Choosing when to build a custom React component library

React component libraries are highly valued for ensuring consistency and reusability of UI elements, thus significantly reducing development time and effort across digital products. The decision to build a custom component library involves weighing benefits such as consistency, reusability, accessibility, and time-saving against trade-offs like the need for significant resources, ongoing maintenance, setup complexity, and customization constraints. The article explores various approaches to building a React component library, from starting from scratch to using pre-existing libraries like Chakra UI or Material UI, each offering different levels of control, flexibility, and dependency on third-party solutions. Ultimately, the choice of approach should align with the project requirements and resources available, considering both the short-term and long-term impacts on the development process.