React Native

React Native

Open Source

Learn once, write anywhere.

Frontend Frameworks
Mobile Frontend Frameworks

Published 29 May 2026 · Last updated 28 September 2026

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Scores

Popularity5/5

The dominant cross-platform mobile framework for JavaScript developers.

Learning Curve4/5

React knowledge is required plus native modules, platform-specific APIs, and bridge concepts.

Flexibility5/5

Full native API access; third-party modules via the NPM ecosystem extend any capability.

Performance4/5

Native bridge enables good performance; bridge serialization overhead is the key constraint.

Portability3/5

React skills transfer partially; native bridge and platform-specific code require adjustment.

About React Native

React Native is Meta's open-source framework for building native mobile applications using JavaScript and React, first released in 2015. Unlike hybrid frameworks that render web content inside a WebView, React Native maps JavaScript components to actual native UI widgets — <View> becomes UIView on iOS and android.view.View on Android — delivering genuine native look, feel, and performance.

The component model is identical to React: functional components, hooks, JSX, and the same state management libraries (Redux, Zustand, Jotai) all work. Most React knowledge transfers directly, making React Native a natural extension for web teams adding mobile to their stack. Fast Refresh injects code changes into the running app without a full rebuild.

The New Architecture (Fabric renderer + JSI + Turbo Modules), enabled by default in React Native 0.74+, eliminates the async bridge that was the source of jank in older versions, enabling synchronous communication between JavaScript and native modules. Expo provides a higher-level managed workflow on top of React Native for teams that prefer not to manage the native build toolchain directly.

Key Features

  • Write once, deploy to iOS and Android
  • Native performance with genuine native components
  • Hot reloading and fast refresh
  • Rich ecosystem of third-party libraries
  • Access to native device APIs (camera, GPS, etc.)
  • Strong React community support
  • OTA updates with Expo and CodePush
  • TypeScript support

Pros

  • Single codebase for iOS and Android
  • Faster development than separate native apps
  • Leverages existing React web knowledge
  • Native performance (not a webview)
  • Large community and extensive libraries
  • Easy to integrate with existing native apps

Cons

  • Performance not as good as pure native
  • Debugging can be complex (JS + native layers)
  • Version upgrades can be breaking
  • Native module development required for some features
  • UI inconsistencies between platforms require handling
  • Bridge architecture can introduce latency

React Native Pricing

Open Source

Tech Stacks with React Native

React Native + Supabase

Project

Cross-platform mobile app built with Expo's managed workflow and backed by Supabase. Ships to iOS and Android from a single JavaScript codebase.

React Native
React Native
Expo
Expo

Frontend

TypeScript
TypeScript

Programming

Supabase
Supabase

Databases

Supabase Auth
Supabase Auth

Authentication

Details Sandbox
CI/CD add-on:
Payments add-on:
Analytics add-on:

Tools Related to React Native

Works well with React Native(2)

Rork

Rork

AI-powered mobile app builder that turns plain-language prompts into React Native or native Swift apps, ready to ship to the App Store and Google Play.

Freemium
AI Builders
4/5

Rork is the leading AI builder for React Native — developers use Rork to generate React Native + Expo projects from plain-language prompts without writing any code manually.

Auth0

Auth0

Auth0 is Okta's enterprise identity platform, with hosted Universal Login, social and enterprise SSO, MFA, passwordless, and machine-to-machine authorization for web, mobile, and API apps.

Freemium
Authentication
3/5

Auth0 supports React Native via the react-native-auth0 SDK — handles OAuth2 device flow, token storage with secure enclave, and biometric login for mobile apps.

Integrates with React Native(1)

Firebase

Firebase

Google's platform for building web and mobile applications with real-time database, authentication, hosting, and serverless functions.

Freemium
Databases
5/5

Firebase has a first-class React Native SDK (@react-native-firebase) for Firestore, Auth, and Cloud Messaging.

Frameworks built on React Native(1)

Expo

Expo

Platform and tooling for building, deploying, and scaling React Native applications with minimal native configuration.

Freemium
Frontend Frameworks
4/5

Expo is a framework built on React Native for easier cross-platform mobile development.

Alternatives to React Native(2)

Flutter

Flutter

Google's UI toolkit for building natively compiled applications for mobile, web, and desktop from a single codebase.

Open Source
Frontend Frameworks
5/5

Most direct cross-platform mobile alternatives; React Native uses JavaScript/React, Flutter uses Dart with its own rendering engine — different language ecosystems.

FlutterFlow

FlutterFlow

FlutterFlow is a visual no-code/low-code platform for building native iOS, Android, and web apps using Flutter. Design screens with drag-and-drop components, define logic with a visual action flow editor, and export real Flutter/Dart code with no vendor lock-in.

Freemium
No-Code / Low-Code
3/5

React Native requires coding; FlutterFlow is a visual no-code/low-code builder that outputs Flutter/Dart code — different abstraction levels.

Links

Website Docs GitHub

Vendor

Meta

Tags

JavaScriptTypeScriptOpen SourceFree TierMobile DevelopmentiOSAndroidCross-platform

Details

License
MIT
Maintained
Yes
Primary language
JavaScript
Domain
Mobile
GitHub stars
127k
Stars updated
2026-09-23