SolidJS: Speed Demon Sans VDOM Bloat

Hey devs, ever feel like your React or Vue app is lugging around a virtual DOM backpack on a sprint? What if you could ditch that weight and still get React-like DX with spreadsheet-style reactivity that flies at 118K ops/sec? Enter SolidJS – the tiny (under 7kB gzipped) powerhouse topping benchmarks and dev satisfaction charts in 2025.

Why Devs Are Buzzing About SolidJS

Here's the deal: React re-runs your whole component on state change, diffing a virtual DOM tree. Vue optimizes it better but still diffs. SolidJS? Nope. It compiles your JSX into vanilla JS that surgically updates only the changed DOM bits. No VDOM overhead, no diffing – just fine-grained signals that track dependencies automatically. Result? Near-native hydration, ultra-low runtime overhead, and bundles that make your production deploys grin.

Why this matters: In dashboards, real-time chats, or data-heavy apps, every millisecond counts. SolidJS crushes JS Framework Benchmarks at double React/Vue speeds, which is perfect when scale hits and you hate babysitting useMemo hooks.

TL;DR: SolidJS = React syntax + Vue reactivity - VDOM bloat. Blazing fast, simple stores, tiny size. Ideal for perf-obsessed apps.

Reactivity That Just Works – No Hooks Drama

Solid borrows React's function components and JSX but swaps hooks for primitives like createSignal. Components run once at compile-time, leaving reactive trackers in the DOM. Update a signal? Only dependent UI flips – synchronously, no batching waits.

Here's a dead-simple counter – try pasting into a Solid playground:

import { createSignal, createEffect } from 'solid-js';
 
function Counter() {
  const [count, setCount] = createSignal(0);
  const double = () => count() * 2;
 
  createEffect(() => console.log(`Count: ${count()}, Double: ${double()}`));
 
  return (
    <div>
      <button onClick={() => setCount(count() + 1)}>
        Count: {count()}
      </button>
      <p>Double: {double()}</p>
    </div>
  );
}

Boom – click, and only the button text + double paragraph updates. No re-renders, no stale closures. React needs useMemo for that double; Solid tracks it fine-grained.

Control Flow: Built-In Primitives Beat Conditionals

Tired of && spaghetti or Array.map in JSX? Solid has <Show>, <For>, <Switch> for clean control flow. Here's a dynamic list:

import { createSignal, For } from 'solid-js';
 
function TodoList() {
  const [todos, setTodos] = createSignal(['Learn Solid', 'Build dashboard']);
 
  return (
    <div>
      <For each={todos()}>
        {(todo, i) => (
          <div>
            {i() + 1}. {todo}
            <button onClick={() => {
              setTodos(todos().filter((_, idx) => idx !== i()));
            }}>
              Delete
            </button>
          </div>
        )}
      </For>
      <button onClick={() => setTodos([...todos(), `New todo ${todos().length + 1}`])}>
        Add Todo
      </button>
    </div>
  );
}

Delete or add? Only the list re-runs – efficient and readable. Why it matters: Scales to thousands of items without lag, unlike VDOM diffs.

Real-World Wins: Dashboards & Real-Time Magic

• Dashboards: Stock tickers or analytics? Solid's signals + stores handle WebSocket feeds with zero re-render tax. Pairs great with Solid Router or TanStack Query.
• Real-time apps: Chat or collab tools shine – updates propagate precisely, hydration's instant.
• Teams: 90% React DX, easier onboarding than Vue's SFCs. Logic's clear, no hook rules.

Benchmarks seal it: SolidJS laps React 19 (52K) and Vue 4 (61K) at 118K ops/sec. Bundle? 6.4kB vs React's 42kB.

Stores for Global State – Vue Simplicity Meets React JSX

Global state without Redux boilerplate:

import { createStore } from 'solid-js/store';
 
function App() {
  const [state, setState] = createStore({ user: { name: 'Dev' }, count: 0 });
 
  return (
    <div>
      <p>Hello, {state.user.name}!</p>
      <button onClick={() => setState('count', c => c + 1)}>
        Count: {state.count}
      </button>
      <button onClick={() => setState('user', { name: 'Solid Fan' })}>
        Update User
      </button>
    </div>
  );
}

Nested updates? Auto-tracks. Prod-ready for apps beyond toys.

Try It Yourself

Spin up npm create solid@latest, drop in those snippets, and benchmark vs your React app. Check Solid's docs for stores, effects, or migrating from React. Your perf graphs will thank you – who's ready to go solid? 🚀