Developers have various alternatives for storing client-side data in React JS and web development, which includes local Storage, cookies, and HttpOnly cookies. Each of these choices has specific applications and advantages. Let’s compare them.

Local Storage

Local Storage is a web storage mechanism that allows web applications to store data locally on a user’s device. Data stored in local Storage is easily accessible via JavaScript on the client side. This makes it suitable for storing non-sensitive data that you want to persist across sessions.

Local storage allows to storage of larger amounts of data (typically up to 5-10 MB per domain) compared to cookies, which have much smaller storage capacity (usually up to 4 KB per cookie).

When you keep data in local Storage, it remains specific to a single domain and remains accessible even after you exit the browser. It persists until explicitly cleared by JavaScript or the user.

Local Storage is not very secure. It’s vulnerable to cross-site scripting (XSS) attacks, where malicious scripts can access and manipulate the data stored in local Storage. Therefore,  avoid storing sensitive information like authentication tokens or sensitive user data in local Storage.

// Storing data in local storage

localStorage.setItem('key', 'value');

// Retrieving data from local Storage

const data = localStorage.getItem('key');

Cookies

Developers primarily use cookies to send data between the client and server with each HTTP request. However, you can also use cookies to store small amounts of data on the client side.

Both client-side JavaScript and server-side code can access data stored in cookies. Cookies accompany each HTTP request sent to the server.

Cookie storage capacity is extremely restricted (usually around 4 KB per cookie). As a result, they are ideal for storing small amounts of data.

You can set cookies to expire, and you can create both session cookies (which save temporarily and delete when the browser is closed) and persistent cookies (which stored for a certain period of time). Use JavaScript libraries or utility functions to set and retrieve cookies in React components. Popular libraries like js-cookie provide a convenient way to work with cookies.

// Using js-cookie library
import Cookies from 'js-cookie';

// Storing data in a cookie
Cookies.set('key', 'value');

// Retrieving data from a cookie
const data = Cookies.get('key');

HttpOnly Cookies

HTTP-only cookies are a specific type of cookie that can be set by a web server and are accessible only to the server. They are not accessible to JavaScript running in the browser.

These are commonly used for authentication and session management. They help maintain user sessions and securely transmit authentication data to the server.

HTTP-only cookies cannot be accessed directly via JavaScript on the client side due to their HTTP-only flag. This makes them more secure against XSS attacks. However, they are still vulnerable to cross-site request forgery (CSRF) attacks if not properly protected.

HTTP-only cookies are more secure than Local storage for storing sensitive data like authentication tokens because they are less susceptible to XSS attacks. They are designed for server-side communication and should be used for tasks like session management and storing authentication tokens.

In summary, the choice for storing client-side data in React.js between local Storage, cookie storage, and httpOnly cookies depends on your specific use case and requirements. If you need to store non-sensitive data that should persist between sessions and be accessible to your React components, local Storage or regular cookies can be suitable. If you need to store sensitive data securely, especially for authentication purposes, httpOnly cookies are a better choice.

Always be mindful of security considerations and follow best practices to protect users’ data.

Sreyas is a prominent software and mobile app development firm, boasting extensive expertise in UI/UX design. Our global presence allows us to offer a comprehensive range of services, including data migration, database management, web hosting, infrastructure management, and more to clients worldwide.