react-current-ref

Utilities to simplify using refs to avoid state closure.

useValueRef

Creates a ref that is always updated whenever the value changes, so it is safe to use in async functions and event listeners that are set once and such.

Note that updating the value WILL NOT cause a re-render, at least for parts of the code using the ref, so any references in the DOM won't update, and passing ref.current as a prop to components will not re-render them. You can pass the ref itself as a prop to provide the up-to-date value, although this still will not cause a re-render.

Example Usage

const [count, setCount] = useState(0);

const countRef = useValueRef(count);

// Set a timeout on mount
useEffect(() => {
    setTimeout(() => {
        console.log(countRef.current);
        // Even if count changes, this will print the latest value since it is a ref
    }, 1000);
}, [])

useFunctionRef

Creates a wrapper function that does not change but always calls the latest value of func.

Example Usage

const handleResize = useFunctionRef(event => {
    // ... other code
});

useEffect(() => {
    // Because handleResize always returns the same function, there will only
    // be one DOM operation
    document.addEventListener('resize', handleResize);
    
    // Standard cleanup function
    return () => document.removeEventListener('resize', handleResize);
}, [handleResize]);