PropTypes

PropTypes are a way to add more strict typing, validation, and default values to props in React.

Example

We have a Greeting component that takes in a prop called name:

Greeting.jsx

import React from 'react';

const Greeting = (name = 'Bob') => {
  return (
    <h1>Hello, {this.props.name}</h1>
  );
}

With PropTypes, we can add typing and validation. Then during compilation, we will throw errors before moving any further.

import React from 'react';
import PropTypes from 'prop-types';

const Greeting = (name = 'Bob') => {
  return (
    <h1>Hello, {this.props.name}</h1>
  );
}

Greeting.propTypes = {
  name: PropTypes.string
};

Multiple types can be specified for a prop also, using oneOfType:

name: PropTypes.oneOfType([
  PropTypes.string,
  PropTypes.number
])

PropTypes still exist for functional components, but for defaultProps, one should use the ES6 default parameters syntax.

Options

Optional/Required

Component.propTypes = {
  optional_name: PropTypes.string,
  required_name: PropTypes.string.isRequired,
};

Object of Unique Keys (IDs, etc.)[3]

In this case the property players is an object with properties that are dynamic IDs. This can be done using the objectOf prop type.

Component.propTypes = {
  players: PropTypes.objectOf(
    PropTypes.shape({
      name: PropTypes.string,
      age: PropTypes.number,
    }).isRequired
  ).isRequired,
};

References

  1. https://reactjs.org/docs/typechecking-with-proptypes.html
  2. https://www.npmjs.com/package/prop-types
  3. https://stackoverflow.com/questions/59643225/proptype-for-object-where-keys-are-ids
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Last modified: 202401040446