Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Expo VS Realm React Native

Compare Expo VS Realm React Native and see what are their differences

Expo logo Expo

The fastest way to build an iOS and Android app 📱

Realm React Native logo Realm React Native

The fastest database for cross platform mobile apps
  • Expo Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-05-11
  • Realm React Native Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-05-23

Expo features and specs

  • Ease of Use
    Expo simplifies the development process by providing a managed workflow that handles configuration and builds, allowing developers to focus on coding.
  • Cross-Platform Development
    Expo enables developers to write code once and deploy it on both iOS and Android platforms, ensuring a consistent user experience across devices.
  • Pre-Built Components
    Expo offers a library of pre-built components and APIs that streamline the development process and reduce the time needed to implement common functionalities.
  • Over-the-Air Updates
    Developers can push updates to users in real-time without needing to go through the app store review process, facilitating quick bug fixes and feature releases.
  • Strong Community Support
    Expo has a vibrant and active developer community, offering a wealth of resources, tutorials, and third-party packages to assist developers.
  • Integrated Development Environment
    Expo provides tools like Expo CLI and Expo Go that make it easier to build, test, and debug applications, particularly for newcomers to mobile app development.

Possible disadvantages of Expo

  • Custom Native Code Limitations
    Expo's managed workflow restricts the use of custom native code, limiting developers when they need to integrate with third-party native libraries not supported by Expo.
  • Larger App Size
    Expo includes additional libraries and dependencies by default, which can result in a larger application size compared to custom builds.
  • Performance Overhead
    The abstraction added by Expo can introduce performance overhead, making it less suitable for highly performance-sensitive applications.
  • Dependency on Expo's Updates
    Developers are dependent on Expo's update cycle for bug fixes and new features, which may not always align with their project timelines.
  • Limited Configuration Options
    Expo's managed workflow abstracts many configurations for build processes, which can be a hindrance for developers needing granular control over app settings.
  • Ejection Complexity
    Ejecting from the managed workflow to a bare workflow for more customization can be complex and time-consuming, potentially negating some benefits of using Expo.

Realm React Native features and specs

  • Offline First
    Realm React Native enables offline-first experiences, allowing applications to function without network connectivity by storing data locally on the device.
  • Data Synchronization
    Built-in synchronization with MongoDB Atlas ensures that local data is automatically synchronized with the server, reducing the need for custom sync logic in the app.
  • Performance
    Realm offers high-performance data handling by using a custom database engine that is optimized for mobile devices, allowing quick access to and manipulation of data.
  • Ease of Use
    The API is designed to be intuitive and easy to use, making it accessible for developers to implement database operations without excessive complexity.
  • Real-time Updates
    Provides real-time data updates, ensuring that any changes in the database are immediately reflected in the application UI.

Possible disadvantages of Realm React Native

  • Learning Curve
    Developers new to Realm may face a learning curve compared to more traditional databases, as it introduces unique data models and patterns.
  • Limited Support for Complex Queries
    While Realm supports basic queries efficiently, handling complex queries may be less straightforward than with a traditional relational database.
  • Dependency on Specific Ecosystem
    Using Realm tightly integrates an application with MongoDB's ecosystem, potentially complicating migration to other databases or systems.
  • File Size
    Realm's file size can grow significantly, especially with large datasets, which may be a concern for apps with limited storage space.
  • Open Source Limitations
    Realm is open-source but certain advanced features are tied to MongoDB Atlas, requiring consideration of potential costs and limitations in free-tier usage.

Expo videos

Scenes from the 2019 National FFA Convention & Expo | Review Video

More videos:

  • Review - Auto Expo 2020 Film | Real-life review
  • Review - Expo Dry Erase Set Unboxing & Review

Realm React Native videos

No Realm React Native videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

Add video

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Expo and Realm React Native)
Developer Tools
100 100%
0% 0
Databases
0 0%
100% 100
Development Tools
82 82%
18% 18
NoSQL Databases
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

Share your experience with using Expo and Realm React Native. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
Log in or Post with

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Expo should be more popular than Realm React Native. It has been mentiond 35 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Expo mentions (35)

  • Video player with React Native. Part 1: Expo
    We are going to review it in a series of two articles. This is the first one, where we will touch on Expo. Expo is quite popular and is even recommended in Getting Started guide for React Native. But it differs a lot. Here we will go through the process of building an app with Expo and then make technology comparison based on the results. - Source: dev.to / 11 months ago
  • State Management Nx React Native/Expo Apps with TanStack Query and Redux
    This workspace is created using @nx/expo (Nx and Expo). - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
  • New OAuth Vulnerability (CVE-2023-28131) impacts hundreds of websites and Apps
    Just be clear this isn't an OAuth vulnerability. It's an vulnerability in expo.io. It doesn't even really have anything to do with OAuth. They've just terrible return url handling so it probably impacts a lot more than just stealing OAuth tokens. Source: almost 2 years ago
  • Convert Reactjs + Firebase Project to a Mobile apk app. Please help
    I haven't messed with React Native in a hot minute, but it should be rather easy to port your React app to React Native. I recall using expo.io in uni for react native development. Hope that helps. Source: over 2 years ago
  • Form Validation in React (Native) using Formik
    Expo: Expo is a free and open source toolchain built around React Native to help you build native iOS and Android projects using JavaScript and React. Expo is a great way to get started with React Native. - Source: dev.to / over 2 years ago
View more

Realm React Native mentions (5)

  • Using Expo and Realm with expo-dev-client
    The Realm React Native SDK has a hermes branch that is indeed compatible with Hermes. So, it'll work with react-native-reanimated v2 but not with Expo, due to the React Native version the Expo SDK is pinned to. - Source: dev.to / about 3 years ago
  • Getting started with Realm for React Native Using Expo Template, Enhanced
    Simple Expo React Native application to quickly get started with React Native RealmDb API, based on the starter template that is provided by Realm. I added a few things, specifically working with relationships in RealmDB since it was really what I was looking for before I started to create the video. - Source: dev.to / about 3 years ago
  • Build an Offline-First React Native Mobile App with Expo and Realm
    To add our Realm library to the project we’ll type in the Terminal:. - Source: dev.to / over 3 years ago
  • Local database for RN
    Realm maybe the thing you’re looking for, https://docs.mongodb.com/realm/sdk/react-native/. Source: over 3 years ago
  • Observing Realm database transactions with React Native
    Realm’s React Native SDK is an incredibly powerful tool that takes advantage of the NoSQL database developed by MongoDB. Realm can be used for offline first mobile apps or as a general purpose database for traditional mobile applications. One of the biggest advantages of using Realm for data storage is that it’s Objects are “live” by default; meaning that transactions and the state associated with a given Object... - Source: dev.to / almost 4 years ago

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Expo and Realm React Native, you can also consider the following products

Thunkable - Powerful but easy to use, drag-and-drop mobile app builder.

React Native - A framework for building native apps with React

ObjectBox - ObjectBox empower edge computing with an edge device database and synchronization solution for Mobile & IoT. Store and sync data from edge to cloud.

Android Studio - Android development environment based on IntelliJ IDEA

React Native Seed - Starting point for your React Native project

AppsGeyser - Appsgeyser is the easiest to use DIY native mobile app creation platform.