(params[:page]) # Dynamic page from params
# Custom per-page
User.page(1).per(50) # 50 items per page
# Chaining with scopes
User.active.order(:name).page(params[:page]).per(20)
# With associations
User.includes(:posts).page(params[:page])
Pagination Metadata
users = User.page(2).per(20)
users.current_page #=> 2
users.total_pages #=> 10
users.total_count #=> 200
users.limit_value #=> 20
users.first_page? #=> false
users.last_page? #=> false
users.next_page #=> 3
users.prev_page #=> 1
users.out_of_range? #=> false
Configuration
Global Configuration
# config/initializers/kaminari_config.rb
Kaminari.configure do |config|
config.default_per_page = 25 # Default items per page
config.max_per_page = 100 # Maximum allowed per page
config.max_pages = nil # Maximum pages (nil = unlimited)
config.window = 4 # Inner window size
config.outer_window = 0 # Outer window size
config.left = 0 # Left outer window
config.right = 0 # Right outer window
config.page_method_name = :page # Method name (change if conflicts)
config.param_name = :page # URL parameter name
end
Per-Model Configuration
# app/models/post.rb
class Post < ApplicationRecord
paginates_per 50 # This model shows 50 per page
max_paginates_per 100 # User can't request more than 100
max_pages 100 # Limit to 100 pages total
end
View Helpers
Basic Pagination
<!-- Simple pagination links -->
<%= paginate @posts %>
<!-- With options -->
<%= paginate @posts, window: 2 %>
<%= paginate @posts, outer_window: 1 %>
<%= paginate @posts, left: 1, right: 1 %>
<!-- Custom parameter name -->
<%= paginate @posts, param_name: :pagina %>
<!-- For AJAX/Turbo -->
<%= paginate @posts, remote: true %>
Navigation Links
<!-- Previous/Next links -->
<%= link_to_prev_page @posts, 'Previous', class: 'btn' %>
<%= link_to_next_page @posts, 'Next', class: 'btn' %>
<!-- With custom content -->
<%= link_to_prev_page @posts do %>
<span aria-hidden="true">←</span> Older
<% end %>
<%= link_to_next_page @posts do %>
Newer <span aria-hidden="true">→</span>
<% end %>
Page Info
<!-- Shows: "Displaying posts 1 - 25 of 100 in total" -->
<%= page_entries_info @posts %>
<!-- Custom format -->
<%= page_entries_info @posts, entry_name: 'item' %>
SEO Helpers
<!-- Add rel="next" and rel="prev" link tags to <head> -->
<%= rel_next_prev_link_tags @posts %>
URL Helpers
# Get URLs for navigation
path_to_next_page(@posts) #=> "/posts?page=3"
path_to_prev_page(@posts) #=> "/posts?page=1"
Customization
Generating Custom Views
# Generate default theme
rails g kaminari:views default
# Generate with namespace
rails g kaminari:views default --views-prefix admin
# Generate specific theme
rails g kaminari:views bootstrap4
This creates templates in app/views/kaminari/:
_first_page.html.erb_prev_page.html.erb_page.html.erb_next_page.html.erb_last_page.html.erb_gap.html.erb_paginator.html.erb
Using Themes
<!-- Default theme -->
<%= paginate @posts %>
<!-- Custom theme -->
<%= paginate @posts, theme: 'my_theme' %>
<!-- Bootstrap theme -->
<%= paginate @posts, theme: 'twitter-bootstrap-4' %>
Custom Pagination Template
<!-- app/views/kaminari/_paginator.html.erb -->
<nav class="pagination" role="navigation" aria-label="Pagination">
<ul class="pagination-list">
<%= first_page_tag %>
<%= prev_page_tag %>
<% each_page do |page| %>
<% if page.left_outer? || page.right_outer? || page.inside_window? %>
<%= page_tag page %>
<% elsif !page.was_truncated? %>
<%= gap_tag %>
<% end %>
<% end %>
<%= next_page_tag %>
<%= last_page_tag %>
</ul>
</nav>
API Pagination
JSON Response
# app/controllers/api/v1/posts_controller.rb
module Api
module V1
class PostsController < ApplicationController
def index
@posts = Post.page(params[:page]).per(params[:per_page] || 20)
render json: {
posts: @posts.map { |p| PostSerializer.new(p) },
meta: pagination_meta(@posts)
}
end
private
def pagination_meta(collection)
{
current_page: collection.current_page,
next_page: collection.next_page,
prev_page: collection.prev_page,
total_pages: collection.total_pages,
total_count: collection.total_count
}
end
end
end
end
API Response Helper
# app/controllers/concerns/paginatable.rb
module Paginatable
extend ActiveSupport::Concern
def paginate(collection)
collection
.page(params[:page] || 1)
.per(params[:per_page] || default_per_page)
end
def pagination_links(collection)
{
self: request.original_url,
first: url_for(page: 1),
prev: collection.prev_page ? url_for(page: collection.prev_page) : nil,
next: collection.next_page ? url_for(page: collection.next_page) : nil,
last: url_for(page: collection.total_pages)
}
end
def pagination_meta(collection)
{
current_page: collection.current_page,
total_pages: collection.total_pages,
total_count: collection.total_count,
per_page: collection.limit_value
}
end
private
def default_per_page
20
end
end
Performance Optimization
Without Count Query
For very large datasets, skip expensive COUNT queries:
# Controller
def index
@posts = Post.order(:created_at).page(params[:page]).without_count
end
# View - use simple navigation only
<%= link_to_prev_page @posts, 'Previous' %>
<%= link_to_next_page @posts, 'Next' %>
Note: total_pages, total_count, and numbered page links won't work with without_count.
Eager Loading
# Prevent N+1 queries
@posts = Post.includes(:user, :comments)
.order(:created_at)
.page(params[:page])
Caching
# Fragment caching
<% cache ["posts-page", @posts.current_page] do %>
<%= render @posts %>
<%= paginate @posts %>
<% end %>
Advanced Features
Paginating Arrays
# Controller
@items = expensive_operation_returning_array
@paginated_items = Kaminari.paginate_array(@items, total_count: @items.count)
.page(params[:page])
.per(10)
# Or with known total
@paginated_items = Kaminari.paginate_array(
@items,
total_count: 145,
limit: 10,
offset: (params[:page].to_i - 1) * 10
).page(params[:page]).per(10)
SEO-Friendly URLs
# config/routes.rb
resources :posts do
get 'page/:page', action: :index, on: :collection
end
# Creates URLs like: /posts/page/2 instead of /posts?page=2
# Or using concerns
concern :paginatable do
get '(page/:page)', action: :index, on: :collection, as: ''
end
resources :posts, concerns: :paginatable
resources :articles, concerns: :paginatable
Infinite Scroll
# app/controllers/posts_controller.rb
def index
@posts = Post.order(:created_at).page(params[:page])
respond_to do |format|
format.html
format.js # For infinite scroll
end
end
// app/views/posts/index.js.erb
$('#posts').append('<%= j render @posts %>');
<% if @posts.next_page %>
$('.pagination').replaceWith('<%= j paginate @posts %>');
<% else %>
$('.pagination').remove();
<% end %>
Custom Scopes with Pagination
# app/models/post.rb
class Post < ApplicationRecord
scope :published, -> { where(published: true) }
scope :by_author, ->(author_id) { where(author_id: author_id) }
scope :recent_first, -> { order(created_at: :desc) }
# Chainable with pagination
# Post.published.recent_first.page(1)
end
Internationalization
# config/locales/en.yml
en:
views:
pagination:
first: "« First"
last: "Last »"
previous: "‹ Prev"
next: "Next ›"
truncate: "…"
helpers:
page_entries_info:
one_page:
display_entries:
zero: "No %{entry_name} found"
one: "Displaying <b>1</b> %{entry_name}"
other: "Displaying <b>all %{count}</b> %{entry_name}"
more_pages:
display_entries: "Displaying %{entry_name} <b>%{first} - %{last}</b> of <b>%{total}</b> in total"
Common Patterns
Search with Pagination
# app/controllers/posts_controller.rb
def index
@posts = Post.all
@posts = @posts.where('title LIKE ?', "%#{params[:q]}%") if params[:q].present?
@posts = @posts.order(:created_at).page(params[:page])
end
<!-- app/views/posts/index.html.erb -->
<%= form_with url: posts_path, method: :get do |f| %>
<%= f.text_field :q, value: params[:q], placeholder: 'Search...' %>
<%= f.submit 'Search' %>
<% end %>
<%= render @posts %>
<%= paginate @posts, params: { q: params[:q] } %>
Filtered Pagination
# app/controllers/posts_controller.rb
def index
@posts = Post.all
@posts = @posts.where(category_id: params[:category_id]) if params[:category_id]
@posts = @posts.where(status: params[:status]) if params[:status]
@posts = @posts.order(:created_at).page(params[:page])
end
<%= paginate @posts, params: { category_id: params[:category_id], status: params[:status] } %>
Admin Pagination
# app/controllers/admin/users_controller.rb
module Admin
class UsersController < AdminController
def index
@users = User.order(:email).page(params[:page]).per(50)
end
end
end
Testing
RSpec
# spec/models/post_spec.rb
RSpec.describe Post, type: :model do
describe '.page' do
let!(:posts) { create_list(:post, 30) }
it 'returns first page with default per_page' do
page = Post.page(1)
expect(page.count).to eq(25)
expect(page.current_page).to eq(1)
end
it 'returns correct page' do
page = Post.page(2).per(10)
expect(page.count).to eq(10)
expect(page.current_page).to eq(2)
expect(page.total_pages).to eq(3)
end
end
end
# spec/requests/posts_spec.rb
RSpec.describe 'Posts', type: :request do
describe 'GET /posts' do
let!(:posts) { create_list(:post, 30) }
it 'paginates posts' do
get posts_path, params: { page: 2 }
expect(response).to have_http_status(:ok)
expect(assigns(:posts).current_page).to eq(2)
end
it 'handles out of range pages' do
get posts_path, params: { page: 999 }
expect(response).to have_http_status(:ok)
expect(assigns(:posts)).to be_empty
expect(assigns(:posts).out_of_range?).to be true
end
end
end
Controller Tests
# spec/controllers/posts_controller_spec.rb
RSpec.describe PostsController, type: :controller do
describe 'GET #index' do
let!(:posts) { create_list(:post, 30) }
it 'assigns paginated posts' do
get :index, params: { page: 1 }
expect(assigns(:posts).count).to eq(25)
expect(assigns(:posts).total_count).to eq(30)
end
it 'respects per_page parameter' do
get :index, params: { page: 1, per_page: 10 }
expect(assigns(:posts).count).to eq(10)
end
end
end
Troubleshooting
Page Parameter Not Working
# If using custom routes, ensure page param is permitted
params.permit(:page, :per_page)
Total Count Performance
# For large tables, use counter cache or without_count
class Post < ApplicationRecord
# Option 1: Counter cache
belongs_to :category, counter_cache: true
# Option 2: Skip count query
# Use .without_count in controller
end
Styling Issues
# Ensure you've generated views
rails g kaminari:views default
# Or use a theme
rails g kaminari:views bootstrap4
Best Practices
- Always order before paginating: Ensures consistent results across pages
- Use
perwisely: Set reasonable limits withmax_paginates_per - Eager load associations: Prevent N+1 queries with
includes - Cache pagination: Use fragment caching for expensive queries
- Handle out of range: Check
out_of_range?and redirect if needed - API pagination: Always include metadata in JSON responses
- SEO: Use
rel_next_prev_link_tagsfor better search indexing - Test edge cases: Empty results, last page, out of range pages
- Use
without_countfor large datasets: Skip COUNT queries when possible - Preserve filters: Pass filter params to
paginatehelper
Additional Resources
For more advanced patterns, see:
- API Pagination: references/api-pagination.md
- Custom Themes: references/custom-themes.md
- Performance Optimization: references/performance.md
Resources
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