The Advantages and Disadvantages of React Native

React Native is one of the most popular cross-platform app development frameworks today. It was launched by Facebook in 2015. Ever since its launch, the framework has attracted a great deal of attention and garnered scads of positive reviews from the developer community. It is often compared with its counterpart Flutter.

As cross-platform app development continues to grow in popularity, the usage of React Native has increased significantly. Earlier, native apps used to be the primary choice for app development, but today, an individual spends an amount of time thinking about whether they should build a native app or a cross-platform app would be a better choice. There has been a massive shift towards the latter, and React Native is among the primary choices for that matter.

React Native, undoubtedly, is a powerful cross-platform development framework and offers several advantages to developers. However, it does carry some disadvantages as well. In this blog post, we will walk you through the advantages and disadvantages of React Native, based on which you can decide whether the framework would suit your project requirements or not.

Advantages of React Native

What makes React Native one of the preferred frameworks for cross-platform development and why should one opt for it? Let’s find out.

1. Code Reusability

One of the major pros associated with React Native is Code reusability. During react native app development, developers get the luxury to write the code only once and use it multiple times. In other words, they don’t have to code separately for different platforms. The code reusability is around 90%, and it isn’t just valid for mobile platforms but for web applications as well. This eventually saves time, which helps to develop the app comparatively quicker than what it would have taken had it been coded separately.

2. Accelerates Development

Another advantage of React Native is that it quickens the app development process. The framework consists of a myriad of pre-developed or ready-to-apply components that play a massive role in accelerating the development process. It has an open-source library that allows developers to write the code in advance. These pre-written codes can be easily used later when required.

3. Live and Hot Reloading

Adding to the list of React Native advantages is its live and hot reloading feature, which probably sets it apart from its peers. The idea behind the latter is to keep the app running despite making any changes at the runtime. In other words, you would not lose the current state of the app even though the files would be refreshed. Additionally, you can also track the changes in real-time. You don’t need to recompile to see the modifications.

The live loading feature, on the other hand, refreshes or reloads the entire upon file changes irrespective of where the change has been made.

4. Strong Community

React Native is an open-source and free-to-use platform that allows developers to share their knowledge and experience towards the framework’s development. The community has nearly 50,000 active contributors on Stack Overflow. So, in case any developer encounters a challenge anytime with React Native, someone would surely come to the aid to help address those challenges. Moreover, it is backed by the social media giant Facebook which gives it an added advantage.

5. Doesn’t Require A Large Team

If you opt for React Native, you will need a JavaScript developer who can code for both platforms (Android and iOS) unlike in Native development where separate teams would be required for Android and iOS development. Yes, at times, help from native developers would be needed when the app requires more native features, but more often than not, the team would be small and easier to manage.

6. React Native Apps Are Fast

It is often believed that React Native code might not deliver a good performance or hinder it. Though the JavaScript code might not be as fast as the native one, the difference would be negligible in most cases. 

Disadvantages of React Native

Let’s now talk about the cons of React Native which may compel you to not opt for it.

1. Difficult to Debug

Apps made with React Native are quite difficult to debug. This is because React Native is built using Java, C/C++, JavaScript, and Objective-C, which makes the debugging process a bit tedious. Developers should possess the basic knowledge of the native platform as React Native constantly switches between the thread of JavaScript and Native environment.

2. Not Ideal For Complex UIs

Another disadvantage of React Native is that it may not be an ideal option when it comes to handling complex UIs. If the application demands advanced interactions, screen transitions, or animations, it would be better to opt for native app development. Although React Native has a gesture responder system, the framework isn’t strong enough for complex designs.

3. Building a Cross-Platform Team Isn’t Easy

For someone to be well-versed in React Native, they should have good enough knowledge of both web and native technologies. It would be better if they possess hands-on experience working with JavaScript, and can work on project configuration, CI, UX guidelines, etc.

But finding developers who have an in-depth knowledge of both worlds can be quite difficult. So, pick a company that is experienced in cross-platform app development.

4. Lacks Some Custom Modules

Despite being a mature framework, React Native still lacks some components. Although the majority of custom modules that you may require are available and well-documented (and functioning properly), it might happen that you will be compelled to build your solution from scratch.

Final Word

These are some of the primary pros and cons associated with React Native. Assess them carefully and see whether it would be the right choice to go with React Native or not. If you do not feel satisfied with React Native, you can look for its other alternatives like Flutter, Ionic, Node.js, Xamarin, etc.

Before making a final call, it would be better to consult an experienced React Native App Development Service Provider.