React Virtualization and Infinite Scrolling Libraries
React Virtualization and Infinite Scrolling Libraries are tools that help render large lists or grids of items efficiently in React applications. These libraries use techniques like virtualization, which only renders the items currently visible in the viewport, and infinite scrolling, which loads more items as the user scrolls down. This approach significantly improves performance and reduces memory usage, making it ideal for applications with long lists or data-heavy interfaces. Popular libraries in this space include react-virtualized, react-window, and react-infinite, each offering unique features and optimizations for handling large datasets in a React-friendly way.
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Package
Downloads
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react-window
4,082,682
17,003
206 kB
1
a month ago
MIT
react-virtualized
1,397,107
27,045
2.24 MB
1
a year ago
MIT
react-list
424,887
1,973
34.9 kB
71
a year ago
MIT
react-tiny-virtual-list
97,294
2,496
-
54
7 years ago
MIT
react-infinite
10,184
2,692
243 kB
102
-
BSD-3-Clause
Feature Comparison: react-window vs react-virtualized vs react-list vs react-tiny-virtual-list vs react-infinite
Virtualization Technique
react-window:
react-window is a lightweight library for virtualization that focuses on simplicity and performance. It renders only the visible items in a list or grid, reducing the number of DOM nodes and improving rendering speed. It is designed to be easy to use while providing efficient virtualization for large datasets.
react-virtualized:
react-virtualized provides a comprehensive set of components for virtualization, including support for fixed and dynamic heights, grids, and tables. It is highly customizable and can handle complex layouts, making it suitable for a wide range of applications that require advanced virtualization techniques.
react-list:
react-list supports virtualization by rendering only the visible items in the list, which reduces the number of DOM nodes and improves performance. It can handle dynamic item heights, making it versatile for lists with varying content sizes.
react-tiny-virtual-list:
react-tiny-virtual-list uses virtualization to render only the items that are currently visible in the viewport. It is designed to be lightweight and efficient, minimizing the number of rendered items to improve performance, especially in large lists.
react-infinite:
react-infinite implements infinite scrolling by loading more items as the user scrolls down. It does not use virtualization, which means all items are rendered in the DOM, but it efficiently manages the loading of additional items to create a seamless scrolling experience.
Bundle Size
react-window:
react-window is a much smaller and more efficient alternative to react-virtualized, offering similar virtualization capabilities with a significantly reduced bundle size. This makes it ideal for modern applications that prioritize performance and quick load times.
react-virtualized:
react-virtualized is a feature-rich library, which means it comes with a larger bundle size compared to simpler solutions. However, the trade-off is worth it for applications that need advanced virtualization features and customization options.
react-list:
react-list is a lightweight library that adds minimal overhead to your bundle. It is designed to be efficient while providing the necessary features for virtualization and dynamic item rendering.
react-tiny-virtual-list:
react-tiny-virtual-list is designed to be ultra-lightweight, making it an excellent choice for projects where bundle size is a critical concern. Its minimalistic design ensures that you get virtualization without adding unnecessary weight to your application.
react-infinite:
react-infinite has a moderate bundle size, but it is not optimized for virtualization, which means it may not be the best choice for performance-sensitive applications with extremely large lists.
Dynamic Item Heights
react-window:
react-window supports dynamic item heights, but like react-tiny-virtual-list, it requires you to provide a way to calculate the height of each item. This feature allows it to efficiently render lists with varying item sizes while keeping the virtualization performance intact.
react-virtualized:
react-virtualized provides robust support for dynamic item heights, allowing you to create lists and grids where items can have different sizes. It includes components that can handle both fixed and variable heights, making it highly versatile for complex layouts.
react-list:
react-list supports dynamic item heights, allowing it to handle lists where items may have different sizes. This feature makes it more flexible and suitable for a wider range of use cases, including lists with images, text, or other variable content.
react-tiny-virtual-list:
react-tiny-virtual-list supports dynamic item heights, but it requires you to provide a function that calculates the height of each item. This allows it to accurately render items with varying heights while still benefiting from virtualization.
react-infinite:
react-infinite does not handle dynamic item heights natively, as it focuses on infinite scrolling rather than virtualization. This can be a limitation if your list items have varying heights and you need precise rendering.
Ease of Integration: Code Examples
react-window:
react-window is designed for easy integration, with a straightforward API that makes it simple to implement virtualization in your lists. It is well-suited for developers who want a quick and efficient solution without a steep learning curve. Example:
react-virtualized may require more time to integrate due to its complexity and the wide range of features it offers. However, it is well-documented, and once you understand its components, it provides great flexibility and performance. Example:
react-list is easy to integrate into existing projects, especially if you need a quick solution for lists with varying heights. Its API is simple, and it works well with both static and dynamic data. Example:
Integrating react-tiny-virtual-list is quick and easy, thanks to its simple API and minimal configuration requirements. It is particularly well-suited for projects that need virtualization without a lot of complexity. Example:
Integrating react-infinite is straightforward, especially for simple lists. Its API is easy to understand, and it requires minimal setup to get infinite scrolling working. However, it may require additional work to handle loading states and data fetching. Example:
How to Choose: react-window vs react-virtualized vs react-list vs react-tiny-virtual-list vs react-infinite
react-window:
Select react-window if you want a lightweight and modern alternative to react-virtualized with a simpler API. It is designed for performance and ease of use, making it a great choice for projects that need efficient virtualization without the complexity of a larger library.
react-virtualized:
Choose react-virtualized if you need a comprehensive solution with a wide range of features for virtualizing lists, tables, and grids. It is highly customizable and suitable for complex applications that require advanced virtualization techniques and support for both fixed and dynamic item sizes.
react-list:
Select react-list if you want a lightweight library that supports both virtualization and dynamic item heights. It is ideal for lists where items may have varying heights, and you need a flexible solution without a lot of overhead.
react-tiny-virtual-list:
Opt for react-tiny-virtual-list if you need a minimalistic and highly performant virtualized list component. It is designed for simplicity and efficiency, making it a great choice for projects where you want to keep the bundle size small while still benefiting from virtualization.
react-infinite:
Choose react-infinite if you need a simple solution for infinite scrolling with support for loading more items as the user scrolls. It is easy to integrate and works well for lists where you can fetch data in chunks.
Popular Comparisons
Similar Npm Packages to react-window
react-window is a lightweight library for efficiently rendering large lists and tabular data in React applications. It provides a simple API for creating virtualized lists, allowing developers to render only the visible items in a list, which significantly improves performance and reduces memory consumption. This is particularly useful for applications that need to display long lists of items without compromising on performance.
While react-window is a powerful solution for virtualization, there are several alternatives in the React ecosystem that also provide similar functionalities. Here are a few noteworthy options:
react-infinite is a library designed for creating infinite scrolling lists in React applications. It allows developers to load more items as the user scrolls down, making it ideal for scenarios where data is fetched in chunks. react-infinite is particularly useful for applications that require continuous loading of data without pagination, providing a smooth user experience.
react-list is another library for rendering large lists in React. It offers a simple API for creating virtualized lists and supports features like dynamic item heights and variable item sizes. react-list is a good choice for developers who need flexibility in rendering lists with varying item dimensions while maintaining performance.
react-virtual is a lightweight library that provides a simple way to implement virtual scrolling in React applications. It focuses on performance and ease of use, allowing developers to create virtualized lists with minimal configuration. If you are looking for a straightforward solution to handle large lists without the overhead of more complex libraries, react-virtual is a great option.
react-virtualized is a comprehensive library for efficiently rendering large lists, tables, and grids in React. It offers a wide range of features, including support for fixed headers, cell rendering, and dynamic row heights. While it is more feature-rich than react-window, it may also come with a steeper learning curve. If your application requires advanced virtualization features, react-virtualized is worth considering.
react-window-infinite-loader is an extension of react-window that adds infinite loading capabilities to virtualized lists. It allows developers to easily implement infinite scrolling while benefiting from the performance optimizations of react-window. This library is perfect for applications that need both virtualization and infinite scrolling in a seamless manner.
react-virtualized is a powerful library for efficiently rendering large lists and tabular data in React applications. It provides a set of components that help optimize rendering performance by only displaying the items that are currently visible in the viewport, thereby reducing the number of DOM nodes and improving overall performance. While react-virtualized is a popular choice for virtualization, there are several alternatives available in the React ecosystem. Here are a few noteworthy options:
react-infinite is a library designed for creating infinite scrolling lists in React applications. It allows developers to easily implement a scrolling mechanism that loads more items as the user scrolls down. While it focuses on infinite scrolling, it does not provide the same level of virtualization as react-virtualized, making it suitable for scenarios where you want to load more data dynamically without the need for complex virtualization logic.
react-list is a lightweight library that provides a simple way to render large lists in React. It offers a virtualized list component that efficiently renders only the visible items, similar to react-virtualized. However, react-list is designed to be more straightforward and easier to use, making it a good choice for developers who want a simple solution for rendering large lists without the overhead of more complex libraries.
react-tiny-virtual-list is a minimalistic virtualized list component for React. It aims to provide a lightweight and efficient way to render large lists while maintaining a small bundle size. If you're looking for a simple and efficient solution for virtualizing lists without the additional features and complexity of larger libraries, react-tiny-virtual-list is an excellent option.
react-window is another lightweight library for rendering large lists and tabular data in React. It is a smaller and simpler alternative to react-virtualized, focusing on performance and ease of use. React-window provides a set of components for efficiently rendering lists and grids while keeping the API straightforward and intuitive. If you need a more minimalistic approach to virtualization, react-window is a great choice.
react-list is a React component designed for efficiently rendering large lists of items. It provides a simple API that allows developers to create scrollable lists with optimal performance, even when dealing with a significant number of items. By only rendering the items that are currently visible in the viewport, react-list helps to minimize the performance overhead associated with rendering large datasets.
While react-list is a solid choice for rendering lists, there are several alternatives in the React ecosystem that offer similar functionalities. Here are a few noteworthy options:
react-infinite-scroll-component is a popular library that enables infinite scrolling in React applications. It allows developers to load more items as the user scrolls down the page, providing a seamless experience for displaying large datasets. This component is easy to integrate and customize, making it a great choice for applications that require dynamic loading of content without pagination.
react-virtualized is a comprehensive library for efficiently rendering large lists and tabular data in React. It provides a wide range of components and utilities for virtualization, including support for fixed headers, variable row heights, and more. react-virtualized is particularly useful for applications that require advanced features and customization options for rendering large datasets, making it suitable for complex use cases.
react-window is a lightweight alternative to react-virtualized, designed specifically for rendering large lists and tabular data with minimal overhead. It offers a simpler API and focuses on performance, making it an excellent choice for developers who want to implement virtualization without the complexity of more extensive libraries. react-window is ideal for applications that need efficient rendering of large lists while maintaining a straightforward implementation.
react-tiny-virtual-list is a lightweight and efficient library for rendering large lists in React applications. It utilizes virtualization techniques to only render the items that are currently visible in the viewport, significantly improving performance and reducing memory usage. This is particularly useful for applications that need to display long lists of data, as it prevents the browser from being overwhelmed by rendering too many DOM elements at once.
While react-tiny-virtual-list is a great option for virtualizing lists, there are several alternatives in the React ecosystem that also provide similar functionalities. Here are a few noteworthy alternatives:
react-infinite-scroll-component is a library that allows developers to implement infinite scrolling in their applications easily. It provides a simple API for loading more data as the user scrolls down the page. Unlike traditional pagination, infinite scrolling enhances user experience by continuously loading content without requiring explicit user actions. This library is ideal for applications that need to display a continuous stream of data, such as social media feeds or image galleries.
react-virtualized is a comprehensive library that provides a set of components for efficiently rendering large lists and tabular data in React applications. It offers a wide range of features, including virtualization, dynamic row heights, and support for complex layouts. While it is more feature-rich than react-tiny-virtual-list, it may also come with a steeper learning curve. If your application requires advanced features and customization options for handling large datasets, react-virtualized is a powerful choice.
react-window is a smaller, simpler alternative to react-virtualized, designed specifically for rendering large lists and tabular data. It provides a minimalistic API and focuses on performance and ease of use. React-window is particularly well-suited for applications that need to display long lists without the overhead of more complex libraries. If you want a straightforward solution for virtualization without unnecessary complexity, react-window is an excellent option.
react-infinite is a React component that enables infinite scrolling functionality in applications. It allows developers to load more content as the user scrolls down the page, providing a seamless experience for displaying large datasets. While react-infinite is a popular choice for implementing infinite scrolling, there are several alternatives available in the React ecosystem. Here are a few noteworthy options:
react-infinite-scroll-component is a simple and flexible library for implementing infinite scrolling in React applications. It provides an easy-to-use API and allows developers to customize the loading behavior, threshold, and other parameters. This library is particularly useful for projects that require a straightforward implementation of infinite scrolling without the need for complex configurations. If you want a lightweight solution that integrates well with existing React components, react-infinite-scroll-component is an excellent choice.
react-virtualized is a powerful library for efficiently rendering large lists and tabular data in React applications. It provides a set of components that enable virtualization, which means only the visible items in a list are rendered, improving performance and reducing memory usage. While react-virtualized is not solely focused on infinite scrolling, it can be combined with infinite scrolling techniques to create highly performant applications that handle large datasets. If your application requires advanced features like sorting, filtering, and virtualization, react-virtualized is a robust option.
react-window is a lightweight alternative to react-virtualized, designed to provide similar functionality with a simpler API. It focuses on rendering large lists efficiently by only displaying the visible items in the viewport. Like react-virtualized, react-window can be used in conjunction with infinite scrolling to enhance performance when dealing with extensive data. If you are looking for a minimalistic solution that offers virtualization capabilities without the overhead of more complex libraries, react-window is a great fit.
react-window is a component library that helps render large lists of data quickly and without the performance problems that often go along with rendering a lot of data. It's used in a lot of places, from React DevTools to the Replay browser.
Support
If you like this project there are several ways to support it:
This component will receive an index and style prop by default.
Additionally it will receive prop values passed to rowProps.
ℹ️ The prop types for this component are exported as RowComponentProps
rowCount
Number of items to be rendered in the list.
rowHeight
Row height; the following formats are supported:
number of pixels (number)
percentage of the grid's current height (string)
function that returns the row height (in pixels) given an index and cellProps
dynamic row height cache returned by the useDynamicRowHeight hook
⚠️ Dynamic row heights are not as efficient as predetermined sizes.
It's recommended to provide your own height values if they can be determined ahead of time.
rowProps
Additional props to be passed to the row-rendering component.
List will automatically re-render rows when values in this object change.
⚠️ This object must not contain ariaAttributes, index, or style props.
Optional props
Name
Description
className
CSS class name.
style
Optional CSS properties.
The list of rows will fill the height defined by this style.
children
Additional content to be rendered within the list (above cells).
This property can be used to render things like overlays or tooltips.
defaultHeight
Default height of list for initial render.
This value is important for server rendering.
listRef
Ref used to interact with this component's imperative API.
This API has imperative methods for scrolling and a getter for the outermost DOM element.
ℹ️ The useListRef and useListCallbackRef hooks are exported for convenience use in TypeScript projects.
onResize
Callback notified when the List's outermost HTMLElement resizes.
This may be used to (re)scroll a row into view.
onRowsRendered
Callback notified when the range of visible rows changes.
overscanCount
How many additional rows to render outside of the visible area.
This can reduce visual flickering near the edges of a list when scrolling.
tagName
Can be used to override the root HTML element rendered by the List component.
The default value is "div", meaning that List renders an HTMLDivElement as its root.
⚠️ In most use cases the default ARIA roles are sufficient and this prop is not needed.
Grid
Required props
Name
Description
cellComponent
React component responsible for rendering a cell.
This component will receive an index and style prop by default.
Additionally it will receive prop values passed to cellProps.
ℹ️ The prop types for this component are exported as CellComponentProps
cellProps
Additional props to be passed to the cell-rendering component.
Grid will automatically re-render cells when values in this object change.
⚠️ This object must not contain ariaAttributes, columnIndex, rowIndex, or style props.
columnCount
Number of columns to be rendered in the grid.
columnWidth
Column width; the following formats are supported:
number of pixels (number)
percentage of the grid's current width (string)
function that returns the row width (in pixels) given an index and cellProps
rowCount
Number of rows to be rendered in the grid.
rowHeight
Row height; the following formats are supported:
number of pixels (number)
percentage of the grid's current height (string)
function that returns the row height (in pixels) given an index and cellProps
Optional CSS properties.
The grid of cells will fill the height and width defined by this style.
children
Additional content to be rendered within the grid (above cells).
This property can be used to render things like overlays or tooltips.
defaultHeight
Default height of grid for initial render.
This value is important for server rendering.
defaultWidth
Default width of grid for initial render.
This value is important for server rendering.
gridRef
Ref used to interact with this component's imperative API.
This API has imperative methods for scrolling and a getter for the outermost DOM element.
ℹ️ The useGridRef and useGridCallbackRef hooks are exported for convenience use in TypeScript projects.
onCellsRendered
Callback notified when the range of rendered cells changes.
onResize
Callback notified when the Grid's outermost HTMLElement resizes.
This may be used to (re)scroll a cell into view.
overscanCount
How many additional rows/columns to render outside of the visible area.
This can reduce visual flickering near the edges of a grid when scrolling.
tagName
Can be used to override the root HTML element rendered by the List component.
The default value is "div", meaning that List renders an HTMLDivElement as its root.
⚠️ In most use cases the default ARIA roles are sufficient and this prop is not needed.