Displaying loading states is crucial for providing visual feedback to users during asynchronous operations like API calls or data fetching in React applications. As the creator of CoreUI, a widely used open-source UI library, I’ve implemented loading states in countless production components over 25 years of development. From my expertise, the most effective approach is using useState to track loading status combined with conditional rendering to display appropriate UI. This creates a smooth user experience that keeps users informed about ongoing operations.