In this blog, I\u2019ll walk you through\u00a0two practical approaches<\/strong> to upgrading your project to the New Architecture in React Native, the\u00a0recommended approach<\/strong>, the\u00a0challenges I faced<\/strong>, and how I overcame them.<\/p>\n If your current project is within\u00a02 to 4 versions<\/strong>\u00a0of the latest release, upgrading is relatively safe. Otherwise, it\u2019s better to\u00a0migrate code manually to a fresh project.<\/strong> We\u2019ll cover both methods.<\/p>\n This method is ideal if your current version is just a few versions behind (e.g., 0.75 to 0.79).<\/p>\n Step 1. Update Android Studio<\/strong><\/p>\n Step 2. Use the React Native Upgrade Helper<\/strong><\/p>\n React Native Upgrade Helper.<\/p><\/div><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n Step 3. Follow the Diff Instructions Carefully<\/strong><\/p>\n \ud83d\udce6 Update Third-Party Dependencies<\/strong><\/p>\n Once you\u2019re on the latest version, update your dependencies:<\/p>\n React Native Directory<\/p><\/div>\n <\/p>\n If your current project is outdated or complex, this is the safest and cleanest way to upgrade.<\/p>\n Steps to Migrate<\/strong><\/p>\n Step 1. Create a New Project<\/strong><\/p>\n npx @react-native-community\/cli init MyApp<\/p>\n Step 2. Migrate Your Existing Codebase<\/strong><\/p>\n Once your new React Native project is created (preferably using the latest stable version like v0.79.3), it\u2019s time to bring your existing app logic into the new environment.<\/p>\n \ud83d\udcc1 Step 3: Move Your\u00a0src\/\u00a0Folder<\/strong><\/p>\n Start by copying the entire\u00a0src\u00a0directory from your old project into the root of the new project<\/p>\n \ud83d\udce6 Step 4: Sync and Install Dependencies<\/strong><\/p>\n Now, open both the old and new\u00a0package.json\u00a0files side by side.<\/p>\n Yes, it’s manual\u2014but it’s also\u00a0bulletproof for both Android and iOS<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n \u2705 Step 5: Verify It Works<\/strong><\/p>\n After you’ve copied your source code and installed the updated dependencies:<\/p>\n cd android && .\/gradlew clean && cd ..<\/p>\n 2. Run the app on both platforms to ensure everything is wired correctly:<\/strong><\/p>\n npx react-native run-android 3. Watch the terminal and device logs for any errors, warnings, or compatibility issues.<\/strong><\/p>\n \ud83d\udca1 Tip: If any dependency causes issues with the new architecture, check the package’s documentation or GitHub issues. Some packages may still require legacy support or additional configuration to work correctly.<\/p>\n As I migrated to the New React Native Architecture, I ran into some unexpected issues that weren\u2019t immediately obvious. Here’s a breakdown of the most common ones \u2014 and how I resolved each.<\/p>\n \ud83c\udf101. Translation failed<\/strong> \u2705 Sol<\/strong><\/p>\n The recommended and stable alternative is react-i18next<\/strong>, which is modern, flexible, and actively maintained.<\/p>\n Translation failed screenshot<\/p><\/div>\n \u269b\ufe0f 2. Redux not working<\/strong><\/p>\n Redux can break in the new architecture, especially if you’re using older packages like\u00a0‘redux<\/strong>‘\u00a0and\u00a0‘redux-thunk<\/strong>‘.<\/p>\n The new approach uses the modern\u00a0Redux<\/strong> Toolkit<\/strong>:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Redux failed screenshot<\/p><\/div>\n \u2705 Sol<\/strong><\/p>\n Replace this<\/strong><\/p>\n import {createStore, applyMiddleware, compose} from ‘redux’; export default store;<\/p>\n With this<\/strong><\/p>\n import {configureStore} from “@reduxjs\/toolkit”; export const appStore = configureStore({ const store = () => { export default store;<\/p>\n After integrating this, You might getting this redux error<\/strong><\/p>\n redux error<\/p><\/div>\n \u2705 Sol<\/strong><\/p>\n … \ud83d\udcc13. Absolute imports fail<\/strong><\/p>\n If you\u2019re using absolute import paths like\u00a0@abc\/screens<\/strong>\u00a0defined in\u00a0package.json<\/strong>, you may find they\u00a0don\u2019t resolve properly\u00a0in the new architecture setup.<\/p>\n \ud83d\udee0\ufe0f In my case, I had to temporarily fall back to relative paths like:<\/p>\n import MyScreen from ‘..\/..\/screens\/MyScreen’;<\/p>\n \u2705 Sol<\/strong><\/p>\n Later, I fixed this properly by configuring babel.config.js<\/strong> and tsconfig.json.<\/strong><\/p>\n 4. Bridging fails<\/strong><\/p>\n With the New Architecture, React Native introduces a\u00a0bridge-less communication model.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u2705 Sol<\/strong><\/p>\n While it\u2019s more\u00a0strict<\/strong>, it brings better performance, type safety, and native interoperability.<\/p>\n 5. GIFs Fail to Load\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n If your app uses GIFs, they may not work properly with the New Architecture (Fabric\/TurboModules).<\/p>\n \u2705 Sol<\/strong><\/p>\n Add the Fresco GIF dependency to\u00a0app\/build.gradle:<\/strong><\/p>\n implementation ‘com.facebook.fresco:animated-gif:3.6.0’<\/p>\n \u26a0\ufe0f Note: If 3.6.0 is not compatible, use the latest stable version of Fresco instead.<\/p>\n 6. SafeAreaView Overlaps Status Bar on Android 15+ (Edge-to-Edge Issues)<\/strong><\/p>\n If your app’s content overlaps the status bar or edge-to-edge display<\/strong> isn’t working properly on Android 15<\/strong>, try this solution.<\/p>\n \u2705 Sol<\/strong> <item name=”android:windowOptOutEdgeToEdgeEnforcement”>true<\/item><\/p>\n 7. react-native-linear-gradient\u00a0Padding Not Applying<\/strong><\/p>\n When adding padding directly to the\u00a0<LinearGradient>\u00a0component, it won\u2019t work as expected. \u2705 Sol<\/strong><\/p>\n <LinearGradient> 8. Custom Font Not Working on iOS<\/strong>
\n\ud83d\udccc When Should You Consider Upgrading?<\/h1>\n
\n\ud83d\udee0\ufe0f Approach 1: Upgrade Using React Native Upgrade Helper (Recommended for Small Version Gaps)<\/h1>\n
\n
\n
![\"React](\"https:\/\/tothenewco.pro\/blog\/wp-ttn-blog\/uploads\/2025\/09\/https___dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com_uploads_articles_8t1om242olbxz7ok2al4.webp\")
\n
\n\n
![\"React](\"https:\/\/tothenewco.pro\/blog\/wp-ttn-blog\/uploads\/2025\/09\/https___dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com_uploads_articles_o1hbk21tgv2xra692kwc-1.webp\")
\n<\/h1>\n
\u2705 Approach 2: Create a Fresh Project (Recommended for larger Version Gaps)<\/h1>\n
\n
\n
\nnpx react-native run-ios<\/p>\n
\n<\/blockquote>\n\ud83e\udde9 Challenges I Faced<\/h1>\n
\nThe old way of handling translations using\u00a0i18n-js<\/strong>\u00a0no longer works reliably in the new architecture.<\/p>\n![\"Translation](\"https:\/\/tothenewco.pro\/blog\/wp-ttn-blog\/uploads\/2025\/09\/https___dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com_uploads_articles_vhzn2oj5m3nlxyclos1q.webp\")
\n![\"Redux](\"https:\/\/tothenewco.pro\/blog\/wp-ttn-blog\/uploads\/2025\/09\/https___dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com_uploads_articles_by6stnfewwo9aiq1nhg7.webp\")
\nimport thunk from ‘redux-thunk’;
\nimport rootReducer from ‘.\/rootReducer’;
\nconst composeStore = compose(applyMiddleware(thunk));
\nexport const appStore = createStore(rootReducer, composeStore);
\nconst store = () => {
\nreturn appStore;
\n};<\/p>\n
\nimport rootReducer from “.\/rootReducer”;<\/p>\n
\nreducer: rootReducer,
\ndevTools: true,
\nmiddleware: getDefaultMiddleware => getDefaultMiddleware(),
\n});<\/p>\n
\nreturn appStore;
\n};<\/p>\n![\"redux](\"https:\/\/tothenewco.pro\/blog\/wp-ttn-blog\/uploads\/2025\/09\/https___dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com_uploads_articles_wieqq3w9b7w3lsolutc5.webp\")
\nmiddleware: getDefaultMiddleware =>
\ngetDefaultMiddleware({
\nserializableCheck: false,
\n}),
\n…<\/p>\n
\n
\n\n
\n
\n<\/blockquote>\n
\nAdd this line to your Android\u00a0\/android\/app\/src\/main\/res\/values\/styles.xml<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n
\nInstead, wrap your content in a\u00a0<View>\u00a0and apply padding to that\u00a0<View>.<\/p>\n
\n<View style={{paddingHorizontal: 20, paddingVertical: 20}}>
\n<Text>Your text<\/Text>
\n<\/View>
\n<\/LinearGradient><\/p>\n
\n
\nSome custom fonts may not render correctly on iOS due to font family and weight handling in\u00a0RCTFontUtils.mm.<\/p>\n
![\"Proguard](\"https:\/\/tothenewco.pro\/blog\/wp-ttn-blog\/uploads\/2025\/09\/https___dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com_uploads_articles_biz5hmms7lkq0hxuizzg.webp\")
![\"Pod](\"https:\/\/tothenewco.pro\/blog\/wp-ttn-blog\/uploads\/2025\/09\/https___dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com_uploads_articles_jcwqz03yn2lc16ag0tek.webp\")