> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.theblockchainlibrary.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Interact with Smart Contract using viem

> Read from and write to a smart contract using viem's typed client.

# Interact with Smart Contract using viem

Read from and write to a smart contract using viem's typed client.

Read from and write to a smart contract using viem's typed client.

## Explanation

viem provides a clean, typed interface for contract interactions.

**Key differences from ethers.js:**

* `parseAbi()` accepts human-readable ABI strings — no JSON needed.
* `readContract` is for view functions (no gas cost).
* Full TypeScript inference on function arguments and return types.

For write operations, use `simulateContract` + `walletClient.writeContract`.

## Code

```typescript theme={null}
import { createPublicClient, http, parseAbi } from "viem";
import { mainnet } from "viem/chains";

const client = createPublicClient({
  chain: mainnet,
  transport: http(),
});

const abi = parseAbi([
  "function balanceOf(address) view returns (uint256)",
  "function totalSupply() view returns (uint256)",
]);

const contractAddress = "0x...";

// Read: get token balance for an address
const balance = await client.readContract({
  address: contractAddress,
  abi,
  functionName: "balanceOf",
  args: ["0x742d35Cc6634C0532925a3b844Bc454e4438f44e"],
});

console.log("Balance:", balance);
```

***

**Canonical knowledge ID:** `code-example:interact-contract-viem`