Exploring React Native 0.85: A New Animation Engine, Enhanced Developer Tools, and More

Introduction

React Native 0.85 has officially arrived, bringing a wave of performance improvements, new features, and important changes that developers need to know about. This release introduces a completely reworked animation backend, upgrades the developer experience with improved DevTools, adds TLS support for Metro, and includes several breaking changes. In this article, we’ll dive into the key highlights and explain how they impact your React Native projects.

Key Highlights

New Animation Backend

One of the most significant additions in React Native 0.85 is the Shared Animation Backend, developed in collaboration with Software Mansion. This new internal engine powers both Animated and Reanimated under the hood, moving the main animation update logic directly into React Native core. By centralizing this logic, Reanimated can now achieve performance improvements that were previously impossible. It also ensures that the update reconciliation process is thoroughly tested and remains stable across future React Native versions.

A key benefit for developers using the Animated API: you can now animate layout properties (such as Flexbox and position values) with the native driver. Previously, this was limited to certain properties—now you have full flexibility.

To see examples in action, check out the demos located in react-native/packages/rn-tester/js/examples/AnimationBackend/. Note that this experimental feature is available starting from React Native 0.85.1, which will be released shortly. To opt in, enable the experimental channel of React Native as described in the official documentation.

React Native DevTools Improvements

React Native DevTools receives several enhancements in version 0.85:

• Multiple CDP connections: The DevTools now support multiple simultaneous Chrome DevTools Protocol connections. This means clients like React Native DevTools, VS Code, and AI agents can all connect at the same time without interfering with each other. The result is a richer, more composable tooling workflow.
• Native tabs on macOS: The desktop app has been compiled for macOS 26, and now includes system-level tab handling. Power users can merge all DevTools windows via Window > Merge All Windows when multiple windows are open.
• Request payload previews restored on Android: After a regression disabled request body previews in the Network Panel, this feature is now back on Android, making debugging network requests easier.

Metro TLS Support

Metro, the default bundler for React Native, now accepts a TLS configuration object. This enables HTTPS for the dev server and WSS for Fast Refresh during development, giving you a more secure local development environment.

Breaking Changes

Jest Preset Moved to New Package

In React Native 0.85, the Jest preset has been decoupled from the main package and moved to a dedicated package. This change may affect how you configure testing in your projects. If you were relying on the default Jest preset, you’ll need to update your Jest configuration to point to the new package location. Check the migration guide for details.

Dropped Support for End-of-Life Node.js Versions

React Native 0.85 no longer supports Node.js versions that have reached their end-of-life. This includes Node.js 16 and earlier. Make sure your development environment is running a supported Node.js version (18 or 20 recommended) to avoid compatibility issues.

StyleSheet.absoluteFillObject Removed

The StyleSheet.absoluteFillObject method has been removed. Developers should use StyleSheet.absoluteFill instead, which provides the same functionality. Update your code accordingly to prevent errors.

Other Breaking Changes

There are additional breaking changes in this release. For a complete list, refer to the official React Native changelog. It’s advisable to review these changes thoroughly before upgrading your project.

Conclusion

React Native 0.85 delivers meaningful improvements across the board—from a more efficient animation engine to a better debugging experience and enhanced security. The breaking changes, while requiring some migration effort, pave the way for a more stable and modern development environment. Upgrade today and take advantage of these new capabilities!