How do you build and deploy React Native apps?

Question

Accepted Answer

Deploying React Native apps involves building **release versions** for iOS and Android, **app store submission**, and considerations like **over-the-air (OTA) updates** and CI/CD. Tools like **EAS** (Expo) simplify the process. Understanding deployment is important for shipping apps.

## Building release versions

```text
→ Build RELEASE builds for each platform:
  iOS → an .ipa (archive in Xcode or via EAS) → App Store Connect
  Android → an .aab (App Bundle, preferred) or .apk → Google Play
→ Configure signing (iOS certificates/profiles; Android keystore) — required
→ EAS BUILD (Expo) → builds iOS/Android in the cloud (no local native setup needed) —
  greatly simplifies building (especially without a Mac for iOS)
```

## App store submission

```text
→ Submit to the APP STORE (Apple review — stricter) and GOOGLE PLAY (Play Console)
→ Store listings, metadata, screenshots, privacy info, content rating
→ Testing tracks: TestFlight (iOS), Play testing tracks; staged rollouts
→ EAS Submit can automate store submission
```

## Over-the-air (OTA) updates

```text
OTA UPDATES → push JS/asset updates DIRECTLY to users WITHOUT an app store release:
  → because React Native apps are largely JavaScript, you can update the JS bundle OTA
  → EAS Update / (formerly CodePush) → ship bug fixes / updates instantly
  ⚠️ only JS/asset changes (NOT native code changes — those need a store release)
  ⚠️ respect store policies (don't change the app's nature via OTA)
→ A notable React Native advantage: fast updates without store review delays.
```

## Why it matters

Understanding how to build and deploy React Native apps is important senior-level knowledge because **shipping apps to users is the goal**, and React Native deployment has specific aspects (including some unique advantages), so it's valuable for delivering real apps.

Understanding **building release versions** (creating release builds for each platform — .ipa for iOS to App Store Connect, .aab for Android to Google Play — and configuring the required signing) is the foundation, and understanding **EAS Build** (Expo's cloud build service that builds for both platforms without local native setup, notably enabling iOS builds without a Mac) reflects how modern React Native deployment is often simplified.

Understanding **app store submission** (submitting to the App Store with Apple's stricter review and Google Play, with store listings, metadata, testing tracks like TestFlight, and staged rollouts) reflects the real release process, common to mobile apps.

Most distinctively, understanding **over-the-air (OTA) updates** is particularly valuable because it's a **notable React Native advantage**: because React Native apps are largely JavaScript, you can **push JS and asset updates directly to users without an app store release** (via EAS Update or the former CodePush), shipping bug fixes and updates instantly without store review delays — a significant benefit unique to JS-based frameworks.

Understanding the important caveats (OTA only works for JS/asset changes, not native code changes which need a store release, and store policies must be respected) reflects correct, responsible use.

Since shipping apps is the goal and React Native deployment involves release builds, store submission (with the standard mobile considerations), and the distinctive OTA-update capability, and since understanding it (including EAS tooling and the OTA advantage with its caveats) is necessary for delivering and maintaining apps, understanding how to build and deploy React Native apps is important senior-level knowledge — necessary for shipping real apps, reflecting the end-to-end understanding expected for senior roles, and notably including the React-Native-specific OTA-update advantage that enables fast updates, an important capability for maintaining production React Native apps.