How to select text for copy/paste in React Native? Code Example

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  1. Code Example
    1. Live Demo
  2. Conclusion

Suppose we are creating a mobile application of famous quotes. Now users will want to copy those quotes and share with their friends. For that, you need to make the text selectable.

By default the text in React native apps are not selectable and that’s why we can’t long press to open contextual menu with copy & paste options.

Luckily, React Native provides selectable prop which when set to true, allows text to be selected.

Code Example

import React, { useState } from "react";
import { Text, StyleSheet, View } from "react-native";

const SelectableText = () => {
  
  return (
    <View style={styles.container}>
      <Text style={styles.baseText}>
        This text is not selectable
      </Text>
      <Text
       style={styles.baseText}
       selectable={true}
      >
        This text is selectable
      </Text>
    </View>

  );
};

const styles = StyleSheet.create({
  container: {
    justifyContent: 'space-between',
    height: 100,
    marginTop: 40
  },
  baseText: {
    fontFamily: "Cochin"
  },
  
});

export default SelectableText;

Output:

setting text selectable in React Native in both Android and iOS phones

The above image shows how selectable text looks like in iOS (left) and Android (right) phones. The first text line is not selectable so nothing happened after long press in both phones. But second line is selectable and hence showing contextual menu with options according to phone types.

In the code we are setting selectable prop in line 13.

Live Demo

Open Live Demo

Conclusion

The conclusion is that you need to add selectable prop to the <Text> component and set it to true. This will allow text selection on both Android and iOS.


React Native Series

Alert

  1. Basic Alert
  2. Dismiss on Clicking Outside
  3. Input Fields in Alert Dialog – Prompt()
  4. Dark-Light Theme of Dialog

ActivityIndicator

  1. Basic Circular Loader
  2. Change size of Circular Loader
  3. Show/hide Circular Loader
  4. Change color of Circular Loader

Button

  1. Simple Button
  2. Change Button Color
  3. Disable Button Click
  4. Disable touch sound on Button click

FlatList

  1. Simple List
  2. Single Item Selection from List
  3. Multiple Item Selection from List
  4. Adding separator between list items
  5. Multiple columns List
  6. Showing Message in Empty List
  7. Add Footer to the List
  8. Add Header to the List
  9. Horizontal List
  10. Inverted List
  11. Pull to Refresh in List
  12. Infinite Loading List

SectionList

  1. Section List

ScrollView

  1. ScrollView
  2. Stick Single Item at Header
  3. Stick Multiple Items at Header
  4. Stick Item at Footer
  5. Hide Sticky Element on Scroll

Image

  1. Display Image from remote url
  2. Display local storage image
  3. Display Base64 Image
  4. Display Gif & Webp Images
  5. Adding Blur to Image
  6. Displaying loader for Image
  7. Resizemode for Images
  8. Setting Default Placeholder Image
  9. Background Image

Modal

  1. Basic Modal
  2. Slide from bottom Modal
  3. Fade In Modal
  4. Transparent Overlay Modal

RefreshControl

  1. RefreshControl
  2. Change Refresh Loader Color
  3. Change Refresh Loader Size
  4. Change Refresh Loader Background Color
  5. Title under Refresh Loader
  6. Change color of title under refresh loader

StatusBar

  1. Get StatusBar Size
  2. Change StatusBar Background Color
  3. Display StatusBar icons & text in While Color
  4. Display StatusBar icons & text in Dark Color
  5. Hiding StatusBar
  6. Translucent StatusBar

Switch

  1. Simple Switch
  2. Disable Switch
  3. Change Switch Colors

Text

  1. Adding Text
  2. Bold Text
  3. Italic Text
  4. Underline Text
  5. Selecting Text for copy-paste
  6. Changing Highlight Color of Text Selection
  7. Fit text in View box
  8. Clickable anchors in text
  9. Truncate Lengthy Text

TextInput

  1. Simple Input Field
  2. Auto Capitalize Text in Input Field
  3. Multiline Input Field
  4. Hide Cursor in Input Field
  5. Clear input Field using X
  6. Clear input Field when focused
  7. Change Cursor Color in Input Field
  8. Disable input field
  9. Icon at the left of Input Field
  10. Dark-Light Keyboard
  11. Avoid Overlapping of Keyboard
  12. Limiting Characters in Input Field
  13. Numeric Keyboard
  14. Email Id Keyboard
  15. Phone number Keyboard
  16. Url Keyboard
  17. Placeholder in input field
  18. Placeholder Color in Input Field
  19. Password Input Field
  20. Programmatically select text in Input Field
  21. Change Text Selection Color in Input Field
  22. Select Whole text in Input Field on Focus
  23. Write text from center in input field
  24. Changing underline color of input field

TouchableWithoutFeedback

  1. TouchableWithoutFeedback

TouchableHighlight

  1. TouchableHighlight

TouchableOpacity

  1. TouchableOpacity

Pressable

  1. Pressable
  2. Creating Ripple Effect

Appearance

  1. Dark-Light System Color Scheme

AppState

  1. AppState – Foreground/Background State of App

ToastAndroid

  1. Creating Android Toast Message

Dimensions

  1. Getting Screen & Window Dimensions

Keyboard

  1. Dismiss Keyboard Programmatically

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