Why I Left Vuex for Pinia — And Never Looked Back

When I first started using Vue.js, Vuex was the gold standard for state management. It was powerful, battle-tested, and backed by the Vue core team. But over time, as my projects grew and Vue 3 matured, I started to feel the weight of Vuex’s complexity. Then came Pinia — a lighter, more intuitive, and more modern alternative that completely changed the way I manage state.

Here’s why I made the switch — and why I think you might want to as well.

Simpler API = Less Boilerplate

In Vuex, managing state often felt like navigating a bureaucratic maze:

• state, getters, mutations, actions — each in its own silo.

• Mutations felt like unnecessary ceremony.

• You’d write five lines of code just to update a single property.

Pinia, on the other hand, simplifies everything:

• No mutations — just define actions that directly modify state.

• One store = one file = everything in one place.

• You can use the Composition API naturally within stores.

Less boilerplate = faster development = happier dev.

Built-in TypeScript Support

I love TypeScript. But Vuex… didn’t.

Working with TypeScript in Vuex felt like duct-taping generics and casting types into submission.

Pinia was built with TypeScript in mind.

• Type inference is automatic and consistent.

• No need for custom wrappers or workarounds.

• Your IDE becomes a superpower instead of a struggle.

Designed for Vue 3 (and works great with Nuxt 3)

Vuex was created for Vue 2. It works with Vue 3 — but it’s not native to it.

Pinia is the official state management library for Vue 3.

• Uses Composition API seamlessly

• Supports hot module replacement

• Fully tree-shakable

• First-class support in Nuxt 3

If you’re already using Vue 3 or Nuxt 3, Pinia is the obvious choice.

Devtools & Ecosystem Support

Pinia has robust Vue Devtools integration:

• Time-travel debugging

• Watch state updates in real-time

• Inspect actions and patches

And since it’s officially recommended by the Vue core team, the ecosystem is evolving around Pinia now — not Vuex.

Real-World Bonus: Productivity

After switching to Pinia on a real high-traffic project, our team noticed:

• Faster onboarding for new devs

• Fewer bugs related to shared state

• Easier refactors thanks to cleaner store logic

Final Thoughts

Vuex served its purpose. But the frontend world — and Vue itself — have evolved. Pinia reflects that evolution: lightweight, intuitive, TypeScript-friendly, and made for modern Vue projects.

If you’re starting something new in Vue 3 — skip the nostalgia.

Start with Pinia. You’ll thank yourself later.

Thanks for reading! I'm Oleksii — a frontend developer who loves clean code, TypeScript, and building things that scale. Feel free to connect with me here or on LinkedIn.