In this article, we compare the useContext hook in React with the Redux library for managing state in a React application. We discuss the pros and cons of each approach and provide examples of how to use them in a real-world scenario. We also explore the limitations of useContext and when it may be appropriate to use Redux instead.
useContext
The useContext hook in React is a powerful way to share statebetween compoenents without having to pass props down the component tree manually. It was introuduced in React 16.3 as an alternative to the context API, which has been around since React 16.0.
One advantage of using useContext
over the other state management solutions like Redux is that it is build into React and does not require any additional libraries or dependencies. This can make it easier to set up and maintain in a project.
How To Use
To use useContext
, you first neet to create a context object using React.createContext()
and provide a devault value. This default value will be used if a component that consumes the context does not have a matching Provider
higher up in the tree.
Case 1: Share theme state
Here is an example of how to create and use a context object to share the current theme of a user interface.
In this example, the App
component has a state called theme
which can be either light
or dark
. The App
component wraps the Content
component with a ThemeContext.Provider
element, which provides the current value of the theme
state to the Content
component.
The Content
component uses the useContext
hook to get the current value of the theme
state from the context object. The Content
component then uses the value of the theme
state to set background and text color of a div
element.
When the user clicks the button
element, the setTheme
function is called to toggle the value of the theme
state between light
and dark
. This cause the Content
component to re-render and update the background and text color of the div
element to match the new value of the theme
state.
Case 2: Share an user object
Using useContext
is a great way to shate state between components that are not directly related in the component tree. For example, suppose you have a Sidebar
component and a MainContent
component that need to share a user
object. Instead of passing the user
object down the tree as props, you can create a UserContext
and use it to provide the user
object to both the Sidebar
and MainContent
components.
In this example, the App
component has a user
object with a name
and email
properties. The App
component wraps the Sidebar
and MainContent
components with a UserContext.Provider
element, which provides the current value of the user
to both the Sidebar
and MainContent
components.
The Sidebar
and MainContent
components use the useContext
hook to get the current value of the user
object from context object. Sidebar
component displays user’s name, and MainContent
component displays user’s email.
Limitation
One limitation uf using useContext
is that it only allows you to share state between components that are siblings or ancestors in the component tree. If you need to share state between components that are not related in the tree, you may want to consider using a solution like Redux, which allows you to manage global state in a centralized store.
Redux
Redux is a popular library for managing state in React applications. It uses a single store to hold all of the application’s state and provides a set of functions for updating state and subscribing to changes.
How To Use
To use Redux in a React application, you need to install the redux
and react-redux
libraries and create a store using the createStore
function from redux
library. You can then use the Provider
component from the react-redux
library to wrap your application and provide the store to all of your components.
Here is an example of how to use Redux to manage the terms of a user interface.
In this example, ThemeToggler
component uses useRedux
hook from react-redux
library to get current state of the store and the dispatch function, which is used to dispatch actions to the store. The toggleTheme
function is called when user clicks the button element, and it dispatches an action with SET_THEME
type and new value of the theme
state.
The Content
component uses useRedux
hook to get the current state of the store, and it uses the value of the theme
state to set the background and text color of a div
element.
Limitations
Using Redux can be a good choice if you need to share state between unrelated components or if you have a large application with complex state management needs. However, it can add some additional complexity to your application, as you need to set up the store and manage actions and reducers.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the useContext
hook in React is a simple and convenient way to share state between components, and it can be a good alternative to solutions like Redux in some cases. However, it is important to choose the state management solution that is best suited to the needs of your application.