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expo-dev-client

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Build and distribute Expo development clients locally or via TestFlight for internal testing. For production TestFlight releases and store submission, use the eas-app-stores skill.

plugins/expo/skills/expo-dev-client/SKILL.md

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Use EAS Build to create development clients for testing native code changes on physical devices. Use this for creating custom Expo Go clients for testing branches of your app.

> **Free locally; cloud builds are paid.** `expo-dev-client` itself is open source and building locally is free. Building or distributing via EAS Build/TestFlight uses your EAS plan's build minutes and needs a paid Apple Developer account for device/TestFlight distribution. See https://expo.dev/pricing.

## Important: When Development Clients Are Needed

**Development clients are the recommended setup for any real or production app.** Expo Go is a playground for learning and quick experiments with the native libraries it bundles; most apps outgrow it and move to a development client. See [Expo Go vs. development builds](https://docs.expo.dev/develop/development-builds/introduction/) for the full reasoning.

You need a dev client ONLY when using:

- Local Expo modules (custom native code)
- Apple targets (widgets, app clips, extensions)
- Third-party native modules not in Expo Go
- Config plugins, or testing remote push notifications and App/Universal Links
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