upgrading-expo Skill | Agent Skills

When to Use

Use this skill when you need guidelines for upgrading Expo SDK versions and fixing dependency issues.

References

./references/react-19.md -- SDK +54: React 19 changes (useContext → use, Context.Provider → Context, forwardRef removal)
./references/new-architecture.md -- SDK +53: New Architecture migration guide
./references/react-compiler.md -- SDK +54: React Compiler setup and migration guide
./references/native-tabs.md -- SDK +55: Native tabs changes (Icon/Label/Badge now accessed via NativeTabs.Trigger.*)
./references/expo-av-to-audio.md -- SDK +55: Migrate audio playback and recording from expo-av to expo-audio
./references/expo-av-to-video.md -- SDK +55: Migrate video playback from expo-av to expo-video
./references/react-navigation-to-expo-router.md -- SDK +56: Migrate @react-navigation/* imports to expo-router entry points (codemod + manual mapping)

Beta/Preview Releases

Beta versions use .preview suffix (e.g., 55.0.0-preview.2), published under @next tag.

Check if latest is beta: https://exp.host/--/api/v2/versions (look for -preview in expoVersion)

npx expo install expo@next --fix  # install beta

Step-by-Step Upgrade Process

Upgrade Expo and dependencies

npx expo install expo@latest
npx expo install --fix

Run diagnostics: npx expo-doctor
Clear caches and reinstall

npx expo export -p ios --clear
rm -rf node_modules .expo
watchman watch-del-all

Breaking Changes Checklist

Check for removed APIs in release notes
Update import paths for moved modules
Review native module changes requiring prebuild
Test all camera, audio, and video features
Verify navigation still works correctly

Prebuild for Native Changes

First check if ios/ and android/ directories exist in the project. If neither directory exists, the project uses Continuous Native Generation (CNG) and native projects are regenerated at build time — skip this section and "Clear caches for bare workflow" entirely.

If upgrading requires native changes:

npx expo prebuild --clean

This regenerates the ios and android directories. Ensure the project is not a bare workflow app before running this command.

Clear caches for bare workflow

These steps only apply when ios/ and/or android/ directories exist in the project:

Clear the cocoapods cache for iOS: cd ios && pod install --repo-update
Clear derived data for Xcode: npx expo run:ios --no-build-cache
Clear the Gradle cache for Android: cd android && ./gradlew clean

Housekeeping

Review release notes for the target SDK version at https://expo.dev/changelog
If using Expo SDK 54 or later, ensure react-native-worklets is installed — this is required for react-native-reanimated to work.
Enable React Compiler in SDK 54+ by adding "experiments": { "reactCompiler": true } to app.json — it's stable and recommended
Delete sdkVersion from app.json to let Expo manage it automatically
Remove implicit packages from package.json: @babel/core, babel-preset-expo, expo-constants.
If the babel.config.js only contains 'babel-preset-expo', delete the file
If the metro.config.js only contains expo defaults, delete the file

Deprecated Packages

| Old Package | Replacement | | -------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------- | | expo-av | expo-audio and expo-video | | expo-permissions | Individual package permission APIs | | @expo/vector-icons | expo-symbols (for SF Symbols) | | AsyncStorage | expo-sqlite/localStorage/install | | expo-app-loading | expo-splash-screen | | expo-linear-gradient | experimental_backgroundImage + CSS gradients in View |

When migrating deprecated packages, update all code usage before removing the old package. For expo-av, consult the migration references to convert Audio.Sound to useAudioPlayer, Audio.Recording to useAudioRecorder, and Video components to VideoView with useVideoPlayer.

expo.install.exclude

Check if package.json has excluded packages:

{
  "expo": { "install": { "exclude": ["react-native-reanimated"] } }
}

Exclusions are often workarounds that may no longer be needed after upgrading. Review each one.

Removing patches

Check if there are any outdated patches in the patches/ directory. Remove them if they are no longer needed.

Postcss

autoprefixer isn't needed in SDK +53. Remove it from dependencies and check postcss.config.js or postcss.config.mjs to remove it from the plugins list.
Use postcss.config.mjs in SDK +53.

Metro

Remove redundant metro config options:

resolver.unstable_enablePackageExports is enabled by default in SDK +53.
experimentalImportSupport is enabled by default in SDK +54.
EXPO_USE_FAST_RESOLVER=1 is removed in SDK +54.
cjs and mjs extensions are supported by default in SDK +50.
Expo webpack is deprecated, migrate to Expo Router and Metro web.

Hermes engine v1

Since SDK 55, users can opt-in to use Hermes engine v1 for improved runtime performance. This requires setting useHermesV1: true in the expo-build-properties config plugin, and may require a specific version of the hermes-compiler npm package. Hermes v1 will become a default in some future SDK release.

New Architecture

The new architecture is enabled by default, the app.json field "newArchEnabled": true is no longer needed as it's the default. Expo Go only supports the new architecture as of SDK +53.

Limitations

Use this skill only when the task clearly matches its upstream product or API scope.
Verify commands, API behavior, pricing, quotas, credentials, and deployment effects against current official documentation before making changes.
Do not treat generated examples as a substitute for environment-specific tests, security review, or user approval for destructive or costly actions.

Agent Skills: upgrading-expo

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