Does Sanity client cache requests requiring two fetches to see updates?

This is actually a common issue related to how Sanity's CDN caching works! The behavior you're seeing is by design, and here's what's happening:

When you use @sanity/client with useCdn: true (which is often the default), your requests go through apicdn.sanity.io. The Live CDN uses a stale-while-revalidate caching strategy with a 600-second (10-minute) cache window.

Here's why you need to fetch twice:

1. First fetch after editing: Returns the stale (cached) content from the CDN, but triggers a background revalidation
2. Second fetch: Returns the fresh content that was fetched during the revalidation

This is the expected behavior of stale-while-revalidate caching - it prioritizes performance and availability by serving cached content immediately while updating in the background.

Solutions

Option 1: Disable CDN for fresh data (Recommended for your use case)

Set useCdn: false in your client configuration:

import {createClient} from '@sanity/client'

const client = createClient({
  projectId: 'your-project-id',
  dataset: 'your-dataset',
  useCdn: false, // Bypass CDN for always-fresh data
  apiVersion: '2024-01-01'
})

This sends requests directly to api.sanity.io instead of the CDN, giving you fresh data on every request.

Option 2: Use perspective parameter

You can also use the perspective parameter set to 'previewDrafts' or 'published' depending on your needs, but this works best when combined with useCdn: false for immediate updates.

When to use each approach

• useCdn: true: Best for production apps where slightly stale data (up to 10 minutes) is acceptable and you want better performance/lower latency
• useCdn: false: Best for admin interfaces, preview modes, or when you need guaranteed fresh data on every request

Since you're building a React Native app where users expect to see their edits immediately, setting useCdn: false is probably your best bet!