5 TypeScript Best Practices for React Developers

Most developers add TypeScript to their React projects and keep writing JavaScript. The types are there. Nothing breaks. So they assume they're doing it right. I did this for longer than I'd like to admit. `any` everywhere. Props typed as `object`. useReducer with no idea what shape the state was actually in. Then a production bug showed up that TypeScript should have caught six months earlier. It didn't, because I'd opted out at every hard junction. Here's what actually changed how I think about it: 1. Type your hooks at the boundary, not inside them. `useState<User | null>(null)` tells the component what it's working with before it renders anything. 2. Discriminated unions on state shape. If your component can be loading, error, or success, model it. Don't use three separate booleans and hope for the best. 3. Generic hooks aren't advanced TypeScript. `useFetch<T>` is just a hook that knows what it returns. That's it. 4. `useReducer` without typed actions is a footgun. The reducer is the one place where exhaustive checks pay off immediately. 5. Don't fight the compiler when props get complex. That resistance is the signal, model it properly or the bug will find you in prod. TypeScript doesn't make React harder. Writing React without it just defers the hard part to runtime. Full breakdown in the comments 👇 #reactjs #typescript #webdevelopment

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