Vitest Setup & Configuration Expert

Trigger Condition

Use this skill when setting up Vitest testing in new or existing projects, auditing test configurations, fixing issues, migrating from Jest, or modernizing existing Vitest configurations to current best practices (Vitest 4.0+, October 2025).

Example scenarios:

• "Set up Vitest for this project"
• "Audit my Vitest configuration"
• "Check if my Vitest config follows best practices"
• "Fix deprecated Vitest patterns"
• "Update Vitest to v4.0+"
• "Add browser testing with Vitest"
• "Migrate from Jest to Vitest"
• "Configure Vitest for a monorepo"
• "Add visual regression testing"
• "Why are my Vitest tests slow?"
• "Review my test setup"

Core Competencies

This skill provides:

• ✅ Modern Vitest 4.0+ setup and configuration patterns
• ✅ Browser Mode setup (playwright, webdriverio, preview providers)
• ✅ Projects-based monorepo configuration (workspaces deprecated)
• ✅ Coverage configuration (V8 and Istanbul)
• ✅ Visual regression testing setup
• ✅ Migration guidance from Jest or older Vitest versions
• ✅ TypeScript configuration and type safety
• ✅ Performance optimization and parallel execution
• ✅ CI/CD integration patterns

Critical Context (October 2025)

Version Requirements

• Vitest 4.0 is the latest stable release
• Requires Vite >=6.0.0 and Node.js >=20.0.0
• Major breaking changes from v3.x (see migration guide)

Major Architectural Changes

1. Workspaces → Projects (v3.2+): Workspace config deprecated; use projects array in root config
2. Browser Mode Stable (v4.0): No longer experimental; requires separate provider packages
3. V8 Coverage Improvements (v4.0): AST-based remapping replaces v8-to-istanbul
4. Pool Architecture Rewrite (v4.0): Tinypool removed; unified worker management
5. Module Runner (v4.0): Replaces vite-node internally

Key Deprecations & Removals (v4.0)

• ❌ coverage.all and coverage.extensions removed
• ❌ workspace config option (use projects instead)
• ❌ poolMatchGlobs and environmentMatchGlobs (use projects instead)
• ❌ deps.external, deps.inline (use server.deps.* variants)
• ❌ basic reporter removed
• ❌ maxThreads/maxForks (use maxWorkers instead)

Required Reading

⚠️ BEFORE providing Vitest guidance, read the appropriate reference:

Scenario	REQUIRED Reading
Auditing existing v4+ project	vitest-migration-guide.md — Breaking changes are extensive
Upgrading from v3.x	vitest-migration-guide.md — Must understand removed options
Browser testing setup	vitest-browser-mode.md — Provider syntax changed completely
Coverage configuration	vitest-config-reference.md — coverage.all removed in v4
Any configuration question	vitest-config-reference.md — Many options deprecated

Why this matters: Vitest 4.0 has major breaking changes. Training data may contain v3 patterns that cause errors in v4 projects. Always verify against references.

Reference Documentation

Detailed reference files in references/:

1. vitest-config-reference.md - Complete configuration options, best practices, common patterns
2. vitest-cli-reference.md - CLI commands, options, workflows
3. vitest-browser-mode.md - Browser testing setup, providers, component testing
4. vitest-migration-guide.md - Breaking changes, version migrations, Jest to Vitest

Configuration Templates

The assets/ directory contains ready-to-use configuration templates:

1. vitest.config.basic.ts - Minimal Node.js testing setup
2. vitest.config.browser.ts - Browser mode with Playwright
3. vitest.config.projects.ts - Multi-project/monorepo setup
4. vitest.config.coverage.ts - Comprehensive coverage configuration
5. vitest.shared.ts - Shared configuration pattern for projects
6. package.json.example - npm scripts and dependencies

Workflow Process

Phase 1: Discovery & Assessment

Always start by understanding the current state:

1. Check for existing configuration:

   • Look for vitest.config.ts/js, vite.config.ts/js
   • Check package.json for vitest version and scripts
   • Identify existing test files (.test., .spec. patterns)

2. Assess project structure:

   • Single package or monorepo?
   • Framework used (React, Vue, Svelte, etc.)?
   • TypeScript or JavaScript?
   • Current test runner (Jest, Mocha, etc.)?

3. Identify requirements:

   • Node.js testing only or browser testing needed?
   • Coverage requirements?
   • Component testing needs?
   • Visual regression testing?
   • CI/CD integration requirements?

Phase 2: Installation & Setup

For new projects (no existing testing):

1. Install Vitest:

   pnpm add -D vitest
   

2. Choose and install additional packages based on needs:

   # For browser testing with Playwright
   pnpm add -D @vitest/browser-playwright
   
   # For coverage (V8 is default, Istanbul available)
   pnpm add -D @vitest/coverage-v8
   # or
   pnpm add -D @vitest/coverage-istanbul
   
   # For jsdom/happy-dom environments
   pnpm add -D jsdom
   # or
   pnpm add -D happy-dom
   
   # For UI interface
   pnpm add -D @vitest/ui
   

3. Use appropriate config template from assets/ directory

4. Add npm scripts to package.json:

   {
     "scripts": {
       "test": "vitest",
       "test:run": "vitest run",
       "test:ui": "vitest --ui",
       "test:coverage": "vitest run --coverage"
     }
   }
   

For existing projects (migrating or upgrading):

1. Check current vitest version: pnpm list vitest
2. If migrating from Jest, consult vitest-migration-guide.md
3. If upgrading from v3.x or earlier, review breaking changes
4. Update dependencies to latest versions
5. Migrate deprecated configuration options

Phase 3: Configuration

Key configuration principles:

1. Start minimal - Vitest works with zero config when using Vite
2. Use projects for complexity - Multi-environment or monorepo setups
3. Explicit coverage.include - Required in v4.0+ for uncovered file reporting
4. TypeScript support - Use defineConfig from vitest/config for type safety
5. Shared configs - Use vitest.shared.ts pattern for projects

Common configuration patterns:

• Node.js only: Use vitest.config.basic.ts template
• Browser testing: Use vitest.config.browser.ts template
• Monorepo: Use vitest.config.projects.ts template
• Mixed environments: Use projects with different environments

Phase 4: Verification

1. Run tests: pnpm test:run
2. Check coverage: pnpm test:coverage
3. Verify browser mode (if configured): Tests should open browser
4. Check CI compatibility: Ensure headless mode works

Phase 5: CI/CD Integration

Key CI considerations:

1. Environment detection: Vitest auto-detects CI and disables watch mode
2. Headless browser mode: Set browser.headless: true for CI
3. Coverage reporting: Use appropriate reporters for CI platforms
4. Sharding support: Use --shard=1/3 syntax for parallel CI execution
5. Fail-fast: Consider --bail=1 to stop on first failure

Decision Trees

Which Provider for Browser Testing?

Choose Playwright when:

• ✅ Need Firefox, Webkit, or Chromium support
• ✅ Want visual regression testing (screenshots, traces)
• ✅ Most comprehensive feature set
• ✅ Recommended default

Choose WebdriverIO when:

• ✅ Already using WebdriverIO in project
• ✅ Need Safari support on macOS
• ✅ Existing WebdriverIO infrastructure

Choose Preview when:

• ✅ Development/prototyping only
• ✅ Cannot install browser dependencies
• ⚠️ Not for production/CI

Projects vs Single Config?

Use Projects when:

• ✅ Monorepo with multiple packages
• ✅ Need different test environments (node + browser)
• ✅ Different configurations for unit vs integration tests
• ✅ Need to run tests in parallel across configs

Use Single Config when:

• ✅ Simple single-package project
• ✅ All tests use same environment
• ✅ No complex configuration requirements

Coverage Provider Choice?

Use V8 (default) when:

• ✅ Best performance
• ✅ Works with Vite's transformation
• ✅ Recommended default

Use Istanbul when:

• ✅ Need more accurate coverage for edge cases
• ✅ Migrating from Jest with Istanbul
• ✅ Specific reporter compatibility needs

Common Patterns & Solutions

Pattern: Node + Browser Tests

Use projects to separate environments:

export default defineConfig({
  test: {
    projects: [
      {
        test: {
          name: 'unit',
          environment: 'node',
          include: ['**/*.unit.test.ts']
        }
      },
      {
        test: {
          name: 'browser',
          browser: {
            enabled: true,
            provider: playwright(),
            instances: [{ browser: 'chromium' }]
          },
          include: ['**/*.browser.test.ts']
        }
      }
    ]
  }
})

Pattern: Shared Configuration for Monorepo

Create vitest.shared.ts:

import { defineConfig } from 'vitest/config'

export default defineConfig({
  test: {
    globals: true,
    setupFiles: ['./test-setup.ts']
  }
})

Then in each package:

import { defineProject, mergeConfig } from 'vitest/config'
import configShared from '../../vitest.shared.js'

export default mergeConfig(
  configShared,
  defineProject({
    test: {
      environment: 'jsdom'
    }
  })
)

Pattern: Coverage with Uncovered Files

Important: In v4.0+, must explicitly define coverage.include:

export default defineConfig({
  test: {
    coverage: {
      enabled: true,
      provider: 'v8',
      include: ['src/**/*.{ts,tsx}'],
      exclude: [
        'src/**/*.test.{ts,tsx}',
        'src/**/*.spec.{ts,tsx}',
        'src/**/__tests__/**'
      ],
      reporter: ['text', 'html', 'lcov']
    }
  }
})

Anti-Patterns & Common Mistakes

❌ Using deprecated workspace config

// DON'T - workspace is deprecated
export default defineConfig({
  test: {
    workspace: './vitest.workspace.js'
  }
})

// DO - use projects instead
export default defineConfig({
  test: {
    projects: ['./packages/*']
  }
})

❌ Missing coverage.include in v4.0+

// DON'T - will only cover files that were imported during tests
export default defineConfig({
  test: {
    coverage: {
      enabled: true
    }
  }
})

// DO - explicitly define what to cover
export default defineConfig({
  test: {
    coverage: {
      enabled: true,
      include: ['src/**/*.ts']
    }
  }
})

❌ Using old browser provider string syntax

// DON'T - old v3.x syntax
export default defineConfig({
  test: {
    browser: {
      provider: 'playwright'
    }
  }
})

// DO - v4.0+ requires provider object
import { playwright } from '@vitest/browser-playwright'

export default defineConfig({
  test: {
    browser: {
      provider: playwright()
    }
  }
})

❌ Using removed pool options

// DON'T - removed in v4.0
export default defineConfig({
  test: {
    maxThreads: 4,
    poolOptions: {
      threads: { isolate: false }
    }
  }
})

// DO - use new unified syntax
export default defineConfig({
  test: {
    maxWorkers: 4,
    isolate: false
  }
})

Troubleshooting Guide

Issue: Tests not being discovered

Check:

1. Test files match pattern: **/*.{test,spec}.?(c|m)[jt]s?(x)
2. Files not in exclude patterns
3. Check include configuration if customized
4. Use vitest list to see what tests Vitest found

Issue: Module resolution errors

Solutions:

1. Ensure Vite config has correct resolve.alias entries
2. Check tsconfig.json paths match Vite config
3. Add /// <reference types="vitest/config" /> to vite.config.ts
4. For external dependencies, configure server.deps.inline

Issue: Coverage shows 0% or missing files

In v4.0+:

1. Must explicitly set coverage.include glob patterns
2. Check patterns actually match your source files
3. Verify files aren't in coverage.exclude
4. Use coverage.all: true only if really needed (deprecated but available)

Issue: Browser tests failing in CI

Check:

1. Set browser.headless: true for CI environments
2. Install browser binaries: npx playwright install or similar
3. Use --browser.headless CLI flag
4. Configure appropriate timeouts for CI

Issue: Slow test execution

Optimization strategies:

1. Enable parallel execution: fileParallelism: true (default)
2. Increase workers: maxWorkers: <number>
3. Use projects for different test types
4. Consider disabling isolate for unit tests (with caution)
5. Use --no-cache to rule out cache corruption

Output & Next Steps

After completing setup, provide the user with:

1. Summary of configuration - What was set up and why
2. Test commands - How to run tests, coverage, UI
3. File locations - Where configs and test files are
4. Next steps - Suggestions for writing first tests or migrations
5. Resources - Links to relevant docs or examples

When NOT to Use This Skill

• User wants to use a different test framework (Jest, Mocha, etc.)
• Testing is not relevant to the current task
• User explicitly wants to avoid testing setup

Collaboration with Other Skills

This skill works well with:

• nextjs-16-setup: For Next.js projects needing testing
• react-ink-cli: For CLI app testing
• xmcp-server-setup: For MCP server testing

Success Criteria

Configuration is successful when:

• ✅ Tests run without errors
• ✅ Configuration follows Vitest 4.0+ best practices
• ✅ Coverage reports generated (if configured)
• ✅ Browser tests work (if configured)
• ✅ CI/CD integration functional (if required)
• ✅ No deprecated options used
• ✅ TypeScript types working correctly