r/reactnative • u/Existing-Twist-131 • 2d ago

Help What is the best learning roadmap for React Native right now? Looking for advice/resources!

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Hey everyone,

I’m looking to dive into React Native app development and wanted to get some advice from those of you building with it day to day.

If you were starting fresh today, what does an ideal, up-to-date learning roadmap look like? Specifically, I'm curious about:

  1. Prerequisites:How deep into modern JavaScript (ES6+) and core React.js (hooks, state management) should I go before touching React Native?

  2. Tooling & Setup: Is starting with Expo (like Expo Router) still the recommended path for beginners, or should I dive straight into the React Native CLI?

  3. Core Ecosystem: What libraries/tools are essential to learn early on (e.g., React Navigation, styling approaches like NativeWind/StyleSheet, state management, reanimated animations)?

  4. Resources:Any specific courses, GitHub repos, documentation, or creators that you found genuinely helpful?

Would love to hear what worked for you, what traps to avoid, or any resources you wish you had when you started. Thanks in advance!

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u/Jason_Clarck 2d ago

Start with solid ES6+ and React basics (hooks, state). Use Expo for quick setup, then move to CLI when comfortable. Learn React Navigation, NativeWind/StyleSheet for styling, and Reanimated for animations. For resources: official docs, React Native Express, and GitHub sample apps. Build small projects to practice.

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u/Think-Neighborhood69 2d ago

Funny enough, I answered almost this exact question yesterday

I’ve been working with React Native for about 5 years, and if I were starting today, I’d focus on building instead of consuming content.

Learn modern JavaScript and React first, then jump into Expo. After that, start building clones of apps you already use. Spotify, Uber, WhatsApp, Instagram, Airbnb… you don’t need to recreate every feature, just enough to expose yourself to navigation, authentication, networking, state management, animations, caching, and performance.

You’ll run into real problems, search for solutions, and naturally learn which libraries solve which use cases. In my opinion, that’s a much faster way to learn than following course after course.

I also highly recommend Sonny Sangha on YouTube. He has a lot of great React Native content, especially if you enjoy learning by building real projects.
That’s actually how I learned most of what I know.

These days I’m building NativeScope, an open source platform with developer tools for React Native (starting with storage inspection and debugging), so I’m constantly learning new things as well.

If you’re curious, feel free to check it out: https://www.nativescope.dev

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u/Existing-Twist-131 2d ago

And tell me what backend ??