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Routes

Routes are the building blocks of TanStack Router. Each route represents a URL pattern and defines what should happen when that URL is matched - including what to load, what to render, and how to handle errors.

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Route Definition

Routes are defined using the createRoute or createFileRoute functions from the router package.

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Code-Based Routes

import { createRoute } from '@tanstack/react-router'

const postRoute = createRoute({
  getParentRoute: () => rootRoute,
  path: '/posts/$postId',
  component: PostComponent,
})

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File-Based Routes

// src/routes/posts.$postId.tsx
import { createFileRoute } from '@tanstack/react-router'

export const Route = createFileRoute('/posts/$postId')({
  component: PostComponent,
})
File-based routes don’t need getParentRoute - the parent is inferred from the file path.

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Route Options

Routes accept a comprehensive set of options to control their behavior.

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Path and Identification

const route = createRoute({
  getParentRoute: () => parentRoute,
  path: '/posts/$postId',    // URL pattern
  // OR
  id: 'posts-detail',        // Custom route ID (no path)
})
Routes can have either:
  • A path - Creates a routable URL segment
  • An id - Creates a layout/wrapper route with no URL segment

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Component Options

Define what renders at different states: 
const route = createFileRoute('/posts/$postId')({
  // Main component when route is ready
  component: PostComponent,
  
  // Shows while data is loading
  pendingComponent: () => <div>Loading post...</div>,
  
  // Shows when an error occurs
  errorComponent: ({ error }) => <div>Error: {error.message}</div>,
  
  // Shows when no match found
  notFoundComponent: () => <div>Post not found</div>,
})
All component options support lazy loading. Use the lazy method to code-split components.

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Path Parameters

Path parameters capture dynamic segments from the URL.

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Basic Parameters

import { createFileRoute } from '@tanstack/react-router'

export const Route = createFileRoute('/posts/$postId')({
  component: PostComponent,
})

function PostComponent() {
  const { postId } = Route.useParams()
  return <div>Post ID: {postId}</div>
}
In the route definition at packages/router-core/src/route.ts:169-172, parameters are typed based on the path pattern: 
export type ResolveParams<
  TPath extends string,
  T = string,
> = ResolveRequiredParams<TPath, T> & ResolveOptionalParams<TPath, T>

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Parsing Parameters

Transform and validate parameters: 
export const Route = createFileRoute('/posts/$postId')({
  params: {
    parse: (params) => ({
      postId: Number(params.postId),
    }),
    stringify: (params) => ({
      postId: String(params.postId),
    }),
  },
  component: PostComponent,
})

function PostComponent() {
  const { postId } = Route.useParams()
  // postId is now a number!
  console.log(typeof postId) // "number"
}

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Optional Parameters

Make parameters optional with the {- syntax: 
// src/routes/posts.{-$postId}.tsx
export const Route = createFileRoute('/posts/{-$postId}')({
  component: () => {
    const params = Route.useParams()
    // params.postId is string | undefined
    return params.postId ? <PostDetail /> : <PostList />
  },
})

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Search Parameter Validation

Validate and type search parameters using any validation library:

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With Zod

import { z } from 'zod'
import { createFileRoute } from '@tanstack/react-router'

const searchSchema = z.object({
  page: z.number().optional().default(1),
  filter: z.string().optional(),
  sort: z.enum(['asc', 'desc']).optional().default('asc'),
})

export const Route = createFileRoute('/posts')({
  validateSearch: searchSchema,
  component: PostsComponent,
})

function PostsComponent() {
  const { page, filter, sort } = Route.useSearch()
  // All values are fully typed!
  return <div>Page {page}</div>
}

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Manual Validation

export const Route = createFileRoute('/posts')({
  validateSearch: (search: Record<string, unknown>) => {
    return {
      page: Number(search.page ?? 1),
      filter: (search.filter as string) || '',
    }
  },
})
The validateSearch option is defined in packages/router-core/src/route.ts:928.

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Route Context

Provide data to child routes via context: 
export const Route = createFileRoute('/_auth')({
  context: ({ context }) => ({
    // Add to existing context
    ...context,
    user: getCurrentUser(),
  }),
  component: AuthLayout,
})

// Child route can access context
export const ChildRoute = createFileRoute('/_auth/dashboard')({
  beforeLoad: ({ context }) => {
    console.log(context.user) // Available!
  },
})

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Lifecycle Hooks

Routes have several lifecycle hooks that run at different times.

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beforeLoad

Runs before the route loads. Perfect for authentication checks: 
import { createFileRoute, redirect } from '@tanstack/react-router'

export const Route = createFileRoute('/_auth')({
  beforeLoad: async ({ context, location }) => {
    if (!context.auth.isAuthenticated) {
      throw redirect({
        to: '/login',
        search: {
          redirect: location.href,
        },
      })
    }
    
    // Can return additional context
    return {
      user: await context.auth.getUser(),
    }
  },
})
From packages/router-core/src/route.ts:969-993, beforeLoad receives:
  • context - Accumulated context from parent routes
  • location - Current location object
  • params - Path parameters
  • search - Validated search parameters
  • abortController - Signal for cancellation
If beforeLoad throws, the route loader will not run and navigation will be cancelled.

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Context Function

Provides synchronous context to the route: 
export const Route = createFileRoute('/posts')({
  context: ({ params }) => ({
    queryClient: new QueryClient(),
    postId: params.postId,
  }),
})

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Loading States

Control how loading states are displayed: 
export const Route = createFileRoute('/posts')({
  // Wait 1s before showing pending component
  pendingMs: 1000,
  
  // Keep pending component visible for at least 500ms
  pendingMinMs: 500,
  
  pendingComponent: () => <Spinner />,
})
This prevents flashing loading states for fast requests.

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Error Handling

Handle errors at the route level: 
export const Route = createFileRoute('/posts/$postId')({
  errorComponent: ({ error, reset }) => {
    return (
      <div>
        <h2>Error loading post</h2>
        <p>{error.message}</p>
        <button onClick={reset}>Try Again</button>
      </div>
    )
  },
  
  // Called when error is caught
  onError: (error) => {
    console.error('Route error:', error)
    logToErrorService(error)
  },
})

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Code Splitting

Lazy load route components and loaders: 
// src/routes/posts.$postId.tsx
import { createFileRoute } from '@tanstack/react-router'

export const Route = createFileRoute('/posts/$postId')({
  // Component loads on demand
  component: () => <div>Loading...</div>,
}).lazy(() => import('./posts.$postId.lazy').then(d => d.Route))

// src/routes/posts.$postId.lazy.tsx
import { createLazyFileRoute } from '@tanstack/react-router'

export const Route = createLazyFileRoute('/posts/$postId')({
  component: PostComponent, // This is code-split
})

function PostComponent() {
  return <div>Post detail</div>
}

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Stale Time and Caching

Control when route data is considered fresh: 
export const Route = createFileRoute('/posts')({
  // Data fresh for 10 seconds
  staleTime: 10_000,
  
  // Keep in cache for 5 minutes
  gcTime: 5 * 60 * 1000,
  
  loader: async () => {
    return fetchPosts()
  },
})

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Best Practices

The beforeLoad hook is perfect for auth checks because it runs before the loader, preventing unnecessary data fetching for unauthorized users.
Always validate search parameters with a schema library like Zod. This provides type safety and runtime validation in one step.
Use the lazy method to split large components. This reduces initial bundle size and improves performance.
Every route should have an errorComponent to gracefully handle failures and provide recovery options.

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Next Steps

Loaders

Learn how to load data for your routes

Navigation

Discover navigation patterns and APIs

Type Safety

Master type-safe routing patterns

Search Params

Deep dive into search parameter handling

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