building-native-ui

Expo UI Guidelines

References

Consult these resources as needed:

references/
  animations.md          Reanimated: entering, exiting, layout, scroll-driven, gestures
  controls.md            Native iOS: Switch, Slider, SegmentedControl, DateTimePicker, Picker
  form-sheet.md          Form sheets in expo-router: configuration, footers and background interaction.
  gradients.md           CSS gradients via experimental_backgroundImage (New Arch only)
  icons.md               SF Symbols via expo-image (sf: source), names, animations, weights
  media.md               Camera, audio, video, and file saving
  route-structure.md     Route conventions, dynamic routes, groups, folder organization
  search.md              Search bar with headers, useSearch hook, filtering patterns
  storage.md             SQLite, AsyncStorage, SecureStore
  tabs.md                NativeTabs, migration from JS tabs, iOS 26 features
  toolbar-and-headers.md Stack headers and toolbar buttons, menus, search (iOS only)

Running the App

CRITICAL: Always try Expo Go first before creating custom builds.

Most Expo apps work in Expo Go without any custom native code. Before running npx expo run:ios or npx expo run:android:

1. Start with Expo Go: Run npx expo start and scan the QR code with Expo Go
2. Check if features work: Test your app thoroughly in Expo Go
3. Only create custom builds when required - see below

When Custom Builds Are Required

You need npx expo run:ios/android or eas build ONLY when using:

• Local Expo modules (custom native code in modules/)
• Apple targets (widgets, app clips, extensions via @bacons/apple-targets)
• Third-party native modules not included in Expo Go
• Custom native configuration that can't be expressed in app.json

When Expo Go Works

Expo Go supports a huge range of features out of the box:

• All expo-* packages (camera, location, notifications, etc.)
• Expo Router navigation
• Most UI libraries (reanimated, gesture handler, etc.)
• Push notifications, deep links, and more

If you're unsure, try Expo Go first. Creating custom builds adds complexity, slower iteration, and requires Xcode/Android Studio setup.

Code Style

• Be cautious of unterminated strings. Ensure nested backticks are escaped; never forget to escape quotes correctly.
• Always use import statements at the top of the file.
• Always use kebab-case for file names, e.g. comment-card.tsx
• Always remove old route files when moving or restructuring navigation
• Never use special characters in file names
• Configure tsconfig.json with path aliases, and prefer aliases over relative imports for refactors.

Routes

See ./references/route-structure.md for detailed route conventions.

• Routes belong in the app directory.
• Never co-locate components, types, or utilities in the app directory. This is an anti-pattern.
• Ensure the app always has a route that matches "/", it may be inside a group route.

Library Preferences

• Never use modules removed from React Native such as Picker, WebView, SafeAreaView, or AsyncStorage
• Never use legacy expo-permissions
• expo-audio not expo-av
• expo-video not expo-av
• expo-image with source="sf:name" for SF Symbols, not expo-symbols or @expo/vector-icons
• react-native-safe-area-context not react-native SafeAreaView
• process.env.EXPO_OS not Platform.OS
• React.use not React.useContext
• expo-image Image component instead of intrinsic element img
• expo-glass-effect for liquid glass backdrops
• Color from expo-router for native semantic colors, not raw PlatformColor (type-safe, auto-adapts to light/dark)
• In SDK 56+, never import from @react-navigation/* directly — use expo-router/react-navigation instead (covers @react-navigation/native, /core, /elements, /routers)

Responsiveness

• Always wrap root component in a scroll view for responsiveness
• Use <ScrollView contentInsetAdjustmentBehavior="automatic" /> instead of <SafeAreaView> for smarter safe area insets
• contentInsetAdjustmentBehavior="automatic" should be applied to FlatList and SectionList as well
• Use flexbox instead of Dimensions API
• ALWAYS prefer useWindowDimensions over Dimensions.get() to measure screen size

Behavior

• Use expo-haptics conditionally on iOS to make more delightful experiences
• Use views with built-in haptics like <Switch /> from React Native and @react-native-community/datetimepicker
• When a route belongs to a Stack, its first child should almost always be a ScrollView with contentInsetAdjustmentBehavior="automatic" set
• When adding a ScrollView to the page it should almost always be the first component inside the route component
• Prefer headerSearchBarOptions in Stack.Screen options to add a search bar
• Use the <Text selectable /> prop on text containing data that could be copied
• Consider formatting large numbers like 1.4M or 38k
• Never use intrinsic elements like 'img' or 'div' unless in a webview or Expo DOM component

Styling

Follow Apple Human Interface Guidelines.

General Styling Rules

• Prefer flex gap over margin and padding styles
• Prefer padding over margin where possible
• Always account for safe area, either with stack headers, tabs, or ScrollView/FlatList contentInsetAdjustmentBehavior="automatic"
• Ensure both top and bottom safe area insets are accounted for
• Inline styles not StyleSheet.create unless reusing styles is faster
• Add entering and exiting animations for state changes
• Use { borderCurve: 'continuous' } for rounded corners unless creating a capsule shape
• ALWAYS use a navigation stack title instead of a custom text element on the page
• When padding a ScrollView, use contentContainerStyle padding and gap instead of padding on the ScrollView itself (reduces clipping)
• CSS and Tailwind are not supported - use inline styles

Colors

Use the Color API from expo-router for native semantic colors. It is a type-safe wrapper over PlatformColor that exposes iOS UIKit colors through Color.ios.* and Android Material 3 colors through Color.android.material.* (static) or Color.android.dynamic.* (adapts to the user's wallpaper on Android 12+). These resolve on-device and automatically adapt to light/dark mode and accessibility settings, so you no longer maintain separate light/dark hex tables or a colors.web.ts file.

Color is platform-specific, so wrap each value in Platform.select with a default hex fallback for web. Centralize the palette in theme/colors.ts and import colors everywhere:

• iOS re-resolves these colors automatically when the system theme changes. On Android, call useColorScheme() inside any component that renders them so it re-renders when the theme flips (required when React Compiler memoizes the component).
• Don't pass Color / PlatformColor values into Reanimated styles — use static colors there (see references/animations.md).
• Platform.select({...})! returns string | OpaqueColorValue. Most React Native style props accept ColorValue (string | OpaqueColorValue) so this works fine. But some third-party props only accept string (e.g. tintColor on expo-image). Cast when needed: colors.label as string.

Text Styling

• Add the selectable prop to every <Text/> element displaying important data or error messages
• Counters should use { fontVariant: 'tabular-nums' } for alignment

Shadows

Use CSS boxShadow style prop. NEVER use legacy React Native shadow or elevation styles.

'inset' shadows are supported.

Navigation

Link

Use <Link href="/path" /> from 'expo-router' for navigation between routes.

Whenever possible, include a <Link.Preview> to follow iOS conventions. Add context menus and previews frequently to enhance navigation.

Stack

• ALWAYS use _layout.tsx files to define stacks
• Use Stack from 'expo-router/stack' for native navigation stacks

Page Title

Set the page title in Stack.Screen options:

Context Menus

Add long press context menus to Link components:

Link Previews

Use link previews frequently to enhance navigation:

Link preview can be used with context menus.

Modal

Present a screen as a modal:

Prefer this to building a custom modal component.

Sheet

Present a screen as a dynamic form sheet:

• Using contentStyle: { backgroundColor: "transparent" } makes the background liquid glass on iOS 26+.

Common route structure

A standard app layout with tabs and stacks inside each tab:

Create a shared group route so both tabs can push common screens: