juniorReact Native

What is React Native, and how does it differ from traditional native app development?

Updated Feb 20, 2026

Short answer

React Native is an open-source framework that allows developers to build mobile applications for iOS and Android using JavaScript or TypeScript with React. Instead of writing separate apps in Swift/Objective-C for iOS and Kotlin/Java for Android, developers can share most of their code while still rendering real native UI components. Traditional native development gives direct platform-specific control, while React Native focuses on faster development and code reuse with some trade-offs.

Deep explanation

React Native is a framework created by Meta that uses the React programming model to build mobile applications. Developers write components using JavaScript or TypeScript, and React Native translates those components into native platform UI elements.

For example, a React Native button is not simply a web button displayed inside a mobile browser. It maps to a real native button:

  • On iOS, it uses native iOS UI components.
  • On Android, it uses native Android UI components.

This approach gives React Native apps a more native look and feel compared with frameworks that render everything inside a web view.

A simple React Native component looks like this:

JSX
import React from 'react';
import { View, Text, Button } from 'react-native';


function WelcomeScreen() {
  return (
    <View>
      <Text>Hello, React Native!</Text>
      <Button title="Press Me" />
    </View>
  );
}


export default WelcomeScreen;

How React Native works

The development process has three main parts:

  1. React layer
  • Developers write components, state management, and application logic using JavaScript or TypeScript.
  • React determines what the UI should look like based on application state.
  1. React Native framework layer
  • React Native provides APIs for common mobile features:
  • Views
  • Text
  • Images
  • Navigation integration
  • Device APIs
  • Animations
  1. Native platform layer
  • React Native communicates with the underlying operating system to create native UI elements and access device capabilities.

Modern React Native versions use an architecture based on technologies such as the JavaScript Interface (JSI), Fabric renderer, and TurboModules to improve communication between JavaScript and native code.

Traditional native development

In traditional native development, developers create separate applications for each platform.

For example:

PlatformCommon LanguageUI Framework
iOSSwift / Objective-CUIKit / SwiftUI
AndroidKotlin / JavaAndroid Views / Jetpack Compose

A company building an app for both platforms typically maintains two codebases:

TypeScript
iOS App
 ├── Swift code
 ├── iOS UI components
 └── iOS-specific APIs


Android App
 ├── Kotlin code
 ├── Android UI components
 └── Android-specific APIs

With React Native, much of the application logic can be shared:

TypeScript
React Native App
 ├── Shared JavaScript/TypeScript code
 ├── iOS native components
 └── Android native components

Key differences between React Native and native development

AreaReact NativeTraditional Native
LanguagesJavaScript/TypeScriptSwift, Kotlin, Java
Code sharingHighLow between platforms
Development speedUsually fasterUsually slower for two platforms
PerformanceClose to native for many appsMaximum platform performance
Platform accessUses bridges/APIs or native modulesDirect access
UI controlGood, but sometimes platform-specific work is neededFull control
MaintenanceOne shared codebaseMultiple codebases

Advantages of React Native

  • Faster development
  • Teams can build iOS and Android apps together instead of maintaining separate teams and codebases.
  • Code reuse
  • Business logic, networking, data handling, and many UI components can be shared.
  • Large ecosystem
  • Developers can use many JavaScript libraries and React patterns.
  • Hot reloading / fast refresh
  • Developers can quickly see code changes without rebuilding the entire application.

Limitations of React Native

React Native is not always the best choice.

Common limitations include:

  • Platform-specific features may require native code
  • For example, advanced Bluetooth features, custom camera processing, or specialized hardware integrations may need Swift/Kotlin code.
  • Performance-sensitive applications may need native development
  • Games, complex 3D applications, and highly optimized graphics applications often benefit from direct native development.
  • Third-party dependency quality varies
  • Some React Native libraries may become outdated or require additional maintenance.

React Native should be viewed as a balance between development speed and native control, not as a complete replacement for native development.

Real-world example

Imagine a company building a food delivery application for both iOS and Android.

With traditional native development:

  • The iOS team writes the restaurant listing screen in Swift.
  • The Android team writes the same screen separately in Kotlin.
  • Bug fixes and new features must often be implemented twice.

With React Native:

  • Developers can create one shared restaurant listing component:
JSX
import React from 'react';
import { FlatList, Text, View } from 'react-native';


function Restaurants({ restaurants }) {
  return (
    <FlatList
      data={restaurants}
      keyExtractor={(item) => item.id}
      renderItem={({ item }) => (
        <View>
          <Text>{item.name}</Text>
          <Text>{item.cuisine}</Text>
        </View>
      )}
    />
  );
}


export default Restaurants;

The same component can run on both iOS and Android. If the team later changes the restaurant card design, they can update one shared component instead of maintaining two separate implementations.

However, if the app needs a custom payment SDK or advanced location tracking, developers may still need to write native modules for iOS and Android.

Common mistakes

  • * Assuming React Native creates a web app inside a mobile browser instead of a native mobile application.
  • * Believing React Native allows 100% code sharing for every feature.
  • * Thinking React Native always has identical performance to fully native applications.
  • * Ignoring the need for native platform knowledge when building advanced features.
  • * Choosing React Native for highly performance-critical applications without evaluating requirements.
  • * Confusing React Native with React, which is primarily used for building web user interfaces.
  • * Assuming one React Native codebase means developers never need to understand iOS or Android differences.

Follow-up questions

  • How does React Native communicate between JavaScript code and native code?
  • What are React Native components compared to native UI components?
  • When would you choose native development instead of React Native?
  • Can React Native applications use native Swift or Kotlin code?
  • What is the difference between React Native and Flutter?
  • Is React Native suitable for large production applications?

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