Build a React Native Chat App: A Step-by-Step Guide

Building a fully functional chat app using the best-in-class React Native chat SDK library is now simple & quick. Want to know how? Let’s get started .

In this tutorial, we will cover every detailed guide on how to integrate React Native chat components to build your app? with enriched features of sharing video, image uploads, read state, reactions, threads, and much more.

Let’s begin!

Why To Choose React Native?

React Native is a JavaScript framework meant for writing real, natively rendering mobile applications like iOS and Android. It gives space to the developers to share the same codes across multiple platforms to build their chat app. Furthermore, it has the potential to expand to future platforms as well. 
Some of the social media platforms like Facebook, TaskRabbit, and Palantir, are utilizing React Native in production for better user-facing applications.

8 High-end Benefits of A React Native Chat App

• Highly Compatible across the Platforms – specifies that the application that has been coded for Android can also be shared for iOS, which indeed save time as well as cost.
• Robust Community – this provides access to the user support and many other user created tools.
• Cost Effective and Time Saving – as you can create a single app and use it for both iOS as well as Android.
• Top Reloading Feature – works across all the mobile platform with ease.
• OTA (Over The Air) – an innovative update that enables the developers to let their users create and administer the recent updates.
• Highly Flexible – this allows any number of developers to work on the app project at once without any interruption enabling them to add any number of features.
• Open Source Framework – this attribute provides the developers with an easy accessibility to migrate from one platform to another.

How to Create A React Native App for Web & Mobile

To make this tutorial section much easier for you to understand, let’s get into the technical part of this react native chat app development for web applications.

Here, we will see a steps-by-step process to build a React Native chat app.

Step 1 – Build a Sample App – This process involves,

• Installing Modules
• License Key
• Run the Application

Step 2 – Integrate Sample App into an Existing Application with the below set of processes

• Initialize SDK
• Register
• Login
• Update User’s Profile

Create a React Native Chat App for Web

Whether you want to develop a new react native chat app or integrate the chat features into the existing web application, all you need is our sample app with a sandbox SDK.  Yes! our chat comes with a fully functional UI component that makes the entire development process more simple to add chat to your web.

So with all the backend coding part, Let’s get into the detailed description of these above mentioned steps

Step 1 – Install npm modules in the project’s root directory

npm install

Step 2 – Add License key in.env.uat file and validate the rest of the configurations – here the Sandbox endpoints are pointed out as default.

Step 3 – Use the below said command to run the application

npm run start:sandbox 

As soon as the execution is done, the application will run on http://127.0.0.1:3000 or http://localhost:3000

Step 4 – Integrate the Sample App into the Existing Application

If you want to integrate the MirrorFly’s UI into an existing web app then you have to follow the below mentioned methods

Step 5 : Initialize SDK into your application

const initializeObj = { 
   xmppSocketHost: `HOST`,
  xmppSocketPort: `PORT`,
   ssl: `SSL`,
   encryptKey: `ENCRYPT_KEY`,
   apiBaseUrl: `API_URL`,
  licenseKey: `LICENSE_KEY`,
  isSandbox: `SANDBOX_MODE`,
   callbackListeners: {},
  signalServer: `SIGNAL_SERVER`,
   janusUrl: `JANUS_URL`,
   };
   await SDK.initializeSDK(initializeObj);

Step 6 : You need to call the Register SDK method to create a new user profile using license key

await SDK.register(`USER_IDENTIFIER`);

Proceeding further, for both Request and Responses need to refer below method

Register

To begin with there is a need to create a new user account

If you get the autoLogin as true, then this will enable the user to login with XMPP after successful registration.

await SDK.register(`USER_IDENTIFIER`, `AUTO_LOGIN`);

Sample Responses - 

If autoLogin is true

{
statusCode: 200,
message: "Login Success"
}

if autoLogin is false

{
 statusCode: 200,
 message: "Success",
  data: {
    username: "123456789",
     password: "987654321"
     }
    }

Now use the credentials that has been received from the Register response, login using SDK

await SDK.login(`USERNAME`, `PASSWORD`);

Check for further Request and Responses

Example Request

Image as a URL

 await SDK.setUserProfile(
 "Name",
 "https://domain/path/image.png",
 "status",
 "1111111111",
 "email@domain",
  );

Image as a FILE

await SDK.setUserProfile("Name", FILE, "status", "1111111111", "email@domain");

When you want to sync the contacts with the License Key, use can use the Sync Contact Method

await SDK.syncContacts(`USER_IDENTIFIER`);

Once the entire process of registration and sync gets completed, you can refer to other profiles using one-to-one chat, and group chat methods.

Well, after having a better clarity with the importance of implementation of React Native in your chat app. Let’s get some ideas about the market launch strategy.

Key Points to Be Considered Before Launching a React Native Chat App!

The main target of every application is to reach the market, but this is not an easy journey. Let’s have a look at some of the key points that every react native chat app has to be considered before making market launch

• Chat Performance & Reliability : Once the chat app using react native SDK is developed, it is time for it to be tested for its performance and reliability. The performance issues will be detected upon real-time experience with perceptible latency, undelivered messages, or any app crash during the course.
• Privacy & Security Protocols : The legal issues like Terms of use and privacy policy is considered to be one of the major issues as they need to be very accurate and must be prepared under the survillenance of a lawyer before launching through play store.
  However, there are many other factors too but above mentioned are some major points for better understanding. Now, let’s see with CONTUS MirrorFly being the one for this entire react native chat app development.

Why Choose CONTUS MirrorFly SDK to Build your React Native Chat App?

When it comes to real-time communication API & SDK providers, you can find several out there – among which, choosing the best one is a big deal. But still, you can have them identified with certain key points like market experience, features, pricing, and so on.

Let’s talk about such one – The “CONTUS MirrorFly,” one among the top API and SDK provider who have marked their market existence for more than 10 year with over 40+ worldwide satisfied customers. Well, let’s get to know more about in detail with some of the highlights

1. Real-Time Communication Platform – CONTUS MirroFly works with multiple modes of communication that involves messaging, voice and video. It is a highly secure solution with over 150+ chat features that fits into the demands of all kinds of businesses.
2. High-Scalability – Enables to scale upto 1 billion + concurrent users around the world anytime with high-end security protocols of enterprises-grade.
3. High-end Security – It provides end-to-end security over the conversations among the users globally across multiple channels with SSL security, AES 256 encryption, multi-layer protection, etc.
4. Hosting Option – You can avail both on-premises and on-cloud hosting infrastructure, wherein you can have your data stored in your cloud or else in our cloud/premises as per your business requirements with guaranteed security.
5. 300+ Proficient Developers – Highly professional with perfection when it comes to an app’s delivery. CONTUS MirrorFly ensures you have on time delivery on your projects with 24/7 developers assistance till deployment.
6. White Label Solution – CONTUS MirrorFly offers ready-to-use APIs and SDKs that supports you to build your white label chat app with your company’s name, logo, color and custom features. This can be easily published into any play store like Google play, etc.
7. Pricing Model – Since, it is available with both SaaS and Saap based models, you can find both pricing models here i.e., Self-managed chat solution (one-time license cost) and Cloud (pay-as-you-go) pricing model as per your business requirement.

Final Words!

I hope this chat app tutorial would have given you a better idea as to how we built a fully-functioning React Native chat app using the React Native SDKs and component library and of course, with details on how to integrate them into any pre-build device with simple changes in codes.

Well, after all this session if you feel this tutorial is an inspiration for your app development, then feel free contact us for further guidance. By the way, you can also have a check with our other tutorials, for android and iOS for better exposure.

All the Best towards the Journey to Your Chat App. Thank You!