cometchat-react-native-expo-patterns

Ground truth: @cometchat/chat-uikit-react-native@5 + catalog rn-v5.json. Docs: /ui-kit/react-native/expo-integration · expo-conversation · expo-tab-based-chat.

Companion skills (read first)

• cometchat-react-native-core — install, provider chain, init→login→render. Assumed, not repeated here.
• cometchat-react-native-bare-patterns — the bare React Native CLI equivalent. Use that one, not this, for a non-Expo app.

Use this skill when

• the project has app.json/app.config.js with an expo key, or expo in package.json
• "add chat to my Expo app" · "chat isn't working in Expo Go"

Prerequisites & install

⚠️ Expo Go does not work — and this is the #1 support issue

The UI Kit ships custom native modules. Expo Go is a fixed prebuilt binary that cannot load them. There is no workaround, no config flag, and nothing to fix in code. You need a development build.

Symptom: the app runs in Expo Go but chat screens crash or render nothing, with a NativeModule error that names gesture-handler / svg / video rather than CometChat — so it reads as unrelated.