Mastering Large Data Sets with React Query
Handling large data sets can be a daunting task for developers and end-users alike. Two popular UI patterns, pagination and infinite scroll, can help alleviate these issues by rendering small chunks of data at a time. In this article, we’ll explore how to implement these patterns using React Query, a powerful library for managing server-side state in React applications.
What is React Query?
React Query is a lightweight library that makes it easy to fetch, cache, and update server-side data in React applications. It provides features like data caching, deduplication, background updating, and performance optimizations, making it an ideal choice for managing large data sets.
Setting Up React Query
To get started with React Query, you’ll need to install it via npm or yarn. Then, import the QueryClient and QueryClientProvider components and wrap your app with the QueryClientProvider component.
Pagination with useQuery and keepPreviousData
The useQuery hook is used to fetch data from an API. To implement pagination, you can use the keepPreviousData option to store the previous data and render it while fetching new data. This approach provides a seamless user experience and reduces the number of requests made to the API.
Here’s an example of how to use useQuery with pagination:
“`jsx
import { useQuery } from ‘react-query’;
const fetchUsers = async (page) => {
const response = await fetch(https://api.example.com/users?page=${page});
return response.json();
};
const Users = () => {
const { data, isLoading, isError } = useQuery(
[‘users’, page],
() => fetchUsers(page),
{
keepPreviousData: true,
}
);
if (isLoading) return
;
if (isError) return
;
return (
-
{data.map((user) => (
-
))}
);
};
“`
Infinite Scroll with useInfiniteQuery
The useInfiniteQuery hook is used to load more data onto an existing set of data. This approach is ideal for implementing infinite scrolling, where users can load more data as they scroll down the page.
Here’s an example of how to use useInfiniteQuery with infinite scrolling:
“`jsx
import { useInfiniteQuery } from ‘react-query’;
const fetchUsers = async (page) => {
const response = await fetch(https://api.example.com/users?page=${page});
return response.json();
};
const Users = () => {
const { data, isLoading, isError, fetchNextPage } = useInfiniteQuery(
[‘users’],
() => fetchUsers(1),
{
getNextPageParam: (lastPage) => lastPage.nextPage,
}
);
if (isLoading) return
;
if (isError) return
;
return (
-
{data.pages.map((page) => (
-
))}
);
};
“`
Conclusion
In this article, we explored how to implement pagination and infinite scrolling using React Query. By using the useQuery and useInfiniteQuery hooks, you can easily manage large data sets and provide a seamless user experience. With React Query, you can focus on building your application without worrying about the complexities of server-side state management.