React Native Elements vs React Native Paper
Which should you use? A side-by-side look at what each one does, who it suits, what it costs, how hard it is to set up, and where each falls short.
Open source · MIT
A library of ready-made UI components for building React Native apps on iOS, Android and web.
Open source · MIT
A React Native UI kit of Material Design components for Android and iOS apps.
The short answer
Choose React Native Elements if you need…
- React Native developers who want ready-made UI components
- Teams sharing one codebase across mobile and React web apps
- Developers prototyping a mobile interface quickly
- Developers who want to use the Expo demo app as a reference for component usage
Choose React Native Paper if you need…
- React Native developers who want ready-made Material Design components
- Teams building iOS and Android apps with a shared codebase
- Developers who want theming control over colors and styles
- Projects that need components which adapt to each platform's conventions
Side-by-side
| React Native Elements | React Native Paper | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Library | Library |
| Price | Free and open source | Free and open source |
| Licence | MIT | MIT |
| GitHub stars | 25.9k | 14.5k |
| Setup difficulty | Intermediate | Intermediate |
| How you get it | Install with a package manager | Install with a package manager |
| Main language | MDX | TypeScript |
| Last code update | 6 months ago | 4 days ago |
What each one is
React Native Elements
React Native Elements is a set of pre-built user interface components, such as buttons, that developers can drop into apps written with React Native. It is meant to help teams build iOS and Android apps with a consistent look without designing every control from scratch. The README also says the components can be used on the web through React Native for Web.
React Native Paper
React Native Paper is a UI kit library for React Native that provides a set of customizable components following Google's Material Design guidelines. It helps developers build mobile apps that look consistent on both Android and iOS without designing every button and form control from scratch. It also supports theming so the look can be adjusted to match an app's brand.
Best for
React Native Elements
- React Native developers who want ready-made UI components
- Teams sharing one codebase across mobile and React web apps
- Developers prototyping a mobile interface quickly
- Developers who want to use the Expo demo app as a reference for component usage
React Native Paper
- React Native developers who want ready-made Material Design components
- Teams building iOS and Android apps with a shared codebase
- Developers who want theming control over colors and styles
- Projects that need components which adapt to each platform's conventions
Strengths
React Native Elements
- Maintained with a public docs site, Discord, and active release history (v5.0.0 listed as latest)
- Open source under the MIT license, which allows free commercial use
- Supports cross-platform use and web sharing as described in the README
React Native Paper
- Components follow Material Design guidelines by default
- Works on both iOS and Android and follows platform adaptation guidelines
- Includes theming support and is MIT licensed
Not ideal for
React Native Elements
- People who do not write React or JavaScript code, since it is a developer library
- Projects that need a fully custom design system, because the README does not describe theming depth beyond the packages it names
- Developers needing web support without React Native for Web, since the README links that setup as a separate walkthrough
React Native Paper
- Developers who are not using React Native, since this library is built specifically for it
- Teams that need a non-Material visual style without heavy customization, because the defaults follow Material Design
- Non-developers looking for a no-code tool
Trade-offs
React Native Elements
- The README is truncated and gives few concrete details about the component list or theming options
- Requires knowledge of React Native, so it is not beginner-friendly for non-programmers
- Web support depends on an additional setup described outside the README
React Native Paper
- Focused on Material Design, so it is less suited to apps wanting a different visual language
- Installation and setup details are in the external documentation rather than the README shown here
Getting started
React Native Elements
Install the core packages
npm install @rneui/themed @rneui/baseReact Native Paper
Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/callstack/react-native-paperFrequently asked questions
What is the difference between React Native Elements and React Native Paper?
React Native Elements: A library of ready-made UI components for building React Native apps on iOS, Android and web. React Native Paper: A React Native UI kit of Material Design components for Android and iOS apps. React Native Elements suits react native developers who want ready-made ui components, while React Native Paper suits react native developers who want ready-made material design components.
Are React Native Elements and React Native Paper free?
React Native Elements: Free and open source. React Native Paper: Free and open source.
Is React Native Elements or React Native Paper more popular?
React Native Elements has more GitHub stars (25.9k) than React Native Paper (14.5k). Popularity isn't the same as fit — check which one matches your use case above.
What are other alternatives to React Native Elements and React Native Paper?
Other options people compare them with include NativeBase, Tamagui, UI Kitten, Radix Primitives, Evergreen.
Keep comparing
Built from our catalogue entries for both products: open-source details come from each project's README (AI-assisted, refreshed weekly) and GitHub data; AI-tool details are editorial. Spotted something wrong? Let us know from either product's page.