React state management with Redux toolkit

There are several techniques to handle states while developing a React application. Props can be used to pass data down the component tree. While this method works well for simple applications, it can become difficult to manage as the program expands in size and complexity. Here are some disadvantages of utilizing props:

To address these issues, many developers turn to Redux, a popular state management library for React applications. However, using Redux can also have its own drawbacks, such as the complexity of setting up and configuring a store, and the boilerplate code needed to manage state.

Enter Redux Toolkit, a library that aims to simplify the process of using Redux. Redux Toolkit provides a set of abstractions and utilities that make it easier to create and manage a Redux store. Here are some of the benefits of using Redux Toolkit over traditional Redux:

Note : While it is possible to use the DevTools Extension with traditional Redux, using Redux Toolkit provides a more streamlined and simplified experience. With Redux Toolkit, the necessary configuration is handled automatically, and you can start using the DevTools Extension right away without having to write any additional code.

By using Redux Toolkit, developers can avoid the drawbacks of using props for state management, while also simplifying the process of using Redux in their applications.

React Redux Toolkit is a set of utilities and best practices designed to make it easier to use Redux in a React application. It provides a streamlined API for defining Redux stores, reducers, and actions, as well as a number of other helpful features such as built-in support for Immer for writing immutable updates, and automatic handling of common Redux scenarios like asynchronous data fetching.

The main benefits of using React Redux Toolkit include the following:

Built-in support for Immer: React Redux Toolkit includes built-in support for Immer, a library that simplifies writing immutable updates in Redux.

Now let’s see how to use the Redux toolkit in a React application by using a simple React App. Let’s imagine that we’re building a todo list application. Here’s how we can use React Redux Toolkit to set up our Redux store and handle some basic interactions with the to-do list.

01. Setup

First, we need to install React Redux Toolkit and any other necessary dependencies.(Using npm or yarn)

Next, we can create a new file called ‘store.js’ to define our Redux store:

In this file, we’re using the configureStore function provided by React Redux Toolkit to set up our Redux store. We’re also defining a todoReducer using the createSlice function provided by React Redux Toolkit, which we’ll cover in more detail later in this article. But before that we have to complete the following changes to index.js.

Note: You can initialize the Redux store inside the index.js as well but in this way code is well organized and increase the readability.

We’ll need to wrap our App component inside a Provider component provided by react-redux, and pass our store as a prop to it.

First, let’s import the Provider component from react-redux and our store from store.js

In this file, we’re wrapping our App component inside a Provider component, and passing our store as a prop to it. The Provider component makes the store available to all components in our app via the useSelector and useDispatch hooks.

Now lets learn how to defining reducer in our app.

02. Defining the Reducer

Llet’s define our todoReducer using the createSlice function provided by React Redux Toolkit. This function allows us to define a reducer and the associated actions in a much simpler way than using the traditional Redux approach of defining separate action creators and reducers.

In this example, we’re using createSlice to define our todoSlice. This slice includes two reducers: addTodo and removeTodo. We’re also defining the initial state of the slice as an empty array.

The addTodo reducer adds a new todo to the state by pushing it onto the end of the array. The removeTodo reducer removes a todo from the state by returning a new array that does not include the specified todo.

Finally, we’re exporting the addTodo and removeTodo action creators so that they can be used in our React components.

So now lets see how to use Reucers inside the React components.

03. Usge of the Reducer in a React Component

Now that we have defined our Redux store and reducer, we can use them in a React component. Let’s create a TodoList component that displays the current list of todos and allows the user to add and remove todos.

In this component, we’re using the useSelector hook provided by React Redux to select the todo slice from our Redux store. We’re also using the useDispatch hook to get a reference to the Redux dispatch function, which we can use to dispatch actions.

The handleInputChange function updates the inputValue state when the user types in the input field. The handleAddTodo function dispatches an addTodo action with a new todo object that includes a unique id and the text from the input field. Finally, the handleRemoveTodo function dispatches a removeTodo action with the id of the todo to be removed.

We’re also rendering the list of todos using the map function and displaying a “Remove” button next to each todo that triggers the handleRemoveTodo function when clicked.

As seen in this example, setting up a Redux store, specifying reducers and actions, and utilizing them in a React component can all be made simpler using the React Redux Toolkit. The configureStore and createSlice functions offered by the React Redux Toolkit allow us to drastically cut down on the amount of boilerplate code required to handle the state of our application.

Along with these advantages, React Redux Toolkit offers a number of other helpful features, like performance enhancements, built-in support for Immer, and automatic handling of typical Redux cases. These features can aid in improving the efficiency, maintainability, and debuggability of our application.

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