Environment Setup

Introduction

If you already have a GitHub account, an AI-powered IDE (like Cursor or AntiGravity), and a working environment to run React Native and Expo apps, you can skip this section and go directly to the Quick Start.

This guide focuses strictly on setting up the necessary tools to develop and build your mobile application.

Already have a setup? If your machine is already configured for React Native/Expo development, run the Verification steps at the bottom of this page to ensure everything is ready.

Core Requirements

Node.js (Required - All Platforms)

Install Node.js via Homebrew:

brew install node@20

Add to your shell configuration (~/.zshrc):

export PATH="/opt/homebrew/opt/node@20/bin:$PATH"

Reload your shell:

source ~/.zshrc

Install Node.js via Chocolatey (run PowerShell as Administrator):

choco install nodejs-lts

Install Node.js via NodeSource:

curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_20.x | sudo -E bash -
sudo apt-get install -y nodejs

Verify installation:

node --version
# Should output: v20.x.x or higher

Yarn (Required - Package Manager)

This boilerplate uses Yarn, not npm.

npm install -g yarn

Verify installation:

yarn --version

Java Development Kit (Required for Android)

React Native requires JDK 17.

Install via Homebrew:

brew install --cask zulu@17

Add to ~/.zshrc:

export JAVA_HOME=/Library/Java/JavaVirtualMachines/zulu-17.jdk/Contents/Home

Install via Chocolatey (PowerShell as Administrator):

choco install -y microsoft-openjdk17

Install via apt:

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install openjdk-17-jdk

Verify installation:

java -version
# Should output: openjdk version "17.x.x"

Watchman (Recommended - macOS/Linux)

Watchman improves file watching performance during development.

brew install watchman

sudo apt-get install watchman

If not available via apt, compile from source following the official instructions.

Supported Development Environments

Development OS	Target: Android	Target: iOS
macOS	✅ Supported	✅ Supported
Windows	✅ Supported	❌ Mac required
Linux	✅ Supported	❌ Mac required

iOS development requires macOS. Windows and Linux users can use EAS Build to build iOS apps in the cloud without local setup.

Verification

To ensure your environment is correctly configured, run the following commands in your terminal:

# Verify Node.js
node --version # Expected: v20.x.x

# Verify Yarn
yarn --version # Expected: 1.x.x

# Verify Java
java -version # Expected: openjdk version "17.x.x"

# Verify Watchman (macOS/Linux)
watchman --version

If all commands return the expected versions, your core environment is ready.

Next Steps

IDE Setup, CRITICAL: Configure Cursor or AntiGravity before writing any code.
iOS Setup, Xcode and Simulator configuration (macOS only)
Android Setup, Android Studio and Emulator setup
Quick Start, Clone and run the boilerplate

Environment Setup

On this page