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Dainy Jose
Dainy Jose

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Edge-to-Edge Styling in React Native on Android 15

#reactnative #android #mobile #ui

Google’s Android 15 pushes developers toward edge-to-edge design, encouraging apps to extend content seamlessly behind the status and navigation bars.

If you’re building with React Native, you might have noticed layout issues or unexpected spacing after updating. This guide will show you how to:

  1. Enable immersive edge-to-edge layouts properly.

  2. Style your system bars for a modern look.

  3. Apply a quick fix if you just want your app working without redesigning right away.

🚀 Why Edge-to-Edge?

By default, React Native apps avoid overlapping with system bars by applying safe padding. While functional, this can feel outdated compared to modern immersive apps.

Benefits of edge-to-edge design:

  • Immersive user experience

  • Maximized screen space

  • Seamless blending with system UI

⚙️ Step 1: Configure Android Window Settings

Open your project’s MainActivity.java (or MainActivity.kt) and update the window in onCreate:

import android.os.Bundle;
import androidx.core.view.WindowCompat;

@Override
protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
  super.onCreate(null);

  // Enable edge-to-edge layout
  WindowCompat.setDecorFitsSystemWindows(getWindow(), false);
}
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This tells Android not to inset your layout automatically, giving React Native full control of the screen.

🎨 Step 2: Use react-native-safe-area-context

Install the package:

yarn add react-native-safe-area-context
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Wrap your app with SafeAreaProvider:

import React from "react";
import { SafeAreaProvider, SafeAreaView } from "react-native-safe-area-context";
import { Text, StyleSheet } from "react-native";

export default function App() {
  return (
    <SafeAreaProvider>
      <SafeAreaView
        style={styles.container}
        edges={["top", "bottom", "left", "right"]}
      >
        <Text style={styles.text}>🌐 Edge-to-Edge in Android 15</Text>
      </SafeAreaView>
    </SafeAreaProvider>
  );
}

const styles = StyleSheet.create({
  container: {
    flex: 1,
    backgroundColor: "#121212", // Dark theme background
    justifyContent: "center",
    alignItems: "center",
  },
  text: {
    color: "white",
    fontSize: 20,
  },
});
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Here, edges={["top", "bottom", "left", "right"]} ensures content adjusts safely while still extending edge-to-edge.

🎨 Step 3: Match System Bar Colors

To avoid jarring contrasts, update system bar styling in MainActivity.java:

import android.os.Build;
import android.view.WindowInsetsController;
import android.graphics.Color;

@Override
protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
  super.onCreate(null);
  WindowCompat.setDecorFitsSystemWindows(getWindow(), false);

  // Make status & navigation bars transparent
  getWindow().setStatusBarColor(Color.TRANSPARENT);
  getWindow().setNavigationBarColor(Color.TRANSPARENT);

  if (Build.VERSION.SDK_INT >= Build.VERSION_CODES.R) {
    WindowInsetsController controller = getWindow().getInsetsController();
    if (controller != null) {
      controller.setSystemBarsAppearance(
        WindowInsetsController.APPEARANCE_LIGHT_STATUS_BARS,
        WindowInsetsController.APPEARANCE_LIGHT_STATUS_BARS
      );
    }
  }
}
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This ensures your status bar and navigation bar are transparent and icons adapt for visibility.

📱 Step 4: Test Across Themes

  • ✅ Light theme → verify text/icons are visible against bright backgrounds.

  • ✅ Dark theme → use transparent bars with white icons for contrast.

⚡ Quick Fix: Opt-Out of Edge-to-Edge

If your app’s layout breaks after upgrading to Android 15 and you don’t want to fix UI right away, you can temporarily opt out of edge-to-edge.

1️⃣ Update AndroidManifest.xml

Path: android/app/src/main/AndroidManifest.xml

<meta-data
    android:name="android.window.extensions.disableEdgeToEdge"
    android:value="true" />
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2️⃣ Update styles.xml

Path: android/app/src/main/res/values/styles.xml

<item name="android:windowOptOutEdgeToEdgeEnforcement">true</item>
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✅ Done! Your app will behave like before, ignoring Android 15’s enforcement.

⚠️ Note: This should be treated as a temporary solution. Long-term, adopt edge-to-edge for the best UX.

🔎 Final Thoughts

With Android 15, edge-to-edge styling is not just optional—it’s the new standard.

You now have two paths:

  • Go immersive → Adopt edge-to-edge with WindowCompat, react-native-safe-area-context, and transparent bars.

  • Play it safe → Apply the quick fix until you’re ready to migrate.

Either way, your React Native app will be future-proof and visually polished.

💡 What’s your take? Do you prefer immersive full-screen layouts or classic padded designs in React Native apps?

✍️ Written by Dainy Jose — Mobile App Developer specialized in React Native and the MERN stack.

💼 Skills & Tools:

Mobile App Dev | MERN Stack | React Native | TypeScript | Redux | React.js | Node.js | MongoDB | MySQL | Express.js | REST API | JWT | Google Maps | Firebase | Jest | Agile | SDLC | Payments | Git | Bitbucket | Jira

📬 Connect with me:

🔗 LinkedIn

💻 GitHub

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