TypeScript is one of the things JavaScript developers would be familiar with, because this popular language is among the top alternatives for JavaScript.
The popularity of TypeScript is not without reasons. First, this language is developed and managed by Microsoft, second it brings new features and improvements to JavaScript, so what are those features and improvements?
What is TypeScript?
The best way to describe it is that TypeScript is a superset of JavaScript, which means that it basically extends JavaScript by adding syntax for static typing, along with other features such as support for Object Oriented Programming (OOP), which JavaScript don’t have.
Because TypeScript is essentially JavaScript, to develop with this language you just have to know JavaScript. The other way around also applies, it is possible to convert any .js to TypeScript by simply renaming the extension to .ts.
Furthermore, TypeScript supports JavaScript libraries, frameworks, and tools. One of them is React.
ts vs tsx
Those are two file extensions in TypeScript, which often confuse people since the “.tsx” extension was released after “.ts”. But, the distinction is really simple: a file that uses “.ts” is your regular TypeScript file that doesn’t use JSX (JavaScript XML) syntax inside it, and for “.tsx” is the file that uses JSX.
Can You Use React With TypeScript?
Because TypeScript is so similar to JavaScript, but with more improvement, it makes sense that React would benefit from using this language, and a few of these benefits are such as:
- Easy debugging and refactoring
As a statically typed language, TypeScript also gives React the benefits of pointing out the error in the code before executing it, and where to make corrections.
- Great JSX support
Commonly used in React, JSX, also supported by TypeScript for things like type checking or compiling JSX code to JavaScript.
On the IDE side of things, the combination of React and TypeScript provides an improvement in IntelliSense—intelligent code completion in Visual Studio Code—for JSX.
- Great compatibility with existing React project
An important reason if you’re going to slowly transition into TypeScript, in the other words, implementing gradual changes without much disruption.
ReactJS and NodeJS are the most wanted web technologies by developers, do you want to know why? Or what does it mean? Check it out here.
React Native With Typescript
Similar principles and benefits also apply when using TypeScript in React Native. You can use the same tooling and knowledge to build React Native apps with Typescript.
The two technologies complement each other very well, and it could enable better experience for developers when building complex applications. Even better if you use these essential but wonderful libraries for React.
Conclusion
TypeScript should be a strong consideration for any React developer. It could improve understanding of the code and reduce the risk of errors in your app. Another important thing is that Typescript also gives you the flexibility to make changes later on when needed without having to rewrite large sections of code. All in all, TypeScript has several benefits for React developers – so why not take advantage of them?
