The State of React Native in 2026

As of 2026, React Native has undergone a significant transformation, with its New Architecture now mandatory for all modern development, marking a departure from the Legacy Architecture that has been fully removed. Key changes include the introduction of Hermes V1, which offers notable performance improvements, and the React Compiler that automates optimizations previously requiring manual effort. The New Architecture enhances UI interactions with synchronous layout and effects, supports React 18+ features, and utilizes the JavaScript Interface for efficient data processing. Developers are urged to migrate to React Native 0.82 to leverage these advancements and meet platform requirements from Apple and Google, such as Android 16's edge-to-edge rendering and iOS UISceneDelegate migration. Moreover, exciting features like precompiled iOS builds and developer experience improvements are being introduced, alongside Ditto's commitment to evolving its React Native SDK to meet these new standards. Teams must prioritize modernization to avoid technical debt and harness these capabilities for building faster and more reliable applications.