Both RTK Query and createAsyncThunk handle asynchronous operations in Redux Toolkit, but they serve different purposes. While createAsyncThunk is a low-level utility for managing async logic manually within slices, RTK Query provides a complete abstraction layer for data fetching, caching, and synchronization.
RTK Query automatically handles caching, invalidation, and background refetching; createAsyncThunk does not.
createAsyncThunk requires manual handling of loading, success, and error states in reducers.
RTK Query integrates directly with React through auto-generated hooks like
useGetPostsQuery.RTK Query reduces boilerplate by managing API calls and normalization automatically.
createAsyncThunk is more flexible for custom async logic outside typical API requests.
In short, createAsyncThunk gives fine-grained control over async flows, while RTK Query offers a high-level, declarative way to manage server-state with minimal effort.