An Expo Go alternative for builds that outgrow Expo Go
Expo Go is a great first afternoon: install it, scan a QR code, watch your code run on your phone. Then the app grows up — a native module Expo Go doesn't carry, a teammate or an AI agent who needs to see the build, a project that isn't Expo at all. PreviewAPK is the alternative for that moment: any APK, running on a cloud phone, watchable and drivable in a browser.
Try it with a live device
PreviewAPK is in private beta. Get early access to test your own builds.
Why developers go looking for an alternative
The native module wall
Expo Go contains a fixed set of native libraries. Add one that isn't included and your JS runs straight into a missing-native-code error. Expo's own documentation calls Expo Go a playground for learning and points production work at development builds — the wall is by design, and every real app eventually meets it.
The phone has to be someone's
The Expo Go loop needs a physical device, on your network, in a human's hand. That excludes the CI pipeline, the remote teammate, the client — and the AI agent that wrote the code, which increasingly is who needs to run it first. We wrote up that case separately: Expo Go for agents.
It's Expo-only
Flutter app? Native Kotlin? A bare React Native project or an APK a client sent you? Expo Go can't open any of them — it runs Expo projects, through Metro, or nothing.
Three ways to run the build, honestly compared
| Expo Go | Development builds (EAS) | PreviewAPK | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it runs | Expo projects via Metro | Your app's own build | Any APK |
| Custom native modules | No — fixed library set | Yes | Yes |
| Where the device is | A physical phone you hold | A physical phone or your local emulator | A cloud phone, in your browser |
| Who can drive it | The person holding it | The person holding it | You, or your AI agent (never both at once) |
| Setup | Install an app, scan a QR | Build pipeline + install per device | Push an APK; running in seconds |
| Price shape | Free | EAS plans by builds/usage | Flat $19/month per device, unlimited runs |
Development builds are the right answer inside the Expo ecosystem — if your only problem was the library limit, stop there. PreviewAPK earns its place when the device itself is the problem: nobody should need a phone in hand to see a build.
When Expo Go is still the right tool
Learning React Native, prototyping a JS-only idea on your own phone, feeling the first "my code is on a device" moment — Expo Go is unbeatable and free. Keep it for that. Reach for PreviewAPK when the work leaves the playground: production-shaped builds, other frameworks, other people, and agents.
FAQ
What is the best alternative to Expo Go?
It depends on what you outgrew. If you only outgrew the library limit, an EAS development build is Expo's own answer. If you outgrew the physical phone — you want builds in a browser, a device your AI agent can drive, or a non-Expo APK — that's PreviewAPK: any APK, running on a cloud phone, in seconds.
Can PreviewAPK run my Expo development build?
Yes. Development builds are APKs, and they run in full on a PreviewAPK device — custom native modules included, no Expo Go library limit. Push the build EAS produced (or a local build) with the CLI, the API, or an MCP tool.
Does PreviewAPK replace EAS Build?
No — they compose. EAS builds your app; PreviewAPK runs the result. Think of EAS as the factory and PreviewAPK as the phone on the desk — except the desk is in the cloud and both you and your agent can reach it.
Does it work for apps that aren't built with Expo?
Yes. PreviewAPK takes any Android APK: Expo, bare React Native, Flutter, native Kotlin or Java, Unity. The device doesn't know or care which framework produced the file.