single-spa-vue

single-spa-vue is an important part of building production-ready single-spa systems. This lesson explains what single-spa-vue means, how it works, and how to apply it with practical examples you can reuse.

single-spa-vue Overview

single-spa-vue is a building block you will reach for often in single-spa. It keeps related logic together and makes your intent obvious to reviewers and future maintainers.

When you learn single-spa-vue properly, you avoid the guesswork that leads to bugs and rework. The example below shows the shape you will use in most real single-spa projects.

import { h, createApp } from 'vue';
import singleSpaVue from 'single-spa-vue';
import App from './App.vue';

const vueLifecycles = singleSpaVue({
  createApp,
  appOptions: { render: () => h(App) },
});

export const { bootstrap, mount, unmount } = vueLifecycles;

single-spa-vue turns a Vue app into mountable single-spa lifecycles.

single-spa-vue Example

registerApplication({
  name: '@org/app',
  app: () => System.import('@org/app'),
  activeWhen: ['/app'],
});
start();

Start from a minimal single-spa-vue example and grow it only as needed.
Keep configuration explicit so single-spa-vue behaves the same in every environment.
Name things clearly so teammates understand your single-spa-vue at a glance.
Add tests around single-spa-vue early to lock in expected behaviour.

Single-SPA Cheatsheet

Core single-spa APIs related to single-spa-vue.

API	Example	Purpose
registerApplication	`registerApplication({ name, app, activeWhen })`	Register a micro frontend
activeWhen	`activeWhen: ['/checkout']`	Route ownership
start	`start()`	Begin routing
bootstrap	`export async function bootstrap()`	One-time setup
mount	`export async function mount(props)`	Render the app
unmount	`export async function unmount(props)`	Clean up the app
import map	`systemjs-importmap`	Locate app bundles

How single-spa-vue Works in Single-SPA

single-spa-vue is part of how single-spa lets multiple applications — even in different frameworks — coexist on one page. A root config registers each app and controls when it is active.

single-spa-vue turns a Vue app into mountable single-spa lifecycles.

A root config registers apps and calls start().
Each app exports bootstrap, mount, and unmount lifecycles.
activeWhen decides which routes each app owns.
Import maps resolve each app's bundle at runtime.

Practical Guidance for single-spa-vue

For reliable micro frontends, single-spa-vue should isolate failures and keep shared state minimal. Let each team own its app end to end while agreeing on a few shared contracts.

Concern	Recommendation
Isolation	One app's crash should not break others
Shared state	Prefer shared utility modules over globals
Routing	Keep activeWhen rules explicit and non-overlapping
Deployment	Release via import-map updates per app

Common Mistakes

Copying single-spa-vue snippets without understanding what each line does.
Skipping error handling and edge cases when wiring up single-spa-vue.
Leaving single-spa-vue untested, so regressions slip into production.
Over-engineering single-spa-vue before you actually need the extra flexibility.

Key Takeaways

single-spa-vue is a core part of working effectively with single-spa.
Start small and keep single-spa-vue focused on a single responsibility.
Apply consistent patterns so single-spa-vue scales across your project.
Test and document single-spa-vue to keep it maintainable over time.

Pro Tip

Pair single-spa-vue with automated tests from day one. It is far cheaper to catch single-spa regressions in CI than in production.