UI Kitten
React Native UI component library with a built-in light/dark theme system, for iOS, Android and web.akveo/react-native-ui-kitten
- Stars
- 10.7k
- Forks
- 962
- Licence
- MIT
- Language
- TypeScript
- Last update
- 1 months ago
- Type
- Library
What it is
UI Kitten is a set of more than 30 ready-made interface components (buttons, inputs, lists, tabs, modals and similar) for React Native apps. It follows the Eva Design System, so components share a consistent look that can be restyled with a theme. Developers use it to build iOS, Android and web apps without designing every control from scratch.
- Build a mobile app screen with buttons, inputs and a layout using pre-made components
- Add light and dark mode that switches at runtime without reloading the app
- Apply a custom brand theme on top of the Eva light or dark theme
- Add Eva Icons through the optional @ui-kitten/eva-icons package
Great for
- React Native developers who want a complete set of standard UI controls
- Teams that need light and dark themes or custom brand colours
- Apps that must run on iOS, Android and the web from one codebase
- TypeScript projects that want typed component props and refs
Not ideal for
- Developers who need a non-React Native stack, since it is built specifically for React Native and React
- Teams that want a fully custom visual design without adopting the Eva look, because the default style is opinionated
- Projects on very old React Native versions, since the README lists minimum versions (react-native 0.72, Expo SDK 49) that you must meet
How to get it
- 1
Install with a package manager
You'll need: Node.js · React Native 0.72+ or Expo SDK 49+
Expo install
npx expo install @ui-kitten/components @ui-kitten/eva react-native-svgBare React Native install
npm install @ui-kitten/components @ui-kitten/eva react-native-svgBare React Native iOS pods
cd ios && pod install - 2
Run it
- Install the packages with the Expo or bare React Native command
- Wrap your app root in ApplicationProvider and pass in the Eva mapping and a theme
- Render components such as Layout, Text and Button inside the provider
- Switch between eva.light and eva.dark to see the theme change
- 3
Get the most out of it
- Use eva.dark or your own theme spread over eva.light for runtime theme switching
- Add @ui-kitten/eva-icons to use the 480+ Eva Icons
- Install @ui-kitten/moment or @ui-kitten/date-fns for Calendar and Datepicker date handling
- Add @ui-kitten/metro-config to precompile styles at build time
- Read the Branding and Runtime Theming guides in the documentation
Downloads
Strengths
- Covers more than 30 common components with consistent styling
- Supports runtime theme switching and custom themes
- Ships TypeScript definitions for components and props
Trade-offs
- Requires several packages (components, eva, react-native-svg) and version alignment with your React Native setup
- The README says accessibility coverage is documented separately and may be partial, so check the guide before relying on it
- Major version 6 changed patterns such as the styled decorator, so older tutorials may not apply
How it compares
| Project | Stars | Type | Level | Updated | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| react-native-ui-kitten (this) | 10.7k | Library | intermediate | 1 months ago | React Native developers who want a complete set of standard UI controls |
| react-native-paper | 14.5k | Library | intermediate | 4 days ago | React Native developers who want ready-made Material Design components |
| NativeBase | 20.4k | Library | intermediate | 9 months ago | Teams maintaining an existing app already built on NativeBase |
| tamagui | 14.3k | Library | intermediate | 5 days ago | Teams building the same app for web and native with React |
| react-native-elements | 25.9k | Library | intermediate | 6 months ago | React Native developers who want ready-made UI components |
| daisyui | 42.7k | Library | intermediate | 6 days ago | Developers already using Tailwind CSS who want prebuilt components |
Stats synced from GitHub. The assessment above was drafted with AI from the project's README on 2026-10-29 and may miss recent changes — check the README before relying on a command. MIT licence: free to use, modify and distribute, including commercially, as long as you keep the copyright notice.