Introduction to React Hooks
React Hooks revolutionized the way we write React components by allowing us to use state and other React features in functional components. Before hooks, you had to convert functional components to class components to use state.
useState Hook
The useState hook is the most fundamental hook that allows you to add state to functional components:
const [count, setCount] = useState(0);useEffect Hook
The useEffect hook lets you perform side effects in functional components. It serves the same purpose as componentDidMount, componentDidUpdate, and componentWillUnmount combined in React classes.
Custom Hooks
One of the most powerful features is the ability to create custom hooks that let you extract component logic into reusable functions.
Best Practices
- Always use hooks at the top level of your React function
- Don't call hooks inside loops, conditions, or nested functions
- Use the ESLint plugin for React hooks to catch common mistakes
React Hooks have made functional components much more powerful and are now the recommended way to write React components.
