Rendering React Components from Array of Objects

I have some data called stations which is an array containing objects.

stations : [
  {call:'station one',frequency:'000'},
  {call:'station two',frequency:'001'}
]

I'd like to render a ui component for each array position. So far I can write

 var stationsArr = []
 for (var i = 0; i < this.data.stations.length; i++) {
     stationsArr.push(
         <div className="station">
             {this.data}
         </div>
     )
 }

And then render

render(){
 return (
   {stationsArr}
 )
}

The problem is I'm getting all of the data printing out. I instead want to just show a key like {this.data.call} but that prints nothing.

How can I loop through this data and return a new UI element for each position of the array?


You can map the list of stations to ReactElements.

With React >= 16, it is possible to return multiple elements from the same component without needing an extra html element wrapper. Since 16.2, there is a new syntax <> to create fragments. If this does not work or is not supported by your IDE, you can use <React.Fragment> instead. Between 16.0 and 16.2, you can use a very simple polyfill for fragments.

Try the following

// Modern syntax >= React 16.2.0
const Test = ({stations}) => (
  <>
    {stations.map(station => (
      <div key={station.call} className='station'>{station.call}</div>
    ))}
  </>
); 

// Modern syntax < React 16.2.0
// You need to wrap in an extra element like div here

const Test = ({stations}) => (
  <div>
    {stations.map(station => (
      <div className="station" key={station.call}>{station.call}</div>
    ))}
  </div>
); 

// old syntax
var Test = React.createClass({
    render: function() {
        var stationComponents = this.props.stations.map(function(station) {
            return <div className="station" key={station.call}>{station.call}</div>;
        });
        return <div>{stationComponents}</div>;
    }
});
 
var stations = [
  {call:'station one',frequency:'000'},
  {call:'station two',frequency:'001'}
]; 

ReactDOM.render(
  <div>
    <Test stations={stations} />
  </div>,
  document.getElementById('container')
);

Don't forget the key attribute!

https://jsfiddle.net/69z2wepo/14377/


I have an answer that might be a bit less confusing for newbies like myself. You can just use map within the components render method.

render () {
   return (
       <div>
           {stations.map(station => <div key={station}> {station} </div>)} 
       </div>
   );
}

this.data presumably contains all the data, so you would need to do something like this:

var stations = [];
var stationData = this.data.stations;

for (var i = 0; i < stationData.length; i++) {
    stations.push(
        <div key={stationData[i].call} className="station">
            Call: {stationData[i].call}, Freq: {stationData[i].frequency}
        </div>
    )
}

render() {
  return (
    <div className="stations">{stations}</div>
  )
}

Or you can use map and arrow functions if you're using ES6:

const stations = this.data.stations.map(station =>
    <div key={station.call} className="station">
      Call: {station.call}, Freq: {station.frequency}
    </div>
);

There are couple of way which can be used.

const stations = [
  {call:'station one',frequency:'000'},
  {call:'station two',frequency:'001'}
];
const callList = stations.map(({call}) => call)

Solution 1

<p>{callList.join(', ')}</p>

Solution 2

<ol>    
  { callList && callList.map(item => <li>{item}</li>) }
</ol>

Edit kind-antonelli-z8372

Of course there are other ways also available.


This is quite likely the simplest way to achieve what you are looking for.

In order to use this map function in this instance, we will have to pass a currentValue (always-required) parameter, as well an index (optional) parameter. In the below example, station is our currentValue, and x is our index.

station represents the current value of the object within the array as it is iterated over. x automatically increments; increasing by one each time a new object is mapped.

render () {
    return (
        <div>
            {stations.map((station, x) => (
                <div key={x}> {station} </div>
            ))}
        </div>
    );
}

What Thomas Valadez had answered, while it had provided the best/simplest method to render a component from an array of objects, it had failed to properly address the way in which you would assign a key during this process.