Can I import an existing React Native or Expo app into Draftbit?

Import lives under Migrate in the dashboard as Import App and behind the Continue from an existing project option when you create a project. It walks you through four steps: pick where the app is, point Draftbit at it, name it and choose an import mode, then review and import. You can paste the link to a public GitHub repository, connect your GitHub account and pick any repository you have access to including private ones, or upload a zip of the project folder. Draftbit confirms it can reach the project, looks for a package.json at the root or at a subpath you give for an app inside a larger repo, checks that the selected folder is a single JavaScript app and not a monorepo workspace root, and reads the dependencies to detect the framework. Expo apps become Mobile projects, Vite apps become Web projects, and Astro sites become Websites. A React Native app that does not depend on Expo, a Next.js app, or anything else is treated as unrecognized.

Then you choose how to bring it in, and the choice is permanent for that project. Migrate to Draftbit asks an agent to plan and run a migration to Draftbit’s conventions. For an Expo app that means Expo Router for screens, NativeWind for styling with StyleSheet code converted where the conversion is mechanical, an app.config.js, strict TypeScript, and working web support because the sandbox preview is the web build. The agent keeps your existing components, icons, and theming approach, upgrades a very old Expo SDK one version at a time, and reports any abandoned packages it replaces. You get the full builder afterwards, at the cost of a large diff. Import with minimal changes keeps your code and tooling as they are in a simplified builder where you can chat with the agent, edit code, and run a preview. Draftbit’s framework-specific tooling stays off and no agent runs on import. Unrecognized frameworks can only use this mode.

Draftbit copies the repository’s default branch into a new project at import time and does not keep a live link to the original repo, so finish or freeze work there first. The migration is an agent run, so it uses credits or your own provider key like any other agent work, and the new project counts toward your plan’s project limit.

If you built the original in Draftbit Classic, use the V1 Apps tab instead. It creates an upgraded copy, leaves the original untouched, and requires Expo Router to be enabled in the Classic app first. For a large codebase, or if you would rather hand the migration to someone, Draftbit experts can run it for you.