Migrating existing React Native Android & iOS apps to Capacitor while keeping the same store listings

Capacitor
1

Hi everyone,

I currently have a web application built with React and a React Native mobile application for both Android and iOS. Both apps are already published and available on the Google Play Store and Apple App Store.

The React web application has now been made fully responsive, and I’m considering using Capacitor to package the web application as the new native apps instead of continuing with the React Native implementation.

My current setup is roughly:

  • Web app: React
  • Existing mobile apps: React Native
  • Android app is already published on Google Play Store
  • iOS app is already published on Apple App Store
  • I want to replace the React Native implementation with a Capacitor-based implementation
  • I plan to use the same Android package/application ID and same iOS Bundle ID as the existing React Native apps
  • I also have the existing signing credentials/keys

My main questions are:

  1. Can I build the new Capacitor Android app using the same package/application ID and upload it as an update to the existing React Native app on Google Play?
  2. Similarly, can I build the Capacitor iOS app using the same Bundle ID and submit it as an update to the existing React Native app on the Apple App Store?
  3. If I do this on both platforms, will the existing store listings remain the same, including:
    • Existing reviews and ratings
    • Existing installs/download history
    • Existing users
    • Existing App Store / Play Store listing
  4. Are there any additional requirements around Android signing/upload keys or Play App Signing that I need to be aware of?
  5. On iOS, are there any specific requirements around the signing certificates, provisioning profiles, App ID/Bundle ID, or App Store Connect that I need to consider?
  6. Will existing users be able to update from the React Native version to the Capacitor version normally, assuming the package name/Bundle ID, signing, and version numbers are correct?
  7. Are there any important issues with the upgrade/migration of existing users, especially around:
    • Local storage
    • Authentication/session data
    • Push notifications
    • Deep links / Universal Links / App Links
    • Firebase
    • OAuth / Microsoft Sign-In
    • Permissions
    • Existing native integrations
  8. Is there anything specific I should test before releasing the first Capacitor version to production, particularly to make sure an existing React Native user can update to the Capacitor version without issues?

I’d especially appreciate feedback from anyone who has migrated an existing production React Native app to Capacitor on both Android and iOS, while keeping the same store listings and app identity.

Thanks!