---
id: upgrading
title: Upgrading
layout: docs
category: Guides
permalink: docs/upgrading.html
next: platform-specific-code
previous: performance
---

Upgrading to new versions of React Native will give you access to more APIs, views, developer tools
and other goodies. Because React Native projects are essentially made up of an Android project, an
iOS project and a JavaScript project, all combined under an npm package, upgrading can be rather
tricky. But we try to make it easy for you. Here's what you need to do to upgrade from an older
version of React Native:

## 1. Upgrade the `react-native` dependency

Note the latest version of the `react-native` npm package from here (or use `npm info react-native` to check):

* https://www.npmjs.com/package/react-native

Now install that version of `react-native` in your project with `npm install --save`.

```sh
$ npm install --save react-native@X.Y 
# where X.Y is the semantic version you are upgrading to
```

## 2. Upgrade your project templates

The new npm package will likely contain updates to the files that are normally generated when you
run `react-native init`, like the iOS and the Android sub-projects. To get these latest changes,
run this in a terminal:

```sh
$ react-native upgrade
```

This will check your files against the latest template and perform the following:

* If there is a new file in the template, it is simply created.
* If a file in the template is identical to your file, it is skipped.
* If a file is different in your project than the template, you will be prompted; you have options
  to view a diff between your file and the template file, keep your file or overwrite it with the
  template version. If you are unsure, press `h` to get a list of possible commands.


# Manual Upgrades

Some upgrades require manual steps, e.g. 0.13 to 0.14, or 0.28 to 0.29. Be sure to check the [release notes](https://github.com/facebook/react-native/releases) when upgrading so that you can identify any manual changes your particular project may require.