Gifted Chat vs why-did-you-render
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 ready-made chat screen component for React Native apps, with messages, replies, and reactions.
Open source · MIT
A development-only tool that logs React re-renders that may be avoidable, so you can find slow spots.
The short answer
Choose Gifted Chat if you need…
- Developers building a chat or messaging screen in a React Native app
- Teams using Expo who want a drop-in chat interface
- Projects that need swipe-to-reply, quick replies, or emoji reactions
- Developers who want to override chat components with their own implementations
Choose why-did-you-render if you need…
- React developers investigating slow screens with many memoized or pure components
- Teams debugging why a large memo component keeps re-rendering after a prop like an inline style object changes
- Developers who want to track custom hooks such as useSelector from React Redux
- React Native developers using Metro or Expo with a Babel setup
Side-by-side
| Gifted Chat | why-did-you-render | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Library | Library |
| Price | Free and open source | Free and open source |
| Licence | MIT | MIT |
| GitHub stars | 14.4k | 12.5k |
| Setup difficulty | Intermediate | Intermediate |
| How you get it | Install with a package manager | Install with a package manager |
| Main language | TypeScript | JavaScript |
| Last code update | 18 days ago | 7 months ago |
What each one is
Gifted Chat
React Native Gifted Chat is a TypeScript component library that gives app developers a complete chat screen: message list, input box, avatars, timestamps, and similar chat features. Developers drop it into an iOS, Android, or web app instead of building chat UI from scratch. The README says it is now in maintenance mode, and active development has moved to a maintained fork.
why-did-you-render
Why Did You Render is a library that hooks into React and prints notices when a component re-renders even though its props or state did not meaningfully change. It is aimed at developers hunting for performance problems in React and React Native apps. The README says it should only be used in development, since it noticeably slows React down.
Best for
Gifted Chat
- Developers building a chat or messaging screen in a React Native app
- Teams using Expo who want a drop-in chat interface
- Projects that need swipe-to-reply, quick replies, or emoji reactions
- Developers who want to override chat components with their own implementations
why-did-you-render
- React developers investigating slow screens with many memoized or pure components
- Teams debugging why a large memo component keeps re-rendering after a prop like an inline style object changes
- Developers who want to track custom hooks such as useSelector from React Redux
- React Native developers using Metro or Expo with a Babel setup
Strengths
Gifted Chat
- Large feature set listed in the README, including reactions, read ticks, typing indicator, and link parsing
- Ships with TypeScript definitions and works with Expo and react-native-web
- Permissive MIT license and a large, active user base by star count
why-did-you-render
- Targets a specific problem: showing when a re-render may be avoidable, with reasons
- Works with React Native as well as React web apps, according to the README
- Simple opt-in: enable tracking for all pure components or mark individual components
Not ideal for
Gifted Chat
- Teams starting a new project, since the README encourages using the maintained fork instead (@kesha-antonov/react-native-chat)
- People who need a finished chat app without writing any code, since this is a component for developers
- Projects that cannot install the extra required packages such as reanimated and gesture-handler
why-did-you-render
- Production builds, because the README warns it significantly slows React and monkey patches it, which can cause unexpected behavior
- Projects using React Compiler, which the README says was not tested with the library and is believed to be incompatible
- Projects on React 18 or older without using the matching older version branch (v8 for React 18, v7 for React 16/17)
- Users who want Mobx support, which the README says is currently not supported
Trade-offs
Gifted Chat
- The README says the package is in maintenance mode and is not receiving new features
- Requires several companion libraries and a Babel plugin setup for react-native-reanimated
- Setup requires knowledge of React Native and navigation header offsets
why-did-you-render
- Only tested with React 19 in the current version; older React versions need older releases
- Must be kept out of production builds and monkey patches React, so setup needs care
- The README notes that not every re-render is a problem, and chasing them can add complexity without benefit
Getting started
Gifted Chat
Expo projects
npx expo install react-native-gifted-chat react-native-reanimated react-native-gesture-handler react-native-safe-area-context react-native-keyboard-controllerBare React Native with yarn
yarn add react-native-gifted-chat react-native-reanimated react-native-gesture-handler react-native-safe-area-context react-native-keyboard-controllerwhy-did-you-render
Install as a dev dependency with npm
npm install @welldone-software/why-did-you-render --save-devInstall as a dev dependency with yarn
yarn add @welldone-software/why-did-you-render -DFrequently asked questions
What is the difference between Gifted Chat and why-did-you-render?
Gifted Chat: A ready-made chat screen component for React Native apps, with messages, replies, and reactions. why-did-you-render: A development-only tool that logs React re-renders that may be avoidable, so you can find slow spots. Gifted Chat suits developers building a chat or messaging screen in a react native app, while why-did-you-render suits react developers investigating slow screens with many memoized or pure components.
Are Gifted Chat and why-did-you-render free?
Gifted Chat: Free and open source. why-did-you-render: Free and open source.
Is Gifted Chat or why-did-you-render more popular?
Gifted Chat has more GitHub stars (14.4k) than why-did-you-render (12.5k). Popularity isn't the same as fit — check which one matches your use case above.
What are other alternatives to Gifted Chat and why-did-you-render?
Other options people compare them with include React Scan, TanStack Query, react-virtualized, Million.js, Inferno.
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.