Optimizing Performance with Efficient React Dynamic Imports

What is Dynamic Import?

Dynamic import is a method to load modules asynchronously. This helps reduce initial loading time and load modules only when needed, optimizing the application’s performance. Next.js provides a dynamic function to easily implement such dynamic imports.

import dynamic from 'next/dynamic';

const container = dynamic(
    () => import('@packagename').then((r) => r.container),
    { ssr: false }
);

This code snippet shows how to use the dynamic function provided by Next.js to load specific modules asynchronously.

1. Setting up Dynamic Import

The dynamic function takes a function that asynchronously imports a module as its first argument. This function uses the import keyword to load the module and returns only the necessary parts.

    () => import('@packagename').then((r) => r.container),

2. Disabling SSR Option

The second argument is the configuration option. Here, the ssr: false option is used to disable server-side rendering and set the module to load only on the client side.

    { ssr: false }

Why Disable SSR?

Some components use browser-specific APIs or include features needed only on the client side. In such cases, it is better to disable server-side rendering and load these components only on the client. This avoids unnecessary server-side rendering and further optimizes the application’s performance.

Specific Example

Let’s take an example of a component that uses browser-specific APIs. This component includes functionalities that cannot be used on the server, so it needs to be loaded only on the client.

import dynamic from 'next/dynamic';

const BrowserOnlyComponent = dynamic(() => import('./BrowserOnlyComponent'), {
    ssr: false,
});

const Page = () => (
    <div>
        <h1>My Page</h1>
        <BrowserOnlyComponent />
    </div>
);

export default Page;

In this example, BrowserOnlyComponent is loaded on the client side with SSR disabled. This prevents errors that may occur on the server and reduces the initial loading time, enhancing user experience.

Conclusion

When developing web applications using React and Next.js, optimizing performance through dynamic imports and disabling SSR is a crucial strategy. This avoids unnecessary server rendering and significantly improves initial loading speed by loading only the necessary components on the client side. Therefore, by appropriately utilizing dynamic imports and SSR disabling features, you can develop applications that provide better performance and improved user experience.