React Native’s New Architecture: A Deep Dive into Turbo Native Modules
React Native has come a long way from its initial days of bridging the gap between JavaScript and native platforms. With the introduction of the New Architecture, Facebook (now Meta) has fundamentally revamped the internals of React Native to improve performance, maintainability, and developer experience. One of the standout features in this new architecture is the Turbo Native Modules system.
In this blog, we’ll explore:
- Old vs New Architecture
- What is the New Architecture?
- Turbo Native Modules
- Should you migrate?
Old vs New Architecture
| Feature | Old Architecture | New Architecture |
|---|---|---|
| Bridge | Asynchronous, Serialized JSON bridge between JS and Native | Shared memory & JSI (JavaScript Interface) |
| Rendering Engine | UIManager (Native) | Fabric (C++/JSI-based) |
| Native Modules | Bridge-based, JS to Native via reflection | TurboModules, statically typed with codegen |
| Performance | Bridge bottlenecks in heavy interactions | Faster thanks to direct memory access |
| Multi-threading | Mostly single-threaded JS execution | Parallelizable rendering & native access |
What is the New Architecture?
The New Architecture is built around a few core components:
- JSI (JavaScript Interface): Enables direct calls between JS and C++ without serialization, removing the traditional bridge.
- Fabric: A new rendering system that improves UI consistency and performance.
- TurboModules: A replacement for the legacy Native Modules, enabling faster and safer communication between JavaScript and native code.
- Codegen: Automatically generates boilerplate code for TurboModules and components, ensuring type-safety and better developer ergonomics.
Turbo Native Modules
TurboModules are the reimagined way to write Native Modules in React Native. They are:
- Statistically typed via TypeScript or Flow
- Connected to JS using codegen
- Built for performance with lazy loading and JSI
TurboModules are especially useful for performance-critical tasks or when integrating with device hardware.
Should You Migrate?
Pros of migrating:
- Better performance
- Lazy loading of modules
- Type safety with codegen
- Future-proofing your app
Cons:
- Requires native code changes
- Some 3rd-party modules may not yet support the new architecture
- Steeper learning curve
Recommendation: If you’re starting a new app or maintaining a performance-sensitive one, you should seriously consider migrating to the new architecture.
Conclusion
React Native’s new architecture isn’t just an internal revamp—it’s a forward-looking approach that brings the native and JavaScript worlds closer than ever. With TurboModules, developers get high-performance native integration without sacrificing the agility of JavaScript.
If you’re ready to take your app to the next level, now’s the time to explore and adopt the New Architecture.
