How I Designed a Scalable Infinite Scroll for Flutter.

Pagination is one of those problems every Flutter developer faces repeatedly. I found myself wiring ScrollControllers, tracking offsets, debouncing API calls, handling loading states and errors… and suddenly a simple list turns into a mini framework. After doing this across multiple projects, I decided to design a clean, reusable, and scalable solution — and thus Infinite Scroll Plus was born.

This article explains why it exists, what problems it solves, and how to use it effectively — with minimal cognitive load.

Why Infinite Scroll Plus?

Most infinite scroll implementations fall into one of these traps:

• Too much boilerplate for a common use case

• UI tightly coupled with API logic

• Hard to customize loading / error / empty states

• No real support for backend pagination (page / cursor)

Infinite Scroll Plus focuses on:

✅ Clear mental model
✅ Explicit backend control
✅ Customizable UI without complexity
✅ Production-ready defaults

What You Get Out of the Box ✨

• 📜 InfiniteScrollList (ListView)

• 🟦 InfiniteScrollGrid (GridView)

• 🦴 Skeleton loader for initial loading

• 🔁 Pagination via LoadMoreRequest

• 🔍 Search & sort support

• ⚠️ Error handling with retry

• 🎨 Fully customizable loading, empty & error states

No magic. No hidden state.

Demo :

infinite_scroll_plus demo

Installation :

dependencies:
 infinite_scroll_plus: <l>

The Core Idea: LoadMoreRequest

Instead of guessing offsets or managing scroll math, Infinite Scroll Plus gives you a clean request object:

class LoadMoreRequest {
 final int currentItemCount;
 final int page;
 final Object? cursor;
}

This means:

• Page-based APIs? ✅

• Offset-based APIs? ✅

• Cursor-based APIs? ✅

The widget suggests, you decide.

Basic Usage (90% Use Case)

InfiniteScrollList<String>(
 items: items,
 hasMore: hasMore,
 onLoadMore: (request) async {
 final newItems = await fetchItems(page: request.page);
 items.addAll(newItems);
 },
 itemBuilder: (context, item, index) => ListTile(
 title: Text(item),
 ),
);

That’s it. No controller. No listeners. No lifecycle traps.

Skeleton Loader (Better First Impression)

For initial loading states, skeletons feel faster and smoother than spinners.

InfiniteScrollList<String>(
 items: items,
 onLoadMore: _loadMore,
 enableSkeletonLoader: true,
 skeletonWidget: MyCustomSkeleton(),
);

Skeletons appear only when the list is empty — exactly when users expect them.

Error Handling That Actually Helps

Network failures are normal. Ignoring them isn’t.

InfiniteScrollList<String>(
 items: items,
 hasMore: hasMore,
 onLoadMore: _loadMore,
 errorBuilder: (context, error, retry) {
 return Column(
 children: [
 Text('Failed to load items'),
 ElevatedButton(
 onPressed: retry,
 child: const Text('Retry'),
 ),
 ],
 );
 },
);

• Error UI is optional

• Retry logic is handled for you

• No duplicated state management

Search & Sort Without Extra State

Sometimes you just want local filtering — not another API call.

InfiniteScrollList<String>(
 items: items,
 searchQuery: searchQuery,
 onSearch: (items, query) => items
 .where((e) => e.toLowerCase().contains(query.toLowerCase()))
 .toList(),
 applySort: true,
 onSort: (items) {
 items.sort();
 return items;
 },
);

The widget stays declarative. Your logic stays readable.

Grid Support (Same Mental Model)

Switching to a grid doesn’t change anything:

InfiniteScrollGrid<String>(
 items: items,
 onLoadMore: _loadMore,
 gridDelegate: const SliverGridDelegateWithFixedCrossAxisCount(
 crossAxisCount: 2,
 crossAxisSpacing: 12,
 mainAxisSpacing: 12,
 ),
 itemBuilder: (context, item, index) => Card(
 child: Center(child: Text(item)),
 ),
);

Same API. Same behavior. Zero relearning.

Breaking Changes in v2.0 (Why They’re Worth It)

Yes, v2.0 introduces breaking changes — intentionally.

What changed?

• onLoadMore now receives LoadMoreRequest

• Error handling is explicit

• Skeleton loader is opt-in

Why?

Because clarity beats convenience in production code.

You now control:

• Pagination strategy

• Error behavior

• Loading experience

Design Philosophy 🧠

Infinite Scroll Plus follows three principles:

1. UI should not own business logic

2. Explicit APIs reduce bugs

3. Common things should be simple

It doesn’t try to be a state management solution. It doesn’t force an architecture. It just solves infinite scrolling — properly.

When Should You Use It?

Perfect for:

• REST / GraphQL pagination

• Admin panels

• Feeds & dashboards

• Search results

• Catalogs & listings

If you’ve ever rewritten pagination logic twice — this is for you.

Final Thoughts

This package represents my approach to infinite scroll in Flutter — clean, scalable, and production-ready. With Infinite Scroll Plus, you get:

• Less boilerplate

• Clear contracts

• Better UX

• Cleaner code

# infinite_scroll_plus: Package | GitHub

I hope it saves you the time and complexity it once cost me.

Happy building 💙