For AI agents: fetch the complete documentation index at /llms.txt, the full documentation corpus at /llms-full.txt, the agent skill at /skill.md, or this page as Markdown at /docs/mobile/ship-in-5-minutes.md (or send Accept: text/markdown).
Ship mobile in 5 minutes
Open the Expo app on a phone or simulator, configure an API address the device can reach, and distinguish a UI preview from real sign-in and native purchases.
1. Prepare the computer, phone and backend
Complete Before you start and open the Mobile repository or All Platforms monorepo in your editor. In Terminal → New Terminal at the repository root, run the install command below. Wait for it to finish. Install Expo Go on your phone using the official Expo page linked below; its version must support the Expo SDK version recorded in apps/mobile/package.json.
A backend is the Web server that handles sign-in, workspace data and AI requests. If your checkout contains apps/web, first run the Web setup in another terminal and leave that server running. Complete its Postgres setup before trying native sign-up or sign-in. A Mobile-only checkout does not contain apps/web: connect it to your running, separately provided backend instead. Starting Expo starts the screen-preview server, not the backend.
Put your phone and computer on the same Wi-Fi. Temporarily disconnect a VPN if it blocks local connections. A phone's localhost means the phone itself. Use your computer's private network address for a physical phone or Android device; iOS Simulator on the same Mac can use http://localhost:3000, and Android Emulator commonly uses http://10.0.2.2:3000.
- Install the tools and get the code
- Learn how to run a command and edit a file
- Start the Web backend
- Install an Expo Go version compatible with your project
corepack pnpm install2. Find and test the backend address
On Windows run ipconfig in a new PowerShell terminal, find your active Wi-Fi adapter and read IPv4 Address. On macOS open System Settings → Wi-Fi → Details → TCP/IP and read IP address. On Linux open your network settings and read IPv4 Address. An address might look like 192.168.1.25; yours will usually be different.
If your computer's address is 192.168.1.25, open http://192.168.1.25:3000 in the phone's browser while the Web server is running. Substitute your actual address. The homepage must load before you proceed. Allow the Node app on private networks if Windows Firewall asks. If it does not load, check the address, Wi-Fi, firewall and running Web server; an Expo tunnel only carries the preview bundle and does not make your separate API reachable.
# Windows PowerShell only:
ipconfig3. Create the Mobile app's configuration file
In the editor's Explorer, expand apps → mobile, create a new file named .env.local, and paste the configuration below into that file. Replace 192.168.1.25 with the address you just tested, or use your provided HTTPS backend address. Save the file. Its full path is apps/mobile/.env.local; root .env is not automatically read by Expo.
Keep the phone's purchase setting off for the first preview. EXPO_PUBLIC_ means a setting is included in the phone app, so these values must contain only public URLs, schemes and public client settings. Do not paste AI-provider, database or billing secrets here. The Web server has its own apps/web/.env.local; changing the Mobile file does not change the server.
EXPO_PUBLIC_API_URL=http://192.168.1.25:3000
EXPO_PUBLIC_APP_SCHEME=supastack
EXPO_PUBLIC_MOBILE_PURCHASES_PROVIDER=off4. Start Expo and open the preview
From the repository root, run the command below. Wait for a QR code and the Metro waiting message. Keep this terminal and the backend terminal open. On Android open Expo Go and scan the QR code; on iPhone use Camera, scan the code and open it in Expo Go. The QR code opens the development app, not your backend homepage.
Success means the app's sign-in screen opens on your device. With purchases off, this is a UI preview; complete the database-backed Web authentication setup before testing sign-in, saved workspaces or chat. If an installed simulator is your target, press a in the Expo terminal for Android or i for iOS. iOS Simulator requires macOS and Xcode; it cannot run on Windows.
corepack pnpm --filter @supastack/mobile start5. Recover from preview errors and test real flows
If Expo Go reports an incompatible project, compare its supported SDK with apps/mobile/package.json and use the compatible version from the official Expo page. Do not upgrade the kit's dependency versions just to dismiss the message. If a required native module is unavailable, follow Mobile builds for a development build containing that module.
If sign-in fails with a network error, retry the backend URL in the phone's browser first. If the URL works but sign-in fails, inspect the backend terminal and verify Postgres and migrations. The local /dashboard demo session does not sign you in on the phone. If configuration seems stale, press Ctrl + C in the Expo terminal, then run the restart command below and reopen the preview.
Expo Go cannot prove real StoreKit or Play Billing purchase/restore behavior. Follow In-app purchases and Mobile builds for an EAS development build and store test accounts. First-time native builds and account enrollment can take longer than five minutes. To stop this preview, press Ctrl + C in the Expo terminal; stop the backend separately when finished.
- Set up and test native sign-in
- Create a native development build
- Configure native purchase and restore
corepack pnpm --filter @supastack/mobile start --clear