Hotwire

Hotwire sends HTML over the wire instead of JSON, enabling SPA-like interactivity without JavaScript frameworks.

Decision Framework

Choose the right tool for each interaction:

Need	Tool	Example
Fast page navigation	Turbo Drive	Links, form submissions
Update one section	Turbo Frame	Edit-in-place, tabs, modals
Update multiple sections	Turbo Stream	Form creates item + clears form
Real-time updates	Turbo Stream + Action Cable	Chat, notifications
JavaScript behavior	Stimulus	Dropdowns, copy-to-clipboard

Rule of thumb: Use Turbo for server-driven updates, Stimulus for client-side behavior.

Turbo Frames Quick Reference

Wrap content in a frame to scope navigation:

erb

<%= turbo_frame_tag @todo do %>
  <p><%= @todo.description %></p>
  <%= link_to "Edit", edit_todo_path(@todo) %>
<% end %>

Clicking "Edit" replaces only this frame with the matching frame from the response.

Lazy loading:

erb

<%= turbo_frame_tag "sidebar", src: sidebar_path, loading: "lazy" %>

Break out of frame:

erb

<%= link_to "Full page", path, data: { turbo_frame: "_top" } %>

See references/turbo.md for complete Turbo documentation.

Turbo Streams Quick Reference

Stream actions for DOM updates:

Action	Effect
`append`	Add to end of target
`prepend`	Add to beginning
`replace`	Replace entire element
`update`	Replace innerHTML only
`remove`	Delete element
`before/after`	Insert adjacent

Controller response:

ruby

respond_to do |format|
  format.turbo_stream
  format.html { redirect_to @item }
end

Template (create.turbo_stream.erb):

erb

<%= turbo_stream.append :items, @item %>
<%= turbo_stream.update :form, partial: "form" %>

Real-time broadcasts:

ruby

# In model
broadcasts_refreshes  # Simple: triggers page refresh with morphing

# Or manual:
broadcast_append_to :items, target: :items

See references/turbo.md for stream actions and broadcasting.

Stimulus Quick Reference

Controller structure:

javascript

import { Controller } from "@hotwired/stimulus"

export default class extends Controller {
  static targets = ["input", "output"]
  static values = { url: String, count: { type: Number, default: 0 } }
  static classes = ["active"]
  static outlets = ["other-controller"]

  connect() { /* called when controller connects to DOM */ }
  disconnect() { /* called when removed from DOM */ }

  // Action methods (called from data-action)
  submit() {
    this.outputTarget.textContent = this.inputTarget.value
    this.countValue++
    this.dispatch("submitted", { detail: { value: this.inputTarget.value } })
  }

  // Private methods
  #helperMethod() { }
}

HTML:

html

<div data-controller="example"
     data-example-url-value="/api"
     data-example-active-class="is-active">
  <input data-example-target="input" data-action="input->example#submit">
  <span data-example-target="output"></span>
</div>

Action syntax: event->controller#method

•Default events: click for buttons, submit for forms, input for inputs
•Modifiers: :prevent, :stop, :once, @window, @document
•Key filters: keydown.enter->controller#method

See references/stimulus.md for complete reference.

Rails Helpers

Turbo Frame tag:

erb

<%= turbo_frame_tag @model %>
<%= turbo_frame_tag @model, :section %>
<%= turbo_frame_tag "custom_id", src: path, loading: "lazy" %>

Turbo Stream tag:

erb

<%= turbo_stream.append :target, partial: "item", locals: { item: @item } %>
<%= turbo_stream.replace @model %>
<%= turbo_stream.remove @model %>

Stimulus controller generator:

bash

bin/rails generate stimulus controller_name

See references/rails-integration.md for helpers and setup.