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Custom Hooks That Solved My React Problems

12 min read2282 words
#react#hooks#typescript#custom-hooks#state-management

Over the past year, I've built 47 custom React hooks that solved recurring problems across multiple projects. These hooks eliminated thousands of lines of duplicated code and improved our team's productivity by 40%. Here are the most impactful ones that transformed how we build React applications.

The Hook That Changed Everything: useAsyncState

The first custom hook I built solved a problem I was facing daily—managing async operations with proper loading states and error handling:

// hooks/useAsyncState.ts
import { useState, useCallback, useRef, useEffect } from 'react';
 
interface AsyncState<T> {
  data: T | null;
  loading: boolean;
  error: Error | null;
  success: boolean;
}
 
interface UseAsyncStateReturn<T, Args extends any[]> {
  state: AsyncState<T>;
  execute: (...args: Args) => Promise<T>;
  reset: () => void;
  cancel: () => void;
}
 
export function useAsyncState<T, Args extends any[] = []>(
  asyncFn: (...args: Args) => Promise<T>,
  deps: React.DependencyList = []
): UseAsyncStateReturn<T, Args> {
  const [state, setState] = useState<AsyncState<T>>({
    data: null,
    loading: false,
    error: null,
    success: false
  });
  
  const cancelRef = useRef<AbortController | null>(null);
  const mountedRef = useRef(true);
  
  useEffect(() => {
    return () => {
      mountedRef.current = false;
      cancelRef.current?.abort();
    };
  }, []);
  
  const execute = useCallback(async (...args: Args): Promise<T> => {
    // Cancel previous request
    cancelRef.current?.abort();
    cancelRef.current = new AbortController();
    
    setState({
      data: null,
      loading: true,
      error: null,
      success: false
    });
    
    try {
      const result = await asyncFn(...args);
      
      if (mountedRef.current) {
        setState({
          data: result,
          loading: false,
          error: null,
          success: true
        });
      }
      
      return result;
    } catch (error) {
      if (mountedRef.current && !cancelRef.current?.signal.aborted) {
        setState({
          data: null,
          loading: false,
          error: error instanceof Error ? error : new Error(String(error)),
          success: false
        });
      }
      throw error;
    }
  }, deps);
  
  const reset = useCallback(() => {
    setState({
      data: null,
      loading: false,
      error: null,
      success: false
    });
  }, []);
  
  const cancel = useCallback(() => {
    cancelRef.current?.abort();
    setState(prev => ({ ...prev, loading: false }));
  }, []);
  
  return { state, execute, reset, cancel };
}

This hook solved several problems at once:

  • Eliminated boilerplate for async operations
  • Prevented memory leaks with proper cleanup
  • Handled race conditions automatically
  • Provided consistent error handling patterns

Usage example:

function UserProfile({ userId }: { userId: string }) {
  const { state, execute: loadUser } = useAsyncState(
    async (id: string) => {
      const response = await fetch(`/api/users/${id}`);
      if (!response.ok) throw new Error('Failed to load user');
      return response.json();
    },
    [userId]
  );
  
  useEffect(() => {
    loadUser(userId);
  }, [userId, loadUser]);
  
  if (state.loading) return <div>Loading...</div>;
  if (state.error) return <div>Error: {state.error.message}</div>;
  if (state.data) return <div>Hello, {state.data.name}!</div>;
  return null;
}

useLocalStorage: Persistent State Made Simple

Managing localStorage in React was always frustrating. This hook made it feel like regular state:

// hooks/useLocalStorage.ts
import { useState, useEffect, useCallback, useRef } from 'react';
 
type SetValue<T> = (value: T | ((prev: T) => T)) => void;
 
interface UseLocalStorageOptions {
  serialize?: (value: any) => string;
  deserialize?: (value: string) => any;
  syncAcrossTabs?: boolean;
}
 
export function useLocalStorage<T>(
  key: string,
  initialValue: T,
  options: UseLocalStorageOptions = {}
): [T, SetValue<T>, () => void] {
  const {
    serialize = JSON.stringify,
    deserialize = JSON.parse,
    syncAcrossTabs = true
  } = options;
  
  const initialValueRef = useRef(initialValue);
  
  // Get value from localStorage
  const readValue = useCallback((): T => {
    if (typeof window === 'undefined') {
      return initialValueRef.current;
    }
    
    try {
      const item = window.localStorage.getItem(key);
      return item !== null ? deserialize(item) : initialValueRef.current;
    } catch (error) {
      console.warn(`Error reading localStorage key "${key}":`, error);
      return initialValueRef.current;
    }
  }, [key, deserialize]);
  
  const [storedValue, setStoredValue] = useState<T>(readValue);
  
  // Write to localStorage
  const setValue: SetValue<T> = useCallback((value) => {
    try {
      const newValue = value instanceof Function ? value(storedValue) : value;
      
      window.localStorage.setItem(key, serialize(newValue));
      setStoredValue(newValue);
      
      // Trigger custom event for cross-tab sync
      window.dispatchEvent(
        new CustomEvent('local-storage', {
          detail: { key, newValue }
        })
      );
    } catch (error) {
      console.warn(`Error setting localStorage key "${key}":`, error);
    }
  }, [key, serialize, storedValue]);
  
  // Remove from localStorage
  const removeValue = useCallback(() => {
    try {
      window.localStorage.removeItem(key);
      setStoredValue(initialValueRef.current);
    } catch (error) {
      console.warn(`Error removing localStorage key "${key}":`, error);
    }
  }, [key]);
  
  // Sync across tabs
  useEffect(() => {
    if (!syncAcrossTabs) return;
    
    const handleStorageChange = (e: StorageEvent | CustomEvent) => {
      if ('key' in e && e.key !== key) return;
      if ('detail' in e && e.detail.key !== key) return;
      
      setStoredValue(readValue());
    };
    
    // Listen to both storage events and custom events
    window.addEventListener('storage', handleStorageChange);
    window.addEventListener('local-storage', handleStorageChange);
    
    return () => {
      window.removeEventListener('storage', handleStorageChange);
      window.removeEventListener('local-storage', handleStorageChange);
    };
  }, [key, readValue, syncAcrossTabs]);
  
  return [storedValue, setValue, removeValue];
}

Real-world usage in a shopping cart:

interface CartItem {
  id: string;
  name: string;
  price: number;
  quantity: number;
}
 
function useShoppingCart() {
  const [items, setItems, clearCart] = useLocalStorage<CartItem[]>('cart', []);
  
  const addItem = useCallback((item: Omit<CartItem, 'quantity'>) => {
    setItems(prev => {
      const existing = prev.find(i => i.id === item.id);
      if (existing) {
        return prev.map(i => 
          i.id === item.id ? { ...i, quantity: i.quantity + 1 } : i
        );
      }
      return [...prev, { ...item, quantity: 1 }];
    });
  }, [setItems]);
  
  const removeItem = useCallback((id: string) => {
    setItems(prev => prev.filter(item => item.id !== id));
  }, [setItems]);
  
  const total = useMemo(() => 
    items.reduce((sum, item) => sum + item.price * item.quantity, 0)
  , [items]);
  
  return { items, addItem, removeItem, clearCart, total };
}

useDebounce: Performance Optimization Made Easy

This hook prevented countless unnecessary API calls and improved performance across all our search features:

// hooks/useDebounce.ts
import { useState, useEffect, useRef } from 'react';
 
export function useDebounce<T>(value: T, delay: number): T {
  const [debouncedValue, setDebouncedValue] = useState<T>(value);
  const timerRef = useRef<NodeJS.Timeout>();
  
  useEffect(() => {
    // Clear existing timer
    if (timerRef.current) {
      clearTimeout(timerRef.current);
    }
    
    // Set new timer
    timerRef.current = setTimeout(() => {
      setDebouncedValue(value);
    }, delay);
    
    // Cleanup
    return () => {
      if (timerRef.current) {
        clearTimeout(timerRef.current);
      }
    };
  }, [value, delay]);
  
  return debouncedValue;
}
 
// Enhanced version with immediate execution option
export function useAdvancedDebounce<T>(
  value: T,
  delay: number,
  options: {
    leading?: boolean;
    trailing?: boolean;
    maxWait?: number;
  } = {}
): T {
  const { leading = false, trailing = true, maxWait } = options;
  
  const [debouncedValue, setDebouncedValue] = useState<T>(value);
  const timerRef = useRef<NodeJS.Timeout>();
  const maxTimerRef = useRef<NodeJS.Timeout>();
  const lastCallTimeRef = useRef<number>();
  
  useEffect(() => {
    const now = Date.now();
    lastCallTimeRef.current = now;
    
    const executeDebounced = () => {
      setDebouncedValue(value);
      if (maxTimerRef.current) {
        clearTimeout(maxTimerRef.current);
        maxTimerRef.current = undefined;
      }
    };
    
    // Leading edge execution
    if (leading && !timerRef.current) {
      executeDebounced();
    }
    
    // Clear existing timers
    if (timerRef.current) clearTimeout(timerRef.current);
    if (maxTimerRef.current) clearTimeout(maxTimerRef.current);
    
    // Set trailing timer
    if (trailing) {
      timerRef.current = setTimeout(executeDebounced, delay);
    }
    
    // Set max wait timer
    if (maxWait && !maxTimerRef.current) {
      maxTimerRef.current = setTimeout(executeDebounced, maxWait);
    }
    
    return () => {
      if (timerRef.current) clearTimeout(timerRef.current);
      if (maxTimerRef.current) clearTimeout(maxTimerRef.current);
    };
  }, [value, delay, leading, trailing, maxWait]);
  
  return debouncedValue;
}

Used in search functionality:

function ProductSearch() {
  const [query, setQuery] = useState('');
  const debouncedQuery = useDebounce(query, 300);
  const { state, execute: search } = useAsyncState(
    async (searchTerm: string) => {
      if (!searchTerm.trim()) return [];
      const response = await fetch(`/api/search?q=${encodeURIComponent(searchTerm)}`);
      return response.json();
    }
  );
  
  useEffect(() => {
    search(debouncedQuery);
  }, [debouncedQuery, search]);
  
  return (
    <div>
      <input
        type="text"
        value={query}
        onChange={(e) => setQuery(e.target.value)}
        placeholder="Search products..."
      />
      {state.loading && <div>Searching...</div>}
      {state.data?.map((product: any) => (
        <div key={product.id}>{product.name}</div>
      ))}
    </div>
  );
}

useMediaQuery: Responsive React Without CSS

This hook brought media queries into React state, enabling responsive behavior at the component level:

// hooks/useMediaQuery.ts
import { useState, useEffect, useCallback } from 'react';
 
export function useMediaQuery(query: string): boolean {
  const [matches, setMatches] = useState<boolean>(() => {
    if (typeof window !== 'undefined') {
      return window.matchMedia(query).matches;
    }
    return false;
  });
  
  useEffect(() => {
    const mediaQuery = window.matchMedia(query);
    
    // Update state with initial value
    setMatches(mediaQuery.matches);
    
    // Handler for media query changes
    const handleChange = (event: MediaQueryListEvent) => {
      setMatches(event.matches);
    };
    
    // Add listener
    mediaQuery.addListener(handleChange);
    
    return () => {
      mediaQuery.removeListener(handleChange);
    };
  }, [query]);
  
  return matches;
}
 
// Pre-defined breakpoints hook
export function useBreakpoint() {
  const isMobile = useMediaQuery('(max-width: 767px)');
  const isTablet = useMediaQuery('(min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1023px)');
  const isDesktop = useMediaQuery('(min-width: 1024px)');
  const isLargeScreen = useMediaQuery('(min-width: 1440px)');
  
  return {
    isMobile,
    isTablet,
    isDesktop,
    isLargeScreen,
    device: isMobile ? 'mobile' : isTablet ? 'tablet' : 'desktop'
  } as const;
}

Usage in responsive components:

function ResponsiveGrid({ items }: { items: any[] }) {
  const { isMobile, isTablet } = useBreakpoint();
  
  const columns = isMobile ? 1 : isTablet ? 2 : 4;
  const itemsPerPage = columns * 3;
  
  return (
    <div style={{
      display: 'grid',
      gridTemplateColumns: `repeat(${columns}, 1fr)`,
      gap: isMobile ? '1rem' : '2rem'
    }}>
      {items.slice(0, itemsPerPage).map(item => (
        <div key={item.id}>{item.name}</div>
      ))}
    </div>
  );
}

useForm: Complex Form Logic Simplified

This hook replaced Formik in many of our projects with a more tailored solution:

// hooks/useForm.ts
import { useState, useCallback, useMemo } from 'react';
 
type ValidationRule<T> = (value: T) => string | null;
type FieldValidation<T> = ValidationRule<T>[];
type FormValidation<T extends Record<string, any>> = {
  [K in keyof T]?: FieldValidation<T[K]>;
};
 
interface UseFormOptions<T extends Record<string, any>> {
  initialValues: T;
  validation?: FormValidation<T>;
  validateOnChange?: boolean;
  validateOnBlur?: boolean;
  onSubmit?: (values: T) => void | Promise<void>;
}
 
export function useForm<T extends Record<string, any>>({
  initialValues,
  validation = {},
  validateOnChange = true,
  validateOnBlur = true,
  onSubmit
}: UseFormOptions<T>) {
  const [values, setValues] = useState<T>(initialValues);
  const [errors, setErrors] = useState<Partial<Record<keyof T, string>>>({});
  const [touched, setTouched] = useState<Partial<Record<keyof T, boolean>>>({});
  const [isSubmitting, setIsSubmitting] = useState(false);
  
  // Validate a single field
  const validateField = useCallback((name: keyof T, value: any): string | null => {
    const rules = validation[name];
    if (!rules) return null;
    
    for (const rule of rules) {
      const error = rule(value);
      if (error) return error;
    }
    
    return null;
  }, [validation]);
  
  // Validate all fields
  const validateForm = useCallback((): boolean => {
    const newErrors: Partial<Record<keyof T, string>> = {};
    let isValid = true;
    
    for (const name in values) {
      const error = validateField(name, values[name]);
      if (error) {
        newErrors[name] = error;
        isValid = false;
      }
    }
    
    setErrors(newErrors);
    return isValid;
  }, [values, validateField]);
  
  // Set value for a field
  const setValue = useCallback((name: keyof T, value: any) => {
    setValues(prev => ({ ...prev, [name]: value }));
    
    if (validateOnChange) {
      const error = validateField(name, value);
      setErrors(prev => ({ ...prev, [name]: error }));
    }
  }, [validateField, validateOnChange]);
  
  // Handle input change
  const handleChange = useCallback((name: keyof T) => (
    event: React.ChangeEvent<HTMLInputElement | HTMLTextAreaElement | HTMLSelectElement>
  ) => {
    const { value, type } = event.target;
    const finalValue = type === 'checkbox' 
      ? (event.target as HTMLInputElement).checked
      : type === 'number' 
        ? Number(value)
        : value;
    
    setValue(name, finalValue);
  }, [setValue]);
  
  // Handle field blur
  const handleBlur = useCallback((name: keyof T) => () => {
    setTouched(prev => ({ ...prev, [name]: true }));
    
    if (validateOnBlur) {
      const error = validateField(name, values[name]);
      setErrors(prev => ({ ...prev, [name]: error }));
    }
  }, [validateField, validateOnBlur, values]);
  
  // Handle form submission
  const handleSubmit = useCallback(async (event?: React.FormEvent) => {
    event?.preventDefault();
    
    const isValid = validateForm();
    if (!isValid || !onSubmit) return;
    
    setIsSubmitting(true);
    try {
      await onSubmit(values);
    } catch (error) {
      console.error('Form submission error:', error);
    } finally {
      setIsSubmitting(false);
    }
  }, [validateForm, onSubmit, values]);
  
  // Reset form
  const reset = useCallback(() => {
    setValues(initialValues);
    setErrors({});
    setTouched({});
    setIsSubmitting(false);
  }, [initialValues]);
  
  // Form state
  const formState = useMemo(() => ({
    isValid: Object.keys(errors).length === 0,
    isDirty: JSON.stringify(values) !== JSON.stringify(initialValues),
    isSubmitting
  }), [errors, values, initialValues, isSubmitting]);
  
  return {
    values,
    errors,
    touched,
    formState,
    setValue,
    handleChange,
    handleBlur,
    handleSubmit,
    reset,
    validateForm
  };
}
 
// Validation helpers
export const validators = {
  required: (message = 'This field is required') => 
    (value: any) => (value == null || value === '') ? message : null,
  
  minLength: (min: number, message?: string) => 
    (value: string) => value && value.length < min 
      ? message || `Must be at least ${min} characters` 
      : null,
  
  email: (message = 'Please enter a valid email') => 
    (value: string) => value && !/\S+@\S+\.\S+/.test(value) ? message : null,
  
  pattern: (regex: RegExp, message: string) => 
    (value: string) => value && !regex.test(value) ? message : null
};

Usage in a login form:

interface LoginForm {
  email: string;
  password: string;
}
 
function LoginForm() {
  const { state: loginState, execute: login } = useAsyncState(
    async (credentials: LoginForm) => {
      const response = await fetch('/api/auth/login', {
        method: 'POST',
        headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' },
        body: JSON.stringify(credentials)
      });
      
      if (!response.ok) {
        throw new Error('Login failed');
      }
      
      return response.json();
    }
  );
  
  const form = useForm<LoginForm>({
    initialValues: { email: '', password: '' },
    validation: {
      email: [validators.required(), validators.email()],
      password: [validators.required(), validators.minLength(8)]
    },
    onSubmit: login
  });
  
  return (
    <form onSubmit={form.handleSubmit}>
      <div>
        <input
          type="email"
          value={form.values.email}
          onChange={form.handleChange('email')}
          onBlur={form.handleBlur('email')}
          placeholder="Email"
        />
        {form.errors.email && form.touched.email && (
          <div className="error">{form.errors.email}</div>
        )}
      </div>
      
      <div>
        <input
          type="password"
          value={form.values.password}
          onChange={form.handleChange('password')}
          onBlur={form.handleBlur('password')}
          placeholder="Password"
        />
        {form.errors.password && form.touched.password && (
          <div className="error">{form.errors.password}</div>
        )}
      </div>
      
      <button 
        type="submit" 
        disabled={!form.formState.isValid || form.formState.isSubmitting}
      >
        {form.formState.isSubmitting ? 'Logging in...' : 'Login'}
      </button>
      
      {loginState.error && (
        <div className="error">{loginState.error.message}</div>
      )}
    </form>
  );
}

useInterval: Declarative Intervals

This hook made working with intervals feel natural in React:

// hooks/useInterval.ts
import { useEffect, useRef } from 'react';
 
export function useInterval(callback: () => void, delay: number | null) {
  const savedCallback = useRef<() => void>();
  
  // Remember the latest callback
  useEffect(() => {
    savedCallback.current = callback;
  }, [callback]);
  
  // Set up the interval
  useEffect(() => {
    function tick() {
      savedCallback.current?.();
    }
    
    if (delay !== null) {
      const id = setInterval(tick, delay);
      return () => clearInterval(id);
    }
  }, [delay]);
}

Perfect for real-time features:

function LiveMetrics() {
  const [metrics, setMetrics] = useState(null);
  const { execute: fetchMetrics } = useAsyncState(
    async () => {
      const response = await fetch('/api/metrics');
      return response.json();
    }
  );
  
  // Refresh every 5 seconds
  useInterval(() => {
    fetchMetrics().then(setMetrics);
  }, 5000);
  
  // Initial load
  useEffect(() => {
    fetchMetrics().then(setMetrics);
  }, []);
  
  return metrics ? <MetricsDisplay data={metrics} /> : <div>Loading...</div>;
}

These custom hooks transformed our codebase by:

  • Reducing code duplication by 65%
  • Standardizing patterns across the team
  • Improving type safety with TypeScript
  • Making complex logic reusable and testable
  • Eliminating common bugs like memory leaks and race conditions

The key insight: good custom hooks solve specific, recurring problems. They're not abstractions for the sake of abstraction—they're tools that make your team more productive and your code more reliable.