React + Node: Beginner's Guide to Full Stack Dev
React excels at building fast, dynamic frontends. Node.js shines for server-side APIs and microservices. Together, they make a powerful stack for full stack apps.
Let’s walk through integrating React with Node.js:
Serving React Builds
Use Node.js middleware like Express to serve the React app:
This serves the React build from the /build
folder.
Proxying API Requests
Proxy frontend requests to the backend API:
Set up a route forwarding to the API server.
Server-Side Rendering
Use libraries like ReactDOMServer to server-side render components:
This serves fully rendered HTML from the React app.
Authentication and Sessions
Share authentication sessions and info between backend and frontend:
Sessions enable persisting auth across requests.
Summary
- Use Express to serve React builds
- Forward requests to Node.js APIs
- Server-side render for SEO
- Share auth sessions between frontend and backend
Combining React and Node.js brings together declarative UIs with scalable server infrastructure.