Essential MERN stack libraries for your next project

Starting a new MERN stack project can feel overwhelming, especially if you’re just diving in. But what if I told you there are some powerful libraries that can make your development process smoother and more efficient? In this post, I’m sharing the must-have tools that will level up both your frontend and backend. These are libraries I’ve personally used while building my own MERN blog from scratch, which includes user authentication, role-based functionality, post management, and an advanced search feature. You can check out my hosted MERN blog here.

Plus, I’ll link to the documentation so you can dive deeper and start using them right away!

What is the MERN stack

The MERN stack is a popular technology stack for full-stack developers, combining MongoDB, React, Express.js, and Node.js. React is a leading frontend library for building dynamic user interfaces, while Express.js is a backend framework built on Node.js to efficiently manage application routes. MongoDB serves as a NoSQL database, storing data in a flexible, JSON-like format. Finally, Node.js is a server-side environment that allows you to run JavaScript on the backend.

When developing my MERN blog, I used these technologies to create a seamless user experience, allowing users to sign up, create posts, and filter content based on categories and dates.

Now that we’ve covered the basics, let’s dive into the essential frontend libraries I used to build my blog.

Frontend Libraries.

React Redux and Redux Toolkit

I used React Redux and Redux Toolkit to manage the state of my blog efficiently. With Redux, I centralized the data for user authentication, post creation, and the filtering system. Instead of passing data between multiple components, Redux helped me manage the user’s session and state for post interactions (like creating and editing) from a single store. This kept the app clean and manageable as it scaled. While this is just a simplified overview, you can explore a comprehensive guide to get a deeper understanding.

Flowbite React

To quickly build the UI for my blog, I used Flowbite React for ready-made components like the navigation bar, dropdowns for categories, and a carousel for featured posts. These Tailwind CSS-powered components were easy to customize and integrate into my blog design. Flowbite’s flexibility helped me maintain consistency across the user interface. Check out their documentation.

Firebase

Firebase played a key role in handling image uploads for blog posts. Using Firebase Storage, I allowed users (especially admins) to upload images when creating posts. The scalable and secure cloud storage was perfect for storing images in various formats like JPEG and PNG. Firebase’s seamless integration with React also helped keep the codebase clean while managing media assets. Learn more about Firebase and its features on their docs.

Redux Persist

To persist user data, especially during authentication, I used Redux Persist. When users sign in, their session data is saved in local storage, preventing them from being logged out after a page refresh. This ensured a smooth user experience, especially when switching between pages or after updating a post. It works perfectly with the Redux store, ensuring that the user state is consistent across the app.

Backend Libraries

Mongoose

Mongoose is an essential library for connecting MongoDB to a Node.js server. It simplifies database operations by providing object data modeling (ODM) and schema validation, allowing you to work with MongoDB collections more intuitively. Features like data validation and middleware make Mongoose a powerful tool for building robust backends. Read more about Mongoose to get a good understanding of its concepts.

Nodemon

Throughout the development process, Nodemon was a lifesaver. Every time I made updates to the backend code, Nodemon automatically restarted the server, allowing me to see the latest changes instantly. This increased my productivity by cutting down on manual server restarts and keeping the development process smooth.

JSON web Token (JWT)

For user authentication and role-based access, I implemented JSON Web Token (JWT). JWT allowed me to generate a token upon user login, granting access to specific routes based on the user’s role. This was crucial for creating an admin panel where only admins could create, update, and delete posts. The token-based system ensured secure communication between the frontend and backend, with role separation clearly defined.

In building my MERN blog, these libraries helped streamline everything from user authentication to post management and advanced search. If you’re looking to build a similar project, I highly recommend diving into the documentation for each tool and seeing how they can enhance your workflow.