prevProps: Previous props passed to the component.

What can I use instead of componentDidUpdate?

2 Answers. So Dan Abramov answered on Twitter and it seems like there are 2 reasons why you should use getDerivedStateFromProps instead of componentDidUpdate + setState : setState in componentDidUpdate causes an extra render (not directly perceptible to user but it slows down your app).

What can I use instead of componentWillMount?

As a general rule don’t use componentWillMount at all (if you use the es6 class syntax). use the constructor method instead. This life-cycle method is good for a sync state initialization. componentDidMount in the other hand is good for async state manipulation.