A modern, batteries‑included React 18 component library template for TypeScript with ESM‑only bundling, Vite playground, Vitest, ESLint/Prettier, TypeDoc, release‑it, STAN, and optional cloud backup.

React Component Library Template (TypeScript)

👇 NPM & Node Current badges will be activated when you publish your component to NPM!

This template gives you a production‑ready foundation to build and publish React components with TypeScript. It prioritizes a smooth developer experience (DX) with fast feedback, predictable builds, and clear test and lint ergonomics.

What's in the box:

• ⚛️ React 18 + TypeScript (react‑jsx runtime)
• 📦 ESM‑only bundling with Rollup (react and react‑dom externalized)
• 🧾 Type declarations (.d.ts) via rollup‑plugin‑dts
• ✅ Vitest + React Testing Library + jest‑dom (happy‑dom env)
• ⚡ Vite playground for live browser testing (HMR)
• 🧹 ESLint flat config (TypeScript) + simple‑import‑sort
• ✨ Prettier formatting
• 📚 TypeDoc for API documentation
• 🚀 release‑it for releases (optional Lefthook Git hooks)
• 🤖 STAN — AI‑assisted refactoring & patch workflow
• ☁️ GitHub Actions cloud sync backup (Rclone)
• 🧩 Peer dependencies: react, react‑dom (>=18); sideEffects: false

Contents

• In The Box
• How to use this template
• Getting Started
• Develop React components
• Test your components
• View in the browser (Vite playground)
• Build and publish
• Linting & formatting
• Type checking
• API docs with TypeDoc
• FAQ and tips

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In The Box

Delightful defaults with modern tooling — batteries included, no drama.

⚛️ React 18 + TypeScript (react‑jsx runtime)

• React: https://react.dev
• TypeScript JSX options (react‑jsx automatic runtime): https://www.typescriptlang.org/docs/handbook/jsx.html
• New JSX Transform (background): https://legacy.reactjs.org/blog/2020/09/22/introducing-the-new-jsx-transform.html

📦 ESM‑only bundling with Rollup

• Rollup (bundler): https://rollupjs.org
• Externalized: react, react-dom, and react/jsx-runtime (smaller bundles; consumers bring their own React)

🧾 Type declarations (.d.ts) via rollup‑plugin‑dts

• rollup‑plugin‑dts: https://github.com/Swatinem/rollup-plugin-dts
• Ships dist/index.d.ts for consumers and API docs

✅ Testing: Vitest + Testing Library + jest‑dom (happy‑dom)

• Vitest: https://vitest.dev
• React Testing Library: https://testing-library.com/docs/react-testing-library/intro/
• jest‑dom matchers: https://testing-library.com/docs/ecosystem-jest-dom/
• happy‑dom (fast, stable DOM env): https://github.com/capricorn86/happy-dom

⚡ Vite playground (HMR)

• Vite: https://vite.dev
• Local dev playground under /playground for instant feedback without publishing

🧹 ESLint flat config (TypeScript) + simple‑import‑sort

• ESLint “flat” config: https://eslint.org/docs/latest/use/configure/configuration-files
• typescript‑eslint: https://typescript-eslint.io
• simple‑import‑sort keeps imports tidy by default

✨ Prettier formatting

• Prettier: https://prettier.io
• Opinionated, consistent formatting with endOfLine: "lf" for cross‑platform harmony

📚 TypeDoc API documentation

• TypeDoc: https://typedoc.org
• Generates browsable API docs from your TSDoc comments

🚀 Release automation (release‑it) + optional Lefthook

• release‑it: https://github.com/release-it/release-it
• Lefthook (optional Git hooks manager): https://lefthook.dev
• Version bump, changelog, GitHub release, npm publish — all wired

🤖 STAN — AI‑assisted refactoring & patch workflow

• STAN: https://github.com/karmaniverous/stan
• A rigorous, patch‑first assistant that helps refactor safely, keep docs in sync, and maintain clean diffs

☁️ GitHub Actions cloud sync backup (Rclone)

• Workflow: this repo ships a backup workflow at .github/workflows/sync.yml which calls a shared workflow: https://github.com/karmaniverous/gha-workflows/blob/main/.github/workflows/cloud-sync.yml
• It leverages the Setup Rclone Action: https://github.com/marketplace/actions/setup-rclone-action
• Free and useful: a simple, no‑cost alternative to pricey GitHub backup tools.
• Safe by default: a clone from this template will NOT back up to anyone’s cloud without credentials. The action will FAIL unless the RCLONE_CONFIG repo secret is set (providing auth + destination).
• Don’t want it? Just delete .github/workflows/sync.yml.
• See the action page for details on configuring RCLONE_CONFIG.

🧩 Peer dependencies & tree‑shaking

• peerDependencies (npm): https://docs.npmjs.com/files/package.json/- sideEffects: false (tree‑shaking hint): https://webpack.js.org/guides/tree-shaking/

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How to use this template

Option A — GitHub “Use this template”

1. Open this repository on GitHub.
2. Click “Use this template” → “Create a new repository”.
3. Pick your owner/org and repo name, then create the repo.
4. Clone your new repo locally.

Option B — degit (no git history)

npx degit karmaniverous/react-component-npm-package-template-ts my-lib
cd my-lib
git init && git add -A && git commit -m "chore: scaffold from template"

Option C — shallow clone then reset history

git clone --depth=1 https://github.com/karmaniverous/react-component-npm-package-template-ts my-lib
cd my-lib
rm -rf .git
git init && git add -A && git commit -m "chore: scaffold from template"

Replace placeholders (package.json and docs)

• package.json
  • name: Use your scoped package, e.g. @your-scope/my-lib
  • version: 0.0.0 (start here; release-it will bump on first release)
  • description, author, license
  • repository.url: git+https://github.com/your-org/my-lib.git
  • bugs.url: https://github.com/your-org/my-lib/issues
  • homepage: https://github.com/your-org/my-lib#readme
  • keywords: adjust for your library
  • publishConfig.access: public (keep for public scoped packages)
• README.md
  • Title, import examples (replace @your-scope/react-component-template with your real package name)
• typedoc.json
  • hostedBaseUrl and navigationLinks.GitHub to point to your repo/docs
• FUNDING.yml (optional)
  • Update to your funding info or remove

Quick package.json edits with npm

npm pkg set name='@your-scope/my-lib' version='0.0.0' \
  description='My awesome React component library' \
  author='Your Name <[email protected]>' license='MIT' \
  repository.type='git' \
  repository.url='git+https://github.com/your-org/my-lib.git' \
  bugs.url='https://github.com/your-org/my-lib/issues' \
  homepage='https://github.com/your-org/my-lib#readme'

Prepare for your first release

1. Install and verify

npm install
npx lefthook install   # optional
npm run lint
npm run test
npm run typecheck
npm run build

2. Configure your GitHub token (for release-it)

   • Copy .env.local.template to .env.local.
   • Create a GitHub Personal Access Token (classic) with “repo” scope: https://github.com/settings/tokens
   • Set GITHUB_TOKEN in .env.local.

3. Push to your repo (main branch)

git remote add origin [email protected]:your-org/my-lib.git
git push -u origin main

4. Release (interactive)

npm run release

release-it will bump the version (starting from 0.0.0), run lint/test/knip/build, tag, publish to npm, and create a GitHub Release.

Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Node.js 20+ (recommended). If you use node >= 20.6, see the lint note under “Linting & formatting” about “--import tsx”.

Install and initialize

npm install
npx lefthook install   # optional Git hooks (branch naming, etc.)

Run tests and type checks to verify your environment

npm run test
npm run typecheck
npm run build
npm run docs

Start the browser playground (HMR)

npm run dev
# opens http://localhost:5173 (by default)

---

Develop React components

Structure

• Put components in src/components.
• Export public surface from src/index.ts.

Example: a simple HelloWorld component (already included)

// src/components/HelloWorld.tsx
export type HelloWorldProps = { who?: string };

export function HelloWorld({ who = 'World' }: HelloWorldProps): JSX.Element {
  return <div>Hello {who}</div>;
}

Re-export in your library entry

// src/index.ts
export { HelloWorld, type HelloWorldProps } from './components/HelloWorld';

Consume from another app after publishing

import { HelloWorld } from '@your-scope/react-component-template';

export default function App() {
  return <HelloWorld who="React" />;
}

---

Test your components

This template uses:

• Vitest (happy‑dom)
• @testing-library/react
• jest‑dom (registered via vitest.setup.ts)

Add tests alongside components (co‑located)

// src/components/HelloWorld.test.tsx
import { render, screen } from '@testing-library/react';
import { describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
import { HelloWorld } from './HelloWorld';

describe('HelloWorld', () => {
  it('renders default greeting', () => {
    render(<HelloWorld />);
    expect(screen.getByText('Hello World')).toBeInTheDocument();
  });

  it('renders custom greeting', () => {
    render(<HelloWorld who="Developer" />);
    expect(screen.getByText('Hello Developer')).toBeInTheDocument();
  });
});

Run tests (with coverage)

npm run test

Notes

• The test environment is happy‑dom for speed and stability. You can switch to jsdom later if needed.

• Vitest excludes stale compiled tests from .rollup.cache.

• Also verify your library entry (src/index.ts) re-exports what you intend. A tiny test can import from the library entry instead of deep paths:

// src/index.test.tsx
import { render, screen } from '@testing-library/react';
import { HelloWorld } from './index';

it('re-exports HelloWorld', () => {
  render(<HelloWorld who="Library" />);
  expect(screen.getByText('Hello Library')).toBeInTheDocument();
});

• Coverage scope: docs/, dist/, and playground/ are excluded in vitest.config.ts so coverage focuses on your source. Adjust test.coverage.exclude as needed if you want to include or exclude additional paths.

---

View in the browser (Vite playground)

A minimal playground is included under playground/ for fast, local viewing with HMR. It imports your components directly from src (no publishing required).

Commands

npm run dev       # start Vite dev server for the playground
npm run preview   # preview a production build of the playground

Where to edit

• playground/src/App.tsx: Import and render your components from ../../src.
• playground/index.html and playground/vite.config.ts are already wired.

Publishing note

• The playground is excluded from your npm package (files: ["dist"]).

---

Build and publish

Build the library

npm run build

Outputs

• dist/mjs/** for ESM modules (preserveModules enabled)
• dist/index.d.ts for types

Externalized

• react, react-dom, and react/jsx-runtime are marked external and must be installed by consumers. They are listed as peerDependencies and devDependencies here for DX.

ESM only

• This template ships ESM only (no CJS/IIFE). Most modern toolchains support this directly. If you need CJS, add a second Rollup target.

Release flow (optional)

• release-it is configured to run lint/test/knip/build, generate changelog, and publish to npm + GitHub releases.

---

Linting & formatting

This template uses a TypeScript ESLint flat config in eslint.config.ts with:

• ESLint recommended + TypeScript recommended (non type‑checked)
• Vitest recommended rules for test files
• Prettier integration
• simple-import-sort and basic TSDoc checks

Run lint

npm run lint
npm run lint:fix

Node 20.6+ note

• If you see “tsx must be loaded with --import instead of --loader”, update the lint scripts to:

{
  "lint": "node --import tsx ./node_modules/eslint/bin/eslint.js .",
  "lint:fix": "node --import tsx ./node_modules/eslint/bin/eslint.js --fix ."
}

(Your current scripts may already work depending on Node version.)

---

Type checking

TypeScript runs in check‑only mode (no emit):

npm run typecheck

Scoping

• Type checks focus on src/** and test setup. Playground and test files are excluded from typecheck to keep the build/docs pipeline friction‑free.

---

API docs with TypeDoc

Generate docs from your TSDoc comments

npm run docs

Output is written to docs/. You can host this via GitHub Pages or your preferred static host. Additional behavior is configured in typedoc.json.

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FAQ and tips

• Why ESM only?
  • Simpler outputs and smaller surface area. Add a CJS target in Rollup if you must support CJS consumers.
• Where do I put styles?
  • This template ships “sideEffects: false” and no CSS by default. Add your own styling approach (CSS modules, CSS‑in‑JS, etc.) per component need.
• How do I add more components?
  • Create new files under src/components, export from src/index.ts, add tests, and render them in the playground during development.
• Can I use Storybook or Ladle?
  • Yes — add it later if you need richer component docs/demos. The Vite playground keeps things minimal to start.

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Status & readiness

• Build, docs, and typecheck pass.
• Tests pass with Vitest + Testing Library.
• Lint is configured with a TS flat config; if you’re on Node ≥ 20.6, consider switching lint scripts from “--loader tsx” to “--import tsx” (see above).
• For a typical React 18 component workflow, this template is ready to use.

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