Take User Back To Where They Scrolled To On Previous Page When Clicking Browser Back Button

Have you ever clicked the back button on your browser only to be taken to the top of the previous page, losing the spot where you had scrolled to? It can be frustrating and disrupt your browsing experience. But fear not, as there is a simple solution to this common issue that you can implement on your website. By using JavaScript, you can ensure that when a user clicks the back button, they are returned to the exact position on the previous page where they left off scrolling.

To achieve this functionality, you will need to utilize the `scrollRestoration` property provided by the History Web API. This property allows you to set how scroll positions are handled when navigating through the session history. By default, browsers handle scroll position restoration automatically, often taking users to the top of the page when they navigate back.

To preserve the scroll position and take the user back to where they were on the previous page, you can set the `scrollRestoration` property to `'manual'`. This tells the browser not to automatically restore the scroll position, giving you the opportunity to handle it yourself.

Here is a simple code snippet to achieve this:

if ('scrollRestoration' in history) {
  history.scrollRestoration = 'manual';
}

window.addEventListener('popstate', function(event) {
  if (event.state && event.state.scrollPos) {
    window.scrollTo(0, event.state.scrollPos);
  }
});

In the code above, we first check if the `scrollRestoration` property is supported by the browser. If it is, we set it to `'manual'`. Next, we add an event listener for the `popstate` event, which is triggered when the user navigates through the session history (e.g., by clicking the back button).

When the `popstate` event is fired, we check if there is a scroll position saved in the state object. If there is, we use `window.scrollTo()` to scroll back to that position. By saving and restoring the scroll position in the state object, we can ensure that users are taken back to where they were on the previous page.

This simple JavaScript implementation can greatly enhance the user experience on your website by maintaining continuity and reducing friction when users navigate through different pages. Next time your users click the back button, they'll appreciate being taken right back to where they left off scrolling. Give it a try and see the difference it makes!