Tanstack Table Table

This skill builds on tanstack-table/preact/table-state. Read that first — the devtools panel inspects whatever table instance you register, so you need a working useTable before this skill is useful.

Setup

Install the TanStack Devtools host and the Preact Table adapter:

pnpm add @tanstack/preact-devtools @tanstack/preact-table-devtools

The recommended pattern has two parts:

1. Mount <TanStackDevtools> once at the app root with tableDevtoolsPlugin().
2. Call useTanStackTableDevtools(table) right after every useTable().

import { render } from 'preact'
import { useTable } from '@tanstack/preact-table'
import { TanStackDevtools } from '@tanstack/preact-devtools'
import {
  tableDevtoolsPlugin,
  useTanStackTableDevtools,
} from '@tanstack/preact-table-devtools'

function UsersScreen() {
  const table = useTable({
    features,
    key: 'users-table',
    columns,
    data,
  })

  // Register this table with the devtools panel.
  useTanStackTableDevtools(table)

  return <UsersGrid table={table} />
}

render(
  <>
    <UsersScreen />
    {/* Mount once, anywhere in the tree. */}
    <TanStackDevtools plugins={[tableDevtoolsPlugin()]} />
  </>,
  document.getElementById('root')!,
)

tableDevtoolsPlugin() returns a plugin descriptor for the multi-panel TanStack Devtools UI. useTanStackTableDevtools is a preact/hooks useEffect wrapper that upserts/removes the registration target on mount/unmount and re-runs when table or table.options.key changes.

Patterns

Keying Tables

Add a stable key option to the table options. Devtools use this key as both the registration id and the panel selector label.

useTanStackTableDevtools(table)

Multiple Tables

Register as many tables as you like. The Table panel renders a selector. Name each one.

function Dashboard() {
  const ordersTable = useTable({ ...ordersOptions, key: 'orders-table' })
  const usersTable = useTable({ ...usersOptions, key: 'users-table' })

  useTanStackTableDevtools(ordersTable)
  useTanStackTableDevtools(usersTable)

  return <Layout ordersTable={ordersTable} usersTable={usersTable} />
}

Disabling Per Table

useTanStackTableDevtools accepts an enabled option. When false, the registration is removed (the table disappears from the panel) but the hook still runs cleanly.

useTanStackTableDevtools(table, {
  enabled: import.meta.env.DEV && showTableDevtools,
})

Production Builds

The default @tanstack/preact-table-devtools entrypoint swaps to no-op implementations when process.env.NODE_ENV !== 'development'. To ship the real devtools to production, switch BOTH imports to the /production entrypoint:

import { TanStackDevtools } from '@tanstack/preact-devtools'
import {
  tableDevtoolsPlugin,
  useTanStackTableDevtools,
} from '@tanstack/preact-table-devtools/production'

If you mix entrypoints (one from /production, one from the default), one side is a no-op in production and the panel will appear empty.

Conditional Devtools by Env

For a code-split production-only devtools bundle, dynamically import the /production entrypoint behind a flag:

import { lazy, Suspense } from 'preact/compat'

const TableDevtoolsRoot = lazy(async () => {
  const { tableDevtoolsPlugin } =
    await import('@tanstack/preact-table-devtools/production')
  const { TanStackDevtools } = await import('@tanstack/preact-devtools')
  return {
    default: () => <TanStackDevtools plugins={[tableDevtoolsPlugin()]} />,
  }
})

Common Mistakes

Forgetting to mount <TanStackDevtools> at the app root

Calling useTanStackTableDevtools(table) alone does nothing visible — it only registers the table with the devtools target store. Without a <TanStackDevtools plugins={[tableDevtoolsPlugin()]} /> somewhere in the tree, there is no panel to render the registration. Symptom: hook runs without errors, no devtools button appears.

Importing devtools from the default path in a prod-only bundle

If you only deploy production builds, @tanstack/preact-table-devtools resolves to no-op implementations. The plugin will mount, but the panel will be empty. Use @tanstack/preact-table-devtools/production if you want the real devtools available there.

Accidentally shipping devtools to end users via /production

The flip side: importing from /production in your default app bundle means every visitor downloads and runs the devtools UI. That is usually not what you want. Restrict /production imports to dev/preview entrypoints or code-split them behind a flag.

Calling useTanStackTableDevtools outside the component that owns the table

The hook needs a Table instance to register. If you call it in a parent before useTable runs, or in a sibling that does not have access to the table, you pass undefined and nothing is registered. Always call it in the same component as useTable, immediately after.

Multiple tables without keys

A table registered without options.key is skipped and devtools log an error. Add a unique key option to every table that should appear in devtools.

Source: TanStack/table — distributed by TomeVault.