We are living in a hyperconnected era!
Users today have ever-decreasing attention spans. And to keep pace with them, web applications must keep up with this reality.
You should know that a slow application is frustrating for many, and they will quickly abandon it if it fails to capture their attention quickly.
Let’s accept the fact that in this day and age, no one has the luxury of waiting around for even a few seconds for an application to load or perform any other action. Therefore, the onus is on the developers to ensure that web applications are efficient, run smoothly for users, and save time.
In such a tumultuous situation, users want a seamless experience that does not cost them time and money.
And this is where React comes into the picture!
It has rapidly become one of the most popular frameworks used to develop web applications and with good reason.
Undoubtedly, there are many benefits to using React, but one of the most significant is its exceptional rendering performance.
Using React, developers are able to create a smooth and seamless user experience that is both efficient and effective.
That being said, there are many other advantages to using React that make it a popular choice among developers.
However, when it comes to React performance optimization, there are a few key measures that developers can take to ensure their applications run smoothly.
App optimization- a necessity or a fluke?
As we all know, React Native is a popular open-source platform that allows developers to build cross-platform mobile applications using JavaScript and React.
On the other hand, as the mobile app market continues to grow, it is crucial for developers to optimize the performance of their applications to keep users engaged and satisfied.
In this blog, we will explore some strategies for optimizing React Native application performance, such as reducing the size of the application, optimizing images and other media, and utilizing native code modules.
Let’s get started!
Spreading props on DOM elements
There are countless ways to manipulate the Document Object Model (DOM) using JavaScript.
However, not all approaches are created equal, and some can lead to unnecessary and even harmful consequences. Some bad practices can make the code less readable and maintainable.
One such practice to avoid is spreading properties into a DOM element, which can add unknown HTML attributes.
Key Coordination for List Rendering
Lists are a common component in React, and understanding how to manipulate them is essential for front-end developers.
When working with lists in React, there are several critical attributes to consider, such as assigning key attributes to the elements that help render upcoming list items.
These attributes are necessary for efficiently updating the DOM and rendering the correct items when changes occur.
Lazy loading Images in React
Images are an integral part of any modern web application. They help deliver the desired message to users in an aesthetically pleasing manner.
However, as the number of images in a React application increases, the application’s performance may degrade, leading to slower page load times and longer rendering times.
This decrease in performance can negatively impact the user experience, resulting in a loss of engagement and potential customers.
Lazy loading images is a relatively new technique in web development that has been shown to improve website performance.
The idea behind lazy loading is to only render images when they are visible to the user, which improves the website’s user experience and reduces bounce rates.
Functional Components & Component Interaction
Functional components are a crucial building block in creating efficient and performant React applications.
The robustness of React hooks allows for simpler and more effective management of stateful logic and rendering.
With the ability to optimize performance by avoiding unnecessary re-renders and utilizing concise and functional code, functional components are the go-to choice for modern React development.
This approach enables developers to reduce code complexity, increase code maintainability, and ultimately create faster, more efficient applications.
Windowing or List Virtualization in React Applications
A common issue with many React applications, particularly those that display long lists, is poor performance.
This is due to the fact that, before the app has even fully loaded, the entire list is rendered in the DOM causing a UI lag that can drastically affect the app’s performance.
To ensure React Performance Optimization and prevent these issues, it is important to implement proper rendering and loading techniques in React applications.
List virtualization is a technique utilized to solve the problem of rendering long lists of components on an application screen.
This approach improves the performance and user experience of the application, especially when it comes to large datasets.
The virtual list loading and rendering capabilities make it possible for users to access data faster without impacting the overall performance of the application.
Using a CDN
A CDN (Content Delivery Network) is a powerful tool for speeding up the delivery of static content, such as images, videos, or documents, to end users around the world.
When content is cached on servers distributed across the globe, CDNs reduce the distance between a user requesting a file and the server delivering it, which can greatly reduce latency and improve load times.
CDNs can also reduce the load on a website’s main server, freeing it up to handle more dynamic content.
Indeed, to improve the performance of your React website or mobile app, implementing a CDN is definitely worth considering.
Utilize Prop-Types
Prop-types is an incredibly helpful library for enforcing type checking of props in React Native apps.
By importing the function from the prop-type library, developers can ensure that each component receives the expected data type for its props.
This safeguards against runtime errors, facilitates debugging and improves code maintainability. Whether in a large team or working independently, utilizing prop-types in React Performance Optimization can greatly improve the quality of code and save time in the long run.
Server-Side Rendering (SSR)
Search engine optimization (SEO) and server-side rendering (SSR) are two important concepts for web developers to consider.
When building a React Native application, it’s crucial to determine whether SEO or SSR is necessary for your app’s functionality. While both can improve performance and the user experience, they serve different purposes and may not be needed in all cases.
Hence, when you hire professional Reactjs development services, you must check and consciously decide whether to use SSR and whether SEO is necessary for their specific application.
Using React Memo [Memoization]
React.memo is a powerful tool that can significantly improve the performance of functional components. By wrapping the component in React.memo, and ensuring that it only re-renders when its props have actually changed.
This can be especially valuable if your component receives complex objects or arrays as props, as those can be costly to compare for changes.
If the component always renders the same result for the same input props, React.memo can help eliminate unnecessary re-renders and boost overall performance.
React Redux Optimization
To optimize the performance of a React Redux app, one technique that can be employed is the use of Immutable.js.
As was observed in a test comparing the performance of an immutable list to that of a mutable list, the immutable list outperformed the mutable list by up to four times.
This performance boost is due to the fact that immutable data structures can make it easier to maintain performance by avoiding unnecessary object cloning. By utilizing Immutable.js, developers can improve the performance and scalability of their React Redux applications.
Trim Javascript Bundles
In modern web development, library packages such as React are commonly used to build powerful and responsive user interfaces.
However, these packages can often include unnecessary or redundant code that can slow down application performance.
In order to optimize React app performance, it is essential to eliminate code redundancy and trim packages by cutting-off duplicates and unnecessary code.
This not only enhances the user experience but also ensures that the application runs smoothly and efficiently.
Use a Function in ‘SetState’
In order to build performant React Native applications, it is important to optimize the use of the setState function. One way to do this is by using a function instead of an object as an argument.
This is because when an object is passed to setState, React will merge the object passed in with the previous state. Which can lead to unexpected behavior.
By using a function. It gives access to the previous state and can guarantee to update the state in a predictable way.
In conclusion
React applications have become increasingly popular in recent times due to their ability to create complex user interfaces with ease.
However, developers and product owners are often scared of the performance issues that come with these applications.
These concerns stem from the fact that React Js applications have a reputation for being slow and buggy. Costing businesses millions in lost revenue.
In this blog read, we have compiled the different ways to optimize the performance of React Js applications and dispel the fear that accompanies them, when you hire React developers.
Until our next read, keep watching this space!
