Skip to main content

What are controlled and uncontrolled components?

A component that controls the input elements within the forms on subsequent user input is called Controlled Component, i.e, every state mutation will have an associated handler function.

For example, to write all the names in uppercase letters, we use handleChange as below,

handleChange(event) {
this.setState({value: event.target.value.toUpperCase()})
}

The Uncontrolled Components are the ones that store their own state internally, and you query the DOM using a ref to find its current value when you need it. This is a bit more like traditional HTML.

In the below UserProfile component, the name input is accessed using ref.

class UserProfile extends React.Component {
constructor(props) {
super(props);
this.handleSubmit = this.handleSubmit.bind(this);
this.input = React.createRef();
}

handleSubmit(event) {
alert("A name was submitted: " + this.input.current.value);
event.preventDefault();
}

render() {
return (
<form onSubmit={this.handleSubmit}>
<label>
{"Name:"}
<input type="text" ref={this.input} />
</label>
<input type="submit" value="Submit" />
</form>
);
}
}
tip

In most cases, it's recommend to use controlled components to implement forms. In a controlled component, form data is handled by a React component. The alternative is uncontrolled components, where form data is handled by the DOM itself.