---
title: 'Use Supabase with Expo React Native'
subtitle: 'Learn how to create a Supabase project, add some sample data to your database, and query the data from an Expo app.'
breadcrumb: 'Framework Quickstarts'
hideToc: true
---

<StepHikeCompact>

  <StepHikeCompact.Step step={1}>

    <$Partial path="quickstart_db_setup.mdx" />

  </StepHikeCompact.Step>

  <StepHikeCompact.Step step={2}>

    <StepHikeCompact.Details title="Create an Expo app">

    Create a minimal Expo app using the `create-expo-app` command with the blank TypeScript template.

    <$Partial path="uiLibCta.mdx" />

    </StepHikeCompact.Details>

    <StepHikeCompact.Code>

      ```bash name=Terminal
      npx create-expo-app my-app --template blank-typescript
      ```

    </StepHikeCompact.Code>

  </StepHikeCompact.Step>

  <StepHikeCompact.Step step={3}>
    <StepHikeCompact.Details title="Install the Supabase client library">

    The fastest way to get started is to use the `@supabase/supabase-js` client library which provides a convenient interface for working with Supabase from a React Native app.

    Navigate to the Expo app and install `supabase-js` along with the required dependencies for secure storage and URL handling.

    </StepHikeCompact.Details>

    <StepHikeCompact.Code>

      ```bash name=Terminal
      cd my-app && npx expo install @supabase/supabase-js react-native-url-polyfill expo-sqlite
      ```

    </StepHikeCompact.Code>

  </StepHikeCompact.Step>

  <StepHikeCompact.Step step={4}>
    <StepHikeCompact.Details title="Declare Supabase Environment Variables">

    Create a `.env` file in the root of your project and populate it with your Supabase connection variables.

    Expo requires environment variables to be prefixed with `EXPO_PUBLIC_` to be accessible in your app code.

    <ProjectConfigVariables variable="url" />
    <ProjectConfigVariables variable="publishable" />
    <ProjectConfigVariables variable="anon" />

    </StepHikeCompact.Details>

    <StepHikeCompact.Code>

      ```text name=.env
      EXPO_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_URL=<SUBSTITUTE_SUPABASE_URL>
      EXPO_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_PUBLISHABLE_KEY=<SUBSTITUTE_SUPABASE_PUBLISHABLE_KEY>
      ```
      <$Partial path="api_settings_steps.mdx" variables={{ "framework": "", "tab": "" }} />

    </StepHikeCompact.Code>

  </StepHikeCompact.Step>

  <StepHikeCompact.Step step={5}>
    <StepHikeCompact.Details title="Initialize the Supabase client">

    Create a helper file at `lib/supabase.ts` to initialize the Supabase client using the environment variables.

    The code below uses Expo's localStorage polyfill to persist authentication sessions.

    </StepHikeCompact.Details>

    <StepHikeCompact.Code>

      ```ts name=lib/supabase.ts
      import 'react-native-url-polyfill/auto'
      import { createClient } from '@supabase/supabase-js'
      import 'expo-sqlite/localStorage/install';

      const supabaseUrl = process.env.EXPO_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_URL
      const supabaseAnonKey = process.env.EXPO_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_PUBLISHABLE_KEY

      export const supabase = createClient(supabaseUrl, supabaseAnonKey, {
        auth: {
          storage: localStorage,
          autoRefreshToken: true,
          persistSession: true,
          detectSessionInUrl: false,
        },
      })
      ```

    </StepHikeCompact.Code>

  </StepHikeCompact.Step>

  <StepHikeCompact.Step step={6}>
    <StepHikeCompact.Details title="Query data from the app">

    Replace the contents of `App.tsx` with the following code to fetch and display the instruments from your database.

    Use `useEffect` to fetch the data when the component mounts and display the query result using React Native components.

    </StepHikeCompact.Details>
    <StepHikeCompact.Code>

      ```tsx name=App.tsx
      import { useEffect, useState } from 'react'
      import { StyleSheet, View, FlatList, Text } from 'react-native'
      import { supabase } from './lib/supabase'

      export default function App() {
        const [instruments, setInstruments] = useState([])

        useEffect(() => {
          getInstruments()
        }, [])

        async function getInstruments() {
          const { data } = await supabase.from('instruments').select()
          setInstruments(data)
        }

        return (
          <View style={styles.container}>
            <FlatList
              data={instruments}
              keyExtractor={(item) => item.id.toString()}
              renderItem={({ item }) => (
                <Text style={styles.item}>{item.name}</Text>
              )}
            />
          </View>
        )
      }

      const styles = StyleSheet.create({
        container: {
          flex: 1,
          backgroundColor: '#fff',
          paddingTop: 50,
          paddingHorizontal: 16,
        },
        item: {
          padding: 16,
          borderBottomWidth: 1,
          borderBottomColor: '#ccc',
        },
      })
      ```

    </StepHikeCompact.Code>

  </StepHikeCompact.Step>

  <StepHikeCompact.Step step={7}>
    <StepHikeCompact.Details title="Start the app">

    Run the development server and scan the QR code with the Expo Go app on your phone, or press `i` for iOS simulator or `a` for Android emulator.

    </StepHikeCompact.Details>

    <StepHikeCompact.Code>

      ```bash name=Terminal
      npx expo start
      ```

    </StepHikeCompact.Code>

  </StepHikeCompact.Step>

</StepHikeCompact>

## Next steps

- Set up [Auth](/docs/guides/auth) for your app
- [Insert more data](/docs/guides/database/import-data) into your database
- Upload and serve static files using [Storage](/docs/guides/storage)
