JAVASCRIPT

Building a Custom useFetch Hook for API Calls

Create a reusable `useFetch` custom hook in React to encapsulate asynchronous API data fetching, efficiently handling loading, error states, and data with ease.

import { useState, useEffect } from 'react';

function useFetch(url) {
  const [data, setData] = useState(null);
  const [loading, setLoading] = useState(true);
  const [error, setError] = useState(null);

  useEffect(() => {
    const fetchData = async () => {
      try {
        const response = await fetch(url);
        if (!response.ok) {
          throw new Error(`HTTP error! status: ${response.status}`);
        }
        const result = await response.json();
        setData(result);
      } catch (err) {
        setError(err);
      } finally {
        setLoading(false);
      }
    };

    fetchData();
  }, [url]); // Re-run effect if URL changes

  return { data, loading, error };
}

// Example Usage:
// function UserProfile({ userId }) {
//   const { data, loading, error } = useFetch(`https://jsonplaceholder.typicode.com/users/${userId}`);

//   if (loading) return <div>Loading user...</div>;
//   if (error) return <div>Error: {error.message}</div>;
//   if (!data) return null;

//   return (
//     <div>
//       <h2>{data.name}</h2>
//       <p>Email: {data.email}</p>
//       <p>Phone: {data.phone}</p>
//     </div>
//   );
// }

How it works: This `useFetch` custom hook encapsulates the common logic for fetching data from an API. It manages three states: `data` for the fetched result, `loading` to indicate if the fetch is in progress, and `error` for any encountered issues. The `useEffect` hook triggers the asynchronous `fetchData` function when the component mounts or the `url` changes. It correctly handles network responses, JSON parsing, and error conditions, providing a clean interface to consume API data within any component.

Building a Custom useFetch Hook for API Calls

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