bookworm-smart-assistant/skills/flutter-expert/references/bloc-state.md

Bloc State Management

When to Use Bloc

Use Bloc/Cubit when you need:

• Explicit event → state transitions
• Complex business logic
• Predictable, testable flows
• Clear separation between UI and logic

Use Case	Recommended
Simple mutable state	Riverpod
Event-driven workflows	Bloc
Forms, auth, wizards	Bloc
Feature modules	Bloc

---

Core Concepts

Concept	Description
Event	User/system input
State	Immutable UI state
Bloc	Event → State mapper
Cubit	State-only (no events)

---

Basic Bloc Setup

Event

sealed class CounterEvent {}

final class CounterIncremented extends CounterEvent {}

final class CounterDecremented extends CounterEvent {}

State

class CounterState {
  final int value;

  const CounterState({required this.value});

  CounterState copyWith({int? value}) {
    return CounterState(value: value ?? this.value);
  }
}

Bloc

import 'package:flutter_bloc/flutter_bloc.dart';

class CounterBloc extends Bloc<CounterEvent, CounterState> {
  CounterBloc() : super(const CounterState(value: 0)) {
    on<CounterIncremented>((event, emit) {
      emit(state.copyWith(value: state.value + 1));
    });

    on<CounterDecremented>((event, emit) {
      emit(state.copyWith(value: state.value - 1));
    });
  }
}

---

Cubit (Recommended for Simpler Logic)

class CounterCubit extends Cubit<int> {
  CounterCubit() : super(0);

  void increment() => emit(state + 1);
  void decrement() => emit(state - 1);
}

---

Providing Bloc to the Widget Tree

BlocProvider(
  create: (_) => CounterBloc(),
  child: const CounterScreen(),
);

Multiple blocs:

MultiBlocProvider(
  providers: [
    BlocProvider(create: (_) => AuthBloc()),
    BlocProvider(create: (_) => ProfileBloc()),
  ],
  child: const AppRoot(),
);

---

Using Bloc in Widgets

BlocBuilder (UI rebuilds)

class CounterScreen extends StatelessWidget {
  const CounterScreen({super.key});

  @override
  Widget build(BuildContext context) {
    return BlocBuilder<CounterBloc, CounterState>(
      buildWhen: (prev, curr) => prev.value != curr.value,
      builder: (context, state) {
        return Text(
          state.value.toString(),
          style: Theme.of(context).textTheme.displayLarge,
        );
      },
    );
  }
}

---

BlocListener (Side Effects)

BlocListener<AuthBloc, AuthState>(
  listenWhen: (prev, curr) => curr is AuthFailure,
  listener: (context, state) {
    if (state is AuthFailure) {
      ScaffoldMessenger.of(context)
          .showSnackBar(SnackBar(content: Text(state.message)));
    }
  },
  child: const LoginForm(),
);

---

BlocConsumer (Builder + Listener)

BlocConsumer<FormBloc, FormState>(
  listener: (context, state) {
    if (state.status == FormStatus.success) {
      context.pop();
    }
  },
  builder: (context, state) {
    return ElevatedButton(
      onPressed: state.isValid
          ? () => context.read<FormBloc>().add(FormSubmitted())
          : null,
      child: const Text('Submit'),
    );
  },
);

---

Accessing Bloc Without Rebuilds

context.read<CounterBloc>().add(CounterIncremented());

⚠️ Never use watch inside callbacks

---

Async Bloc Pattern (API Calls)

on<UserRequested>((event, emit) async {
  emit(const UserState.loading());

  try {
    final user = await repository.fetchUser();
    emit(UserState.success(user));
  } catch (e) {
    emit(UserState.failure(e.toString()));
  }
});

---

Bloc + GoRouter (Auth Guard Example)

redirect: (context, state) {
  final authState = context.read<AuthBloc>().state;

  if (authState is Unauthenticated) {
    return '/login';
  }
  return null;
}

---

Testing Bloc

blocTest<CounterBloc, CounterState>(
  'emits incremented value',
  build: () => CounterBloc(),
  act: (bloc) => bloc.add(CounterIncremented()),
  expect: () => [
    const CounterState(value: 1),
  ],
);

---

Best Practices (MUST FOLLOW)

✅ Immutable states ✅ Small, focused blocs ✅ One feature = one bloc ✅ Use Cubit when possible ✅ Test all blocs

❌ No UI logic inside blocs ❌ No context usage inside blocs ❌ No mutable state ❌ No massive “god blocs”

---

Quick Reference

Widget	Purpose
BlocBuilder	UI rebuild
BlocListener	Side effects
BlocConsumer	Both
BlocProvider	Dependency injection
MultiBlocProvider	Multiple blocs