React Hooks

Hooks were added to React in version 16.8.

Hooks allow function components to have access to state and other React features. Because of this, class components are generally no longer needed.

Although Hooks generally replace class components, there are no plans to remove classes from React.

What is a Hook?

Hooks allow us to "hook" into React features such as state and lifecycle methods.

Example:

Here is an example of a Hook. Don't worry if it doesn't make sense. We will go into more detail in the next section.

import React, { useState } from "react";
import ReactDOM from "react-dom/client";

function FavoriteColor() {
  const [color, setColor] = useState("red");

  return (
    <>
      <h1>My favorite color is {color}!</h1>
      <button
        type="button"
        onClick={() => setColor("blue")}
      >Blue</button>
      <button
        type="button"
        onClick={() => setColor("red")}
      >Red</button>
      <button
        type="button"
        onClick={() => setColor("pink")}
      >Pink</button>
      <button
        type="button"
        onClick={() => setColor("green")}
      >Green</button>
    </>
  );
}

const root = ReactDOM.createRoot(document.getElementById('root'));
root.render(<FavoriteColor />);

Run Example »

You must import Hooks from react.

Here we are using the useState Hook to keep track of the application state.

State generally refers to application data or properties that need to be tracked.