React Native

React Native is an open source framework for building mobile apps with React and JavaScript. It renders real native interface parts, so apps look and behave like other apps on the same phone.

React Native lets developers write one app in JavaScript and run it on iOS and Android. Instead of drawing its own pixels, it maps core components such as View, Text and Image to the native building blocks of each platform. Meta released the framework in 2015 and still maintains it with help from the community.

• Core components that map to each platform
• Access to platform APIs and native code
• Community-built packages and modules
• Routing and tooling through frameworks such as Expo

Teams that already know React and want mobile apps without writing separate Swift and Kotlin code for every screen. It suits startups and product teams that need one codebase for both major mobile platforms.

React Native is open source under the MIT licence and free to use. It targets iOS and Android, so web and desktop builds need other tools. The documentation recommends a framework such as Expo for new projects. Some device features still need native code written by hand.