Ensure a Smooth User Experience: Scroll to Top on Every Transition in React Router

2024-07-27

In single-page applications (SPAs) built with React and react-router, transitions between routes (different parts of the application) often leave the user scrolled down on the page. This can be disorienting and lead to a poor user experience.

Solution: ScrollToTop Component:

Import Necessary Hooks:
- useEffect from react: Manages side effects like DOM manipulation in functional components.
- useLocation from react-router-dom: Provides information about the current URL path.
```
import { useEffect, useLocation } from 'react';
```
- It will be a simple functional component that triggers scrolling to the top on route changes.
```
const ScrollToTop = () => {
    const { pathname } = useLocation(); // Extract current path

    useEffect(() => {
        window.scrollTo(0, 0); // Scroll to top on path change
    }, [pathname]); // Dependency array: run effect only on path changes

    return null; // No JSX needed, as it's purely for side effects
};
```
- Explanation:
  - The useLocation hook retrieves the current URL path (pathname).
  - The useEffect hook runs an effect (scrolling) whenever the pathname dependency in the array changes.
  - Inside the effect, window.scrollTo(0, 0) scrolls the window vertically to the top (0, 0 coordinates).
  - The component returns null because it doesn't render any JSX, focusing solely on the side effect of scrolling.

Integrate ScrollToTop:

Wrap your application's root component (typically App.js) with the ScrollToTop component. This ensures it's rendered throughout the app.

import React from 'react';
import { BrowserRouter as Router, Routes, Route } from 'react-router-dom';
import App from './App'; // Your main application component
import ScrollToTop from './ScrollToTop'; // Your custom ScrollToTop component

const Root = () => {
    return (
        <Router>
            <ScrollToTop /> {/* Wrap App with ScrollToTop */}
            <Routes>
                <Route path="/*" element={<App />} />
                {/* Add more routes as needed */}
            </Routes>
        </Router>
    );
};

export default Root;

Key Points:

This approach ensures smooth scrolling to the top whenever the route changes in your React application.
The useEffect hook effectively manages the side effect of scrolling based on route transitions.

src/
  App.js
  ScrollToTop.js
  index.js

ScrollToTop.js:

import { useEffect, useLocation } from 'react';

const ScrollToTop = () => {
  const { pathname } = useLocation();

  useEffect(() => {
    const timeoutId = setTimeout(() => {
      window.scrollTo(0, 0); // Scroll to top with a slight delay
    }, 0); // Schedule scrolling for after potential rendering

    return () => clearTimeout(timeoutId); // Cleanup on unmount
  }, [pathname]);

  return null; // No JSX needed, as it's purely for side effects
};

export default ScrollToTop;

App.js (your main application component):

import React from 'react';
// ... other imports for your app's functionality

const App = () => {
  // ... your app's JSX and logic
  return (
    <div>
      {/* Your app's content */}
    </div>
  );
};

export default App;

index.js (entry point):

import React from 'react';
import ReactDOM from 'react-dom/client';
import { BrowserRouter as Router, Routes, Route } from 'react-router-dom';
import App from './App';
import ScrollToTop from './ScrollToTop';

const root = ReactDOM.createRoot(document.getElementById('root'));
root.render(
  <Router>
    <ScrollToTop />
    <Routes>
      <Route path="/*" element={<App />} /> {/* Add more routes as needed */}
    </Routes>
  </Router>
);

Explanation:

Slight Delay: The useEffect hook now includes a setTimeout with a 0-millisecond delay. This minor delay helps ensure that the scrolling happens after any potential rendering updates, preventing unexpected jumps.
Cleanup Function: A cleanup function is added to the useEffect hook using a return statement. This ensures that any pending timeouts are cleared when the component unmounts, preventing memory leaks.

Remember:

Replace // ... other imports in App.js with your actual imports.
Update Route paths in index.js to match your application's routes.

React Router v6 offers a built-in ScrollRestoration component that simplifies scrolling behavior management. You can wrap your application's root component with it to automatically restore scroll position to its initial state on transitions:

import { BrowserRouter as Router, Routes, Route, ScrollRestoration } from 'react-router-dom';

// ... rest of your application code

const Root = () => {
  return (
    <Router>
      <ScrollRestoration /> {/* Wrap app with ScrollRestoration */}
      <Routes>
        <Route path="/*" element={<App />} />
        {/* Add more routes as needed */}
      </Routes>
    </Router>
  );
};

This approach is the most lightweight and recommended for newer React Router versions.

Custom Hook for Granular Control:

If you need more control over scrolling behavior, you can create a custom hook that takes an optional shouldScrollToTop prop:

import { useEffect, useMemo, useRef } from 'react';
import { useNavigate } from 'react-router-dom';

const useScrollToTop = (shouldScrollToTop = true) => {
  const navigate = useNavigate();
  const prevPathRef = useRef(null);

  useEffect(() => {
    const handleLocationChange = () => {
      if (shouldScrollToTop) {
        window.scrollTo(0, 0);
      }
    };

    const prevPath = navigate.pathname;
    prevPathRef.current = prevPath;

    window.addEventListener('popstate', handleLocationChange);

    return () => window.removeEventListener('popstate', handleLocationChange);
  }, [shouldScrollToTop, navigate]);

  return useMemo(() => ({ scrollToTop: () => window.scrollTo(0, 0) }), []);
};

export default useScrollToTop;

Then, use the hook in your components and conditionally trigger scrolling based on the shouldScrollToTop prop:

import useScrollToTop from './useScrollToTop';

const MyComponent = () => {
  const { scrollToTop } = useScrollToTop(false); // Don't scroll on this component

  // ... component logic

  const handleClick = () => {
    scrollToTop(); // Manually trigger scrolling if needed
  };

  return (
    <div>
      {/* ... component content */}
      <button onClick={handleClick}>Scroll to Top</button>
    </div>
  );
};

This approach provides flexibility to disable scrolling on specific components while offering manual control through the scrollToTop function.

Choosing the Right Method:

If you simply want scrolling on every route transition, use ScrollRestoration (React Router v6+).
For more granular control and the ability to disable scrolling on specific components, create a custom hook.
The ScrollToTop component approach described earlier is a good balance for most cases.

javascript reactjs react-router