React Native Best Practices

name: react-native-best-practices description: Provides React Native performance optimization guidelines for FPS, TTI, bundle size, memory leaks, re-renders, and animations. Applies to tasks involving Hermes optimization, JS thread blocking, bridge overhead, FlashList, native modules, or debugging jank and frame drops. license: MIT metadata: author: Callstack tags: react-native, expo, performance, optimization, profiling

Overview

Performance optimization guide for React Native applications, covering JavaScript/React, Native (iOS/Android), and bundling optimizations. Based on Callstack's "Ultimate Guide to React Native Optimization".

Skill Format

Each reference file follows a hybrid format for fast lookup and deep understanding:

• Quick Pattern: Incorrect/Correct code snippets for immediate pattern matching
• Quick Command: Shell commands for process/measurement skills
• Quick Config: Configuration snippets for setup-focused skills
• Quick Reference: Summary tables for conceptual skills
• Deep Dive: Full context with When to Use, Prerequisites, Step-by-Step, Common Pitfalls

Impact ratings: CRITICAL (fix immediately), HIGH (significant improvement), MEDIUM (worthwhile optimization)

When to Apply

Reference these guidelines when:

• Debugging slow/janky UI or animations
• Investigating memory leaks (JS or native)
• Optimizing app startup time (TTI)
• Reducing bundle or app size
• Writing native modules (Turbo Modules)
• Profiling React Native performance
• Reviewing React Native code for performance

Priority-Ordered Guidelines

| Priority | Category | Impact | Prefix | |----------|----------|--------|--------| | 1 | FPS & Re-renders | CRITICAL | js-* | | 2 | Bundle Size | CRITICAL | bundle-* | | 3 | TTI Optimization | HIGH | native-*, bundle-* | | 4 | Native Performance | HIGH | native-* | | 5 | Memory Management | MEDIUM-HIGH | js-*, native-* | | 6 | Animations | MEDIUM | js-* |

Quick Reference

Critical: FPS & Re-renders

Profile first:

# Open React Native DevTools
# Press 'j' in Metro, or shake device → "Open DevTools"

Common fixes:

• Replace ScrollView with FlatList/FlashList for lists
• Use React Compiler for automatic memoization
• Use atomic state (Jotai/Zustand) to reduce re-renders
• Use useDeferredValue for expensive computations

Critical: Bundle Size

Analyze bundle:

npx react-native bundle \
  --entry-file index.js \
  --bundle-output output.js \
  --platform ios \
  --sourcemap-output output.js.map \
  --dev false --minify true

npx source-map-explorer output.js --no-border-checks

Common fixes:

• Avoid barrel imports (import directly from source)
• Remove unnecessary Intl polyfills (Hermes has native support)
• Enable tree shaking (Expo SDK 52+ or Re.Pack)
• Enable R8 for Android native code shrinking

High: TTI Optimization

Measure TTI:

• Use react-native-performance for markers
• Only measure cold starts (exclude warm/hot/prewarm)

Common fixes:

• Disable JS bundle compression on Android (enables Hermes mmap)
• Use native navigation (react-native-screens)
• Defer non-critical work with InteractionManager

High: Native Performance

Profile native:

• iOS: Xcode Instruments → Time Profiler
• Android: Android Studio → CPU Profiler

Common fixes:

• Use background threads for heavy native work
• Prefer async over sync Turbo Module methods
• Use C++ for cross-platform performance-critical code

References

Full documentation with code examples in references/:

JavaScript/React (js-*)

| File | Impact | Description | |------|--------|-------------| | js-lists-flatlist-flashlist.md | CRITICAL | Replace ScrollView with virtualized lists | | js-profile-react.md | MEDIUM | React DevTools profiling | | js-measure-fps.md | HIGH | FPS monitoring and measurement | | js-memory-leaks.md | MEDIUM | JS memory leak hunting | | js-atomic-state.md | HIGH | Jotai/Zustand patterns | | js-concurrent-react.md | HIGH | useDeferredValue, useTransition | | js-react-compiler.md | HIGH | Automatic memoization | | js-animations-reanimated.md | MEDIUM | Reanimated worklets | | js-uncontrolled-components.md | HIGH | TextInput optimization |

Native (native-*)

| File | Impact | Description | |------|--------|-------------| | native-turbo-modules.md | HIGH | Building fast native modules | | native-sdks-over-polyfills.md | HIGH | Native vs JS libraries | | native-measure-tti.md | HIGH | TTI measurement setup | | native-threading-model.md | HIGH | Turbo Module threads | | native-profiling.md | MEDIUM | Xcode/Android Studio profiling | | native-platform-setup.md | MEDIUM | iOS/Android tooling guide | | native-view-flattening.md | MEDIUM | View hierarchy debugging | | native-memory-patterns.md | MEDIUM | C++/Swift/Kotlin memory | | native-memory-leaks.md | MEDIUM | Native memory leak hunting | | native-android-16kb-alignment.md | CRITICAL | Third-party library alignment for Google Play |

Bundling (bundle-*)

| File | Impact | Description | |------|--------|-------------| | bundle-barrel-exports.md | CRITICAL | Avoid barrel imports | | bundle-analyze-js.md | CRITICAL | JS bundle visualization | | bundle-tree-shaking.md | HIGH | Dead code elimination | | bundle-analyze-app.md | HIGH | App size analysis | | bundle-r8-android.md | HIGH | Android code shrinking | | bundle-hermes-mmap.md | HIGH | Disable bundle compression | | bundle-native-assets.md | HIGH | Asset catalog setup | | bundle-library-size.md | MEDIUM | Evaluate dependencies | | bundle-code-splitting.md | MEDIUM | Re.Pack code splitting |

Searching References

# Find patterns by keyword
grep -l "reanimated" references/
grep -l "flatlist" references/
grep -l "memory" references/
grep -l "profil" references/
grep -l "tti" references/
grep -l "bundle" references/

Problem → Skill Mapping

| Problem | Start With | |---------|------------| | App feels slow/janky | js-measure-fps.md → js-profile-react.md | | Too many re-renders | js-profile-react.md → js-react-compiler.md | | Slow startup (TTI) | native-measure-tti.md → bundle-analyze-js.md | | Large app size | bundle-analyze-app.md → bundle-r8-android.md | | Memory growing | js-memory-leaks.md or native-memory-leaks.md | | Animation drops frames | js-animations-reanimated.md | | List scroll jank | js-lists-flatlist-flashlist.md | | TextInput lag | js-uncontrolled-components.md | | Native module slow | native-turbo-modules.md → native-threading-model.md | | Native library alignment issue | native-android-16kb-alignment.md |

Attribution

Based on "The Ultimate Guide to React Native Optimization" by Callstack.