Best Practices for Implementing Loading States

Oct 13, 2025 by pynkocean.com 67 views

Introduction

Thank you for using this amazing project! We appreciate the hard work and dedication that has gone into creating it. However, we have noticed a small issue with the loading behavior that we would like to report. In this article, we will discuss the expected behavior, the current behavior, and possible solutions to this issue.

Expected Behavior

When navigating between pages in a React application, it is expected that only the affected child component displays a loading state, while the rest of the UI remains visible. This is a crucial aspect of user experience, as it provides a seamless transition between pages without disrupting the user's workflow.

Current Behavior

Unfortunately, the current behavior of the application is that the entire screen goes into a loading state when navigating between pages. This makes the transition between pages feel like a full refresh instead of a smooth single-page navigation. This can be frustrating for users, as it disrupts their workflow and makes them feel like they are leaving the app and going to another website.

Steps to Reproduce

To reproduce this issue, follow these steps:

Click on any menu item to navigate to another page.
Observe that the whole screen displays a loading state.

Possible Solution

To resolve this issue, we recommend updating the loading logic to ensure that only the relevant child component shows the loading state. There are several approaches that can be taken to achieve this:

Using React Suspense

React Suspense is a built-in feature in React that allows you to handle loading states and errors in a declarative way. By using React Suspense, you can create a loading state that is specific to the child component that is being updated, rather than displaying a global full-screen loader.

Conditional Rendering

Another approach is to use conditional rendering to display the loading state only when the child component is being updated. This can be achieved by using a boolean flag to indicate whether the child component is in a loading state, and then using that flag to conditionally render the loading state.

Local Loading States

A third approach is to use local loading states, where each child component has its own loading state that is not affected by the loading state of other components. This can be achieved by using a state management library such as Redux or MobX to manage the loading states of each component.

Additional Notes

Thank you again for maintaining this project! We appreciate the hard work and dedication that has gone into creating it. If we find time, we will look into fixing this issue and contributing to the project. Keep up the great work!

Conclusion

In conclusion, the current behavior of the application is that the entire screen goes into a loading state when navigating between pages, which disrupts the user's workflow and makes the transition between pages feel like a full refresh. To resolve this issue, we recommend updating the loading logic to ensure that only the relevant child component shows the loading state. There are several approaches that can be taken to achieve this, including using React Suspense, conditional rendering, and local loading states.

Best Practices for Implementing Loading States

When implementing loading states in a React application, there are several best practices that can be followed to ensure a seamless user experience:

Use a loading state that is specific to the child component: This ensures that only the affected child component displays a loading state, while the rest of the UI remains visible.
Use a declarative approach: Use React Suspense or conditional rendering to handle loading states in a declarative way, rather than using imperative code.
Use a state management library: Use a state management library such as Redux or MobX to manage the loading states of each component.
Test thoroughly: Test the loading state thoroughly to ensure that it is working as expected and does not disrupt the user's workflow.

Introduction

In our previous article, we discussed the issue of the entire screen going into a loading state when navigating between pages in a React application. We also outlined several possible solutions to this issue, including using React Suspense, conditional rendering, and local loading states. In this article, we will answer some frequently asked questions about implementing loading states in a React application.

Q: Why is the entire screen going into a loading state when I navigate between pages?

A: The entire screen is going into a loading state because the current implementation of the loading logic is global, meaning it affects the entire application. To resolve this issue, you need to update the loading logic to ensure that only the relevant child component shows the loading state.

Q: How can I use React Suspense to handle loading states?

A: React Suspense is a built-in feature in React that allows you to handle loading states and errors in a declarative way. To use React Suspense, you need to wrap your component with the Suspense component and provide a fallback component to render while the data is loading. For example:

import React from 'react';

function MyComponent() {
  const data = useFetch('/api/data');

  return (
    <div>
      {data ? (
        <div>Data: {data}</div>
      ) : (
        <div>Loading...</div>
      )}
    </div>
  );
}

function App() {
  return (
    <Suspense fallback={<div>Loading...</div>}>
      <MyComponent />
    </Suspense>
  );
}

Q: How can I use conditional rendering to handle loading states?

A: Conditional rendering is a technique where you use a boolean flag to conditionally render a component. To use conditional rendering to handle loading states, you need to create a boolean flag to indicate whether the component is in a loading state, and then use that flag to conditionally render the loading state. For example:

import React, { useState, useEffect } from 'react';

function MyComponent() {
  const [loading, setLoading] = useState(true);

  useEffect(() => {
    const fetchData = async () => {
      const data = await fetch('/api/data');
      const jsonData = await data.json();
      setLoading(false);
    };
    fetchData();
  }, []);

  if (loading) {
    return <div>Loading...</div>;
  }

  return <div>Data: {data}</div>;
}

Q: How can I use local loading states to handle loading states?

A: Local loading states are a technique where each component has its own loading state that is not affected by the loading state of other components. To use local loading states, you need to create a state management library such as Redux or MobX to manage the loading states of each component. For example:

import { createStore } from 'redux';

const store = createStore((state = { loading: false }, action) => {
  switch (action.type) {
    case 'LOADING':
      return { loading: true };
    case 'LOADED':
      return { loading: false };
    default:
      return state;
  }
});

function MyComponent() {
  const { loading } = store.getState();

  if (loading) {
    return <div>Loading...</div>;
  }

  return <div>Data: {data}</div>;
}

Q: How can I test the loading state of my application?

A: To test the loading state of your application, you need to create a test suite that covers the different scenarios of the loading state. For example, you can create a test that checks that the loading state is displayed when the data is loading, and another test that checks that the loading state is not displayed when the data is loaded. For example:

import React from 'react';
import { render, fireEvent, waitFor } from '@testing-library/react';
import MyComponent from './MyComponent';

describe('MyComponent', () => {
  it('renders loading state when data is loading', () => {
    const { getByText } = render(<MyComponent />);
    expect(getByText('Loading...')).toBeInTheDocument();
  });

  it('does not render loading state when data is loaded', async () => {
    const { getByText } = render(<MyComponent />);
    await waitFor(() => getByText('Data:'));
    expect(getByText('Loading...')).not.toBeInTheDocument();
  });
});

By following these best practices and using one of the approaches outlined above, you can ensure that your React application has a seamless loading state that does not disrupt the user's workflow.