Private and public functions in React

1 min read

With Frontend libraries like React, we often don't use classes. But the same public/private differentiation can be made through the export keyword. Anything that has an export is public and anything that doesn't is private.

It can be a red flag if a function is exported only for testing. There are a few problems with doing this:

The export could potentially no longer be used in the truly public function of the module (false-positive test)

With the <Card> being the public part. If the <Heading> is only exported to be tested.

export function Heading({ title }) {
  return <h1>Title - {title}</h1>
}

export function Card({ title }) {
  return (
    <section>
      <Heading title={title} />
    </section>
  )
}

If the <Card> heading is not testing the Card component directly and the heading is no longer used within it. The tests would still pass giving you a false-positive result.

export function Heading({ title }) {
  return <h1>Title - {title}</h1>
}

export function Card({ title }) {
  return <section>Whoops no heading</section>
}

It makes the implementation of the truly public function less flexible

For example, if the private function is not exported.

function Heading({ title }) {
  return <h1>Title - {title}</h1>
}

export function Card({ title }) {
  return (
    <section>
      <Heading title={title} />
    </section>
  )
}

Changing the style of the code to not use a separate <Heading> becomes not a problem.

export function Card({ title }) {
  return (
    <section>
      <h1>Title - {title}</h1>
    </section>
  )
}

A private function is an implementation detail and subject to change.

The private and public differences come from Object Orientated code but I think it's helpful to think about ES modules using functional code in the same way.

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