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React Native vs Capacitor + Capgo

React Native alternative: Capacitor with Capgo

React Native renders native views from React code and is backed by Meta. Capacitor runs your existing web app in a native shell, so React, Vue, Angular, or Svelte code ships to the web, iOS, and Android from one codebase, and Capgo adds live updates and cloud builds on top.

Verdict Choose Capacitor with Capgo if you already have a web app or a web team, want one codebase for web and mobile, and need live updates now that App Center CodePush is retired. Choose React Native if your team is React-only, wants native UI components on every screen, and is fine with Expo or a self-hosted CodePush server for updates.

  • 1B+ updates per month
  • 4.7K+ apps
  • Founded in 2021

9,400+ teams. 90M+ devices. 3,143+ GitHub stars. Trusted in production by:

  • Kick 20M+ installs
  • Suez 3.2M installs
  • Nana 2.5M installs
  • Snowqueen 1.8M installs
  • Pizza Hut 1M+ installs
  • Shelf 950K installs
  • Janitor 750K installs
  • RemNote 500K+ installs
  • Vella 400K+ installs
  • Revel 250K+ installs
  • IREC 150K+ installs
  • OurLiving 80K+ installs
Top picks

The 6 best React Native alternatives in 2026

Ranked for teams that want to ship mobile apps fast, fix production bugs without waiting on store review, and keep full control of their code.

  1. Capgo Our pick

    Capacitor plus Capgo: one web codebase for iOS, Android, and web, live updates that skip store review, and cloud native builds in 2–3 minutes. Open source, from $12/month.

    Capgo vs React Native →

  2. Flutter

    Google-backed UI toolkit with its own rendering engine and Dart language. Strong UI consistency, but no web code reuse.

    Learn more →

  3. Kotlin Multiplatform

    Share Kotlin business logic, and optionally UI with Compose Multiplatform. A good fit for Android-first teams.

    Learn more →

  4. NativeScript

    JavaScript and TypeScript with direct access to native APIs and native UI. Smaller community than React Native.

    Learn more →

  5. .NET MAUI

    Microsoft cross-platform framework in C# and XAML. Fits teams already invested in .NET.

    Learn more →

  6. Native development

    Swift and Kotlin apps per platform. Full control and best platform fit, at the cost of two codebases.

    Learn more →
Side by side

Capgo vs React Native at a glance

Capgo vs React Native, as of September 2026. Each React Native fact links to a numbered source listed below the table.
Area Capgo React Native
Pricing Capacitor is free and MIT-licensed. Capgo live updates and cloud builds from $12/month billed yearly or $14 monthly. 14-day free trial, no credit card. The framework is free under the MIT license. Expo, the framework React Native recommends, has a free EAS plan, then Starter at $19/month and Production at $199/month plus usage. [3] [2] [6]
OTA live updates Ships JavaScript, HTML, CSS, and asset changes without waiting for store review, with delta downloads and end-to-end encryption. 1B+ updates per month. No built-in live updates. App Center, which hosted CodePush, was retired on March 31, 2025. Options are Expo EAS Update for JS, styling, and images, or running the standalone CodePush server yourself. [4] [5]
Native builds Capgo Builder builds and signs iOS and Android binaries in the cloud, typically in 2–3 minutes, and can upload them to the stores. Build time is included in plans. Build locally with Xcode and Android Studio, or in the cloud with Expo EAS Build. EAS free plan includes up to 15 Android and 15 iOS builds per month. [2] [6]
Framework support Capacitor runs any web app: React, Vue, Angular, Svelte, Solid, or plain JS. The same code ships to web, iOS, and Android. Capgo also updates Cordova and Electron apps, not React Native. React only, in JavaScript or TypeScript, rendering native views. Web output needs the separate React Native Web project. [1]
Open source and self-hosting Updater plugin and Capgo plugins are free under MPL-2.0. Backend source is on GitHub under AGPL-3.0. Run your own update server, or use licensed self-hosting on Enterprise. MIT-licensed, developed on GitHub. [3]
Rollback and channels Dynamic channels, device and channel overrides, progressive rollouts, automatic rollback when a bundle fails to start, and one-click revert to a previous bundle. Depends on your update service. EAS Update and the standalone CodePush server each handle rollbacks of JS bundles. Native code changes need a new store release. [5] [4]
Support Discord and email with the engineers who build Capgo. Priority plugin fixes on any plan, and Premium Support for production deadlines. Large community. Commercial help comes from partners such as Expo, Callstack, Infinite Red, and Software Mansion. [1]
Company status Independent and bootstrapped, founded in 2021. 9,400+ teams, 4.7K+ apps, and 90M+ devices. SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001 on the Enterprise plan. Released by Meta in 2015 and maintained by Meta since, with contributions from Microsoft, Expo, Callstack, and others. [1]

Sources

Competitor details are as of September 2026 and were checked against the vendor pages below. Plans and prices change, so confirm on the vendor site before you decide.

  1. React Native website
  2. React Native docs: Get started
  3. React Native GitHub repository
  4. Microsoft: App Center retirement
  5. Expo docs: EAS Update
  6. Expo pricing
Honest take

Where React Native is the better choice

No tool fits every team. These are the cases where we would point you to the other option.

You want native UI components

React Native renders real platform views instead of a web view, which some teams prefer for scroll-heavy or animation-heavy screens. [1]

Your team is all-in on React and Expo

Expo gives React Native file-based routing, a library of native modules, cloud builds, and EAS Update in one toolchain. [2] [5]

You hire from the React Native talent pool

React Native has a large community and companies such as Microsoft, Callstack, and Software Mansion contribute to it. [1]

Migration path

Move from React Native to Capacitor and Capgo

React Native UI code does not run in Capacitor as is, but your React logic, state, and API code can move to a React web app that Capacitor wraps.

  1. Build or reuse a React web app

    Port screens from React Native components to web components, or start from your existing web app. Business logic and API calls can usually stay.

  2. Add Capacitor

    Run bun add @capacitor/core @capacitor/cli @capacitor/ios @capacitor/android, then bunx cap init and bunx cap add ios and bunx cap add android. Replace native modules with Capacitor plugins.

  3. Install Capgo

    Run bunx @capgo/cli@latest init to add live updates, then ship web changes with bunx @capgo/cli@latest bundle upload.

Read the quickstart Browse Capgo plugins
Customer proof

What Capgo customers say

Named reviews from teams that ship Capacitor apps with Capgo.

5.0/5 rated by developer teams 9,400+ teams Read reviews

Since I started using Capgo everything is faster, and I can give my users the time they deserve without neglecting my daily life.

Luis Dominguez El que paga, Anirol

Being able to add Device ID's to certain groups and push the changes to only certain groups is a life saver.

no-tone @ Webincode Developer, Webincode

Being able to push production OTA updates instantly without waiting for full App Store review cycles has been a massive operational advantage.

Kapil Founder, NuTriQ
FAQ

Common questions

Can Capgo update React Native apps?
No. Capgo live updates work for Capacitor, Cordova, and Electron apps. React Native teams can use Expo EAS Update or the standalone CodePush server that Microsoft published when App Center was retired.
Is Capacitor slower than React Native?
Capacitor renders your UI in the system web view, while React Native renders native views. For most business, content, and form-based apps the difference is not noticeable, and you can still call native code through Capacitor plugins when needed.
What replaced CodePush for React Native?
Microsoft retired App Center on March 31, 2025 and published a standalone CodePush server you can host yourself. Expo EAS Update is the main hosted option.
Why pick Capacitor over React Native?
Capacitor lets you ship one web codebase to the browser, iOS, and Android, and works with any web framework, not only React. With Capgo you get live updates, channels, rollback, and cloud native builds for that app.
Do I need to rewrite my app to use Capacitor?
If you already have a web app, no: Capacitor wraps it. If your app exists only in React Native, the UI layer needs porting to web components, while most logic can be reused.

Try Capgo on your own app

Start a 14-day free trial with no credit card. After the trial, plans start at $12/month billed yearly or $14 billed monthly.

  • 9,400+ teams
  • 90M+ devices
  • Native builds in 2–3 min