If you prefer React Native app development, stay here. Backed up by the rich experience of our mobile app engineers, this article explains why React Native is better than other cross-platform technologies for certain projects.
We’ve rounded up all the major advantages of React Native app development, focusing on the framework’s unique features and business value.
So why use React Native? Let’s dive in.
What is React Native?
React Native is an open-source, cross-platform framework launched by Facebook (now Meta) in 2015. It allows you to develop mobile applications for Android, iOS, and even extensions for Windows and macOS (through community or Microsoft-supported forks), all from a single codebase written in JavaScript or TypeScript.
React Native stands out because it uses real native components - not WebViews - to deliver near-native performance. By leveraging a JavaScript bridge to interact with the device’s native APIs, React Native apps often look and perform similar to apps built with Swift, Objective-C, Java, or Kotlin.
In turn, the result is a powerful, high-performance development approach that’s lighter on resources, making React Native a popular choice for building engaging user experiences across multiple platforms.
And that’s not all, React Native has an ever-growing ecosystem that allows it to integrate with various platforms. While traditionally aimed at iOS and Android, there are efforts in the community to extend support to desktops, gaming consoles, and even VR/AR devices, expanding the opportunities for cross-platform development.
Why use React Native?
In recent years, React Native has consistently ranked among the top cross-platform frameworks. According to various developer surveys (including those by Stack Overflow and JetBrains), React Native remains a leading choice for building mobile apps. It’s used by major tech players such as Facebook (Meta), Instagram, Pinterest, and Microsoft, underscoring its credibility and staying power.
But what’s behind its growing popularity? What drives businesses to choose this software development kit for building their applications? Let’s explore the key advantages of React Native app development.
1. React Native is cross-platform
When designing a mobile application, the first thing to consider is the platform you want to target. Today, the two leading mobile operating systems are Android and iOS, and many businesses choose to create separate applications for each. This means two codebases, two teams, and two sets of project timelines, inevitably driving up costs.
With React Native, you can target Android, iOS, Windows, and macOS (among others, via community-driven solutions) without the need to create a separate codebase for each platform. This makes React Native an exceptionally cost-effective choice, as updates can be rolled out in one go rather than repeating processes for each platform.
Moreover, adding new features or fixing bugs is a smoother, more efficient process with React Native since you only need to update one codebase. This cross-platform approach lets you focus on building rich functionality and a better user experience instead of duplicating work across multiple projects.
Business value: lower costs and faster time to market
Choosing React Native app development delivers two critical benefits: lower development costs and faster time to market.
One Team, Codebase, you don’t need separate teams for iOS and Android. A single React Native team can build features that work across platforms, drastically reducing hiring and operational expenses.
Component Reusability, React Native leverages a vast library of reusable UI components. Up to 90% of the code can be shared between Android and iOS, significantly accelerating development and reducing errors.
Hot Reload, React Native’s Hot Reload feature enables developers to view changes in real time without a full app rebuild. This speeds up development cycles and ensures you can iterate and experiment quickly.
As a result, React Native not only saves you time but also cuts costs that would otherwise be spent on two or more separate native codebases.
2. React Native offers speed, performance, and a near-native feel
Speed and performance are among the top reasons developers and businesses choose React Native. By rendering actual native components (rather than web elements), React Native allows apps to achieve performance levels close to those of fully native apps built with Swift or Java/Kotlin.
Several core features make this possible:
JavaScript Bridge, React Native communicates with the platform via an asynchronous bridge, reducing latency and ensuring smooth animations and transitions.
Native Platform Specific Modules, For performance-critical tasks (e.g., GPU-heavy animations, advanced media handling), developers can write or integrate native modules in Swift, Objective-C, Java, or Kotlin to achieve optimal speed.
Optimized Rendering, With direct access to native APIs, React Native avoids the performance bottlenecks typical of older hybrid frameworks reliant on WebViews.
Additionally, React Native includes a range of user interface elements - like Material Design for Android and Cupertino-style widgets for iOS - that help achieve a platform-specific look and feel. The result is an interface that looks and responds as though it’s built using each platform’s native language.
Business value: customer loyalty and increased sales
A fast, smooth user interface is crucial for retaining users. Poor app performance leads to uninstalls and negative reviews - both detrimental to growth.
By choosing React Native, you can:
Capture More Revenue, a positive user experience often translates into higher conversion rates, whether through in-app purchases, subscriptions, or other monetization channels.
Boost Customer Satisfaction Score, smooth UIs and quick load times encourage users to keep engaging with your product, building loyalty over time.
Strengthen Brand Reputation, delivering a consistently high-quality experience across platforms fosters trust and brand recognition, which can result in positive word-of-mouth and user recommendations.
Industry giants like Instagram, Pinterest, and Airbnb (in earlier phases) demonstrated that React Native can consistently deliver a high-quality user experience that helps keep customers engaged and satisfied.
3. React Native keeps growing
Since its release, React Native has enjoyed continuous improvement from both Meta and an enthusiastic open-source community. Regular updates expand its capabilities, enhance its stability, and refine its performance.
Ongoing enhancements include:
New Architecture, the framework continues evolving under the “Fabric” architecture, targeting enhanced performance and streamlined integrations.
Community Events and Conferences, developer meetups and dedicated React Native conferences facilitate knowledge sharing and continuous innovation, keeping the technology vibrant.
Third-Party Libraries, thousands of libraries, from UI components to advanced functionalities like data analytics, push notifications, and maps, are readily available.
These initiatives ensure that React Native remains one of the most robust and future-proof options for cross-platform app development. As the framework grows, businesses benefit from cutting-edge features, stability, and a large talent pool of React Native developers.
Business value: a secure, future-proof app
With React Native, you can confidently scale and improve your app over time. A vibrant community and strong corporate support mean:
Reduced Risk, continuous updates help patch vulnerabilities and ensure the framework meets modern security and performance standards.
Ample Developer Resources, you can easily find React Native developers, documentation, and community-driven solutions that help solve technical challenges and reduce overhead.
Evolving Ecosystem, as React Native evolves, you can implement new features without needing an entire rewrite of your application.
All these aspects contribute to a stable and forward-looking platform that can adapt to the changing demands of the tech world and your user base.
Conclusion
We hope our post has helped you understand why React Native is such a popular choice for cross-platform development. Besides being cost and time-effective - typical benefits of any cross-platform tool - React Native’s advantages go even further.
React Native apps are fast, high-performing, and capable of delivering a native-like experience for users. With that, you can keep your audience engaged, boost revenue potential, and strengthen your market position. As an adaptable and ever-evolving framework, React Native is on par with (and sometimes outperforms) many native and cross-platform alternatives.
If you’re seeking a quick and cost-effective way to hit the market, React Native is a compelling path. The team at TechWings can help you build a functional app with a dynamic user interface and a rewarding user experience, making the most of React Native’s capabilities.
Contact us today to learn more about efficient and profitable React Native app development!