react-native-audio
A React Native library for recording audio on iOS and Android with configurable encoding and quality.
What is react-native-audio?
react-native-audio is a React Native library that provides audio recording capabilities for iOS and Android applications. It solves the problem of capturing audio in mobile apps by offering a cross-platform API with configurable encoding, quality, and metering options. The library handles native permissions and file management, simplifying audio capture in React Native projects.
React Native developers building mobile applications that require audio recording features, such as voice memos, interviews, or audio note-taking apps.
Developers choose react-native-audio for its straightforward API, cross-platform consistency, and fine-grained control over audio settings without the overhead of playback functionality. It integrates seamlessly with React Native's ecosystem and defers playback to specialized libraries.
Overview
Audio recorder library for React Native
Use Cases
Best For
- Adding voice memo functionality to a React Native app
- Building an interview recording application for mobile
- Creating audio note-taking apps with configurable quality
- Implementing audio capture for speech-to-text features
- Developing cross-platform apps that require audio recording on iOS and Android
- Projects needing real-time audio level monitoring during recording
Not Ideal For
- Projects requiring MP3 audio recording format, as it's not supported by the underlying platforms.
- Teams needing an actively maintained library with regular updates and community support for bug fixes.
- Applications demanding full feature parity across iOS and Android, such as audio metering on both platforms.
- Developers looking for an all-in-one solution that includes both audio recording and playback capabilities.
Pros & Cons
Pros
Provides a unified JavaScript API for recording on both iOS and Android, reducing the need for platform-specific code and simplifying development.
Allows fine-grained control over sample rates, channels, and encoding formats like AAC and AMR, as detailed in the usage examples for precise audio capture.
Supports current and peak audio level monitoring via MeteringEnabled, enabling features like volume visualization during recording, though limited to iOS.
Includes an IncludeBase64 flag to output audio data as base64 in events, useful for quick processing without file operations, though with performance caveats.
Cons
The project is no longer actively maintained by the original author, meaning no bug fixes, security updates, or support for newer React Native versions.
Features like audio metering are iOS-only, and encoding support varies between platforms (e.g., AAC on both, but AMR specifics differ), limiting cross-platform consistency.
Requires manual native configuration (e.g., editing Info.plist and AndroidManifest.xml) and has breaking changes across React Native versions, complicating integration and upgrades.
Frequently Asked Questions
Related Projects
react-native-cameraA Camera component for React Native. Also supports barcode scanning!
react-native-videoA <Video /> component for react-native
react-native-track-playerThe best audio player for React Native. Built on the New Architecture — Android Auto, caching, preloading, background playback, and more.
react-native-soundReact Native module for playing sound clips
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