React Infinite Scrolling Libraries Comparison
react-window vs react-virtualized vs react-infinite-scroll-component vs react-infinite
1 Year
react-windowreact-virtualizedreact-infinite-scroll-componentreact-infiniteSimilar Packages:
What's React Infinite Scrolling Libraries?

Infinite scrolling libraries for React are designed to enhance user experience by loading content dynamically as the user scrolls down the page. This technique helps in improving performance and reducing load times by fetching data in smaller chunks rather than loading everything at once. These libraries provide various features such as virtualization, scrolling detection, and customizable loading indicators, making it easier for developers to implement infinite scrolling in their applications.

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react-window1,958,53615,999896 kB3a year agoMIT
react-virtualized929,46526,4502.2 MB32 years agoMIT
react-infinite-scroll-component688,8532,891-1934 years agoMIT
react-infinite14,8122,706243 kB102-BSD-3-Clause
Feature Comparison: react-window vs react-virtualized vs react-infinite-scroll-component vs react-infinite

Performance Optimization

  • react-window:

    react-window is designed for high performance with a minimal footprint, focusing on rendering only the visible items efficiently, making it an excellent choice for large lists.

  • react-virtualized:

    react-virtualized excels in performance optimization, rendering only the visible items in a list or table, which is crucial for applications dealing with large datasets. It minimizes DOM updates and improves rendering speed significantly.

  • react-infinite-scroll-component:

    This package offers a good balance of performance and ease of use, allowing for smooth scrolling experiences without heavy overhead, suitable for most applications.

  • react-infinite:

    react-infinite provides basic infinite scrolling capabilities but lacks advanced optimizations for rendering large datasets, making it less suitable for performance-critical applications.

Ease of Use

  • react-window:

    react-window is designed to be simple and intuitive, making it easy to use for developers who need a quick solution for rendering large lists without the complexity of react-virtualized.

  • react-virtualized:

    While powerful, react-virtualized has a steeper learning curve due to its extensive features and configuration options, which may require more time to master.

  • react-infinite-scroll-component:

    This library is user-friendly and flexible, providing a simple API that allows for easy integration into existing projects, making it ideal for developers of all skill levels.

  • react-infinite:

    react-infinite is straightforward to implement, requiring minimal configuration, making it suitable for developers looking for a quick solution without complex setup.

Feature Set

  • react-window:

    react-window focuses on providing essential features for virtualization in a lightweight manner, making it easy to implement while still offering good performance.

  • react-virtualized:

    react-virtualized comes with a comprehensive set of features for virtualization, including windowing, dynamic row heights, and more, making it suitable for complex data presentations.

  • react-infinite-scroll-component:

    This package provides a rich feature set, including support for both scroll and touch events, customizable loading indicators, and easy integration with existing components.

  • react-infinite:

    react-infinite offers basic infinite scrolling features but lacks advanced functionalities such as virtualization or customizable loading states, which may limit its use in complex applications.

Community and Support

  • react-window:

    react-window, being a lightweight alternative to react-virtualized, has a supportive community and is well-documented, making it easy for developers to find help and examples.

  • react-virtualized:

    With a large user base and extensive documentation, react-virtualized offers robust community support and a wealth of resources for troubleshooting and implementation.

  • react-infinite-scroll-component:

    This library has a growing community and active maintenance, providing good support and resources for developers.

  • react-infinite:

    react-infinite has a smaller community and less frequent updates, which may affect long-term support and the availability of resources.

Customization

  • react-window:

    react-window supports basic customization options, focusing on simplicity while still allowing developers to adjust styles and behaviors as needed.

  • react-virtualized:

    react-virtualized provides extensive customization capabilities, allowing developers to define custom renderers for rows and cells, making it highly adaptable for various use cases.

  • react-infinite-scroll-component:

    This library allows for a high degree of customization, enabling developers to tailor the loading indicators and scrolling behavior to fit their application's needs.

  • react-infinite:

    react-infinite offers limited customization options, which may restrict developers looking for specific behaviors or styles in their infinite scrolling implementation.

How to Choose: react-window vs react-virtualized vs react-infinite-scroll-component vs react-infinite
  • react-window:

    Choose react-window for a lightweight alternative to react-virtualized, focusing on simplicity and performance. It is ideal for rendering large lists with minimal overhead and is easier to integrate into existing projects.

  • react-virtualized:

    Select react-virtualized when you need advanced performance optimizations for rendering large lists or tables. It provides a comprehensive set of components for virtualization, allowing you to render only the visible items in the viewport, which can significantly improve performance.

  • react-infinite-scroll-component:

    Opt for react-infinite-scroll-component if you want a simple and flexible implementation of infinite scrolling that supports both scroll and touch events, making it suitable for mobile and desktop applications.

  • react-infinite:

    Choose react-infinite if you need a straightforward solution for infinite scrolling with basic features and don't require advanced virtualization or performance optimizations.

README for react-window

react-window

React components for efficiently rendering large lists and tabular data

If you like this project, 🎉 become a sponsor or ☕ buy me a coffee


React window works by only rendering part of a large data set (just enough to fill the viewport). This helps address some common performance bottlenecks:

  1. It reduces the amount of work (and time) required to render the initial view and to process updates.
  2. It reduces the memory footprint by avoiding over-allocation of DOM nodes.

Sponsors

The following wonderful companies have sponsored react-window:

Learn more about becoming a sponsor!

Install

# Yarn
yarn add react-window

# NPM
npm install --save react-window

Usage

Learn more at react-window.now.sh:

Related libraries

  • react-virtualized-auto-sizer: HOC that grows to fit all of the available space and passes the width and height values to its child.
  • react-window-infinite-loader: Helps break large data sets down into chunks that can be just-in-time loaded as they are scrolled into view. It can also be used to create infinite loading lists (e.g. Facebook or Twitter).
  • react-vtree: Lightweight and flexible solution to render large tree structures (e.g., file system).

Frequently asked questions

How is react-window different from react-virtualized?

I wrote react-virtualized several years ago. At the time, I was new to both React and the concept of windowing. Because of this, I made a few API decisions that I later came to regret. One of these was adding too many non-essential features and components. Once you add something to an open source project, removing it is pretty painful for users.

react-window is a complete rewrite of react-virtualized. I didn't try to solve as many problems or support as many use cases. Instead I focused on making the package smaller1 and faster. I also put a lot of thought into making the API (and documentation) as beginner-friendly as possible (with the caveat that windowing is still kind of an advanced use case).

If react-window provides the functionality your project needs, I would strongly recommend using it instead of react-virtualized. However if you need features that only react-virtualized provides, you have two options:

  1. Use react-virtualized. (It's still widely used by a lot of successful projects!)
  2. Create a component that decorates one of the react-window primitives and adds the functionality you need. You may even want to release this component to NPM (as its own, standalone package)! 🙂

1 - Adding a react-virtualized list to a CRA project increases the (gzipped) build size by ~33.5 KB. Adding a react-window list to a CRA project increases the (gzipped) build size by <2 KB.

Can a list or a grid fill 100% the width or height of a page?

Yes. I recommend using the react-virtualized-auto-sizer package:

screen shot 2019-03-07 at 7 29 08 pm

Here's a Code Sandbox demo.

Why is my list blank when I scroll?

If your list looks something like this...

...then you probably forgot to use the style parameter! Libraries like react-window work by absolutely positioning the list items (via an inline style), so don't forget to attach it to the DOM element you render!

screen shot 2019-03-07 at 7 21 48 pm

Can I lazy load data for my list?

Yes. I recommend using the react-window-infinite-loader package:

screen shot 2019-03-07 at 7 32 32 pm

Here's a Code Sandbox demo.

Can I attach custom properties or event handlers?

Yes, using the outerElementType prop.

Screen Shot 2019-03-12 at 8 58 09 AM

Here's a Code Sandbox demo.

Can I add padding to the top and bottom of a list?

Yes, although it requires a bit of inline styling.

Screen Shot 2019-06-02 at 8 38 18 PM

Here's a Code Sandbox demo.

Can I add gutter or padding between items?

Yes, although it requires a bit of inline styling.

Screen Shot 2019-03-26 at 6 33 56 PM

Here's a Code Sandbox demo.

Does this library support "sticky" items?

Yes, although it requires a small amount of user code. Here's a Code Sandbox demo.

License

MIT © bvaughn