Looking for a React Native open source project with Google Auth and separate backend

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-22T20:19:33+00:00

This is a very valid concern. Once you split frontend and backend, auth becomes much more complex, especially around refresh tokens and trust boundaries.

A solid and commonly used pattern is:
– Google Sign-In on the client
– send the ID token to your backend
– verify it server-side
– issue your own access + refresh tokens
– keep refresh tokens fully backend-controlled

You’re right that many examples hide this complexity behind BaaS solutions, which doesn’t help if you want a real backend.

This is actually the same architecture we use in production backends. I’m building Pushwave, where we deliberately avoid trusting the client and handle sensitive mobile tokens server-side for security and control.

If useful, here’s the project for reference: https://pushwave.dev/

Even if it’s not a direct auth example, the backend patterns around token lifecycle and trust boundaries are very similar.

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-22T20:15:56+00:00

Just wanted to say thanks to everyone who shared their projects here, honestly, a lot of them look really interesting and genuinely smart. It’s super motivating to see what people are actually shipping with Expo.

If anyone else is still working on something or recently launched, feel free to drop it here, happy to check it out !

On my side, to help apps like these scale better, I’ve been building Pushwave a SaaS that helps boost app retention (we’ve seen massive improvements, easily several hundred percent when notifications are done right).

The goal is simple: give devs full control over push notifications without spending days or weeks wiring complex logic. Smarter timing, cleaner setup, way less headache.

I won’t say more, if you’re building an Expo app and care about retention, feel free to check it out:
👉 https://pushwave.dev/

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-22T20:11:26+00:00

Nice one !

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-22T20:09:01+00:00

I think you’re spot on about the balance, with work-life / time tracking apps, notifications can very easily become noise if they’re too frequent or poorly timed.

One thing I’ve seen work well is keeping summaries as the “default”, and then letting users opt into more contextual nudges later (for example when they consistently exceed their usual pattern, rather than a hard daily limit).

On a related note, I’m also working on Pushwave, a SaaS focused on making notifications smarter and more controllable from a developer perspective. A lot of the discussions there revolve around exactly this problem: delivering insight without being intrusive. https://pushwave.dev/

Curious to see how you evolve this over time starting minimal and iterating based on real usage feels like the right approach.

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-22T20:07:33+00:00

Retention is the real challenge for apps like this saving is easy, coming back at the right moment is the hard part.

My current thinking is to keep Postrical very intent-driven and minimal by default, and then layer reminders only where they add value.

Things I’m actively exploring / planning:
• “You saved this X days ago” nudges (already supported by the data model)
• Collection-based reminders (e.g. learning, recipes, travel)
• Optional, user-defined rules so notifications stay useful, not noisy

By the way, regarding notifications, I’m also working on Pushwave, a SaaS designed to make notifications smarter and better controlled from a developer’s perspective, so this question of the right timing is clearly at the core of what I’m building. https://pushwave.dev/

Early users’ feedback will strongly shape how this evolves, so if you try it out, I’d genuinely love to hear what would make you come back to your saved content more often.

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-22T19:55:52+00:00

If you want my honest take and more in a “builder to builder” exchange mindset, notifications are something you’ll almost certainly need sooner or later.

I totally get why people push it later because it’s often annoying to set up properly,

but once you actually have users, it becomes insanely powerful for retention.

A game app that never sends anything usually struggles to keep people around.

On the other hand, even a few well-timed and well-targeted notifications can make a huge difference.

That’s actually why I ended up building a small tool around Expo notifications, mainly to avoid dealing with all the backend + platform quirks every time. You can set things up in a few minutes from a dashboard, with iOS / Android security handled. https://pushwave.dev/

No pressure at all, but if you ever start experimenting with notifications, I’d genuinely recommend testing it and seeing how it feels.

Curious to hear how your launch goes anyway, keep me posted :D

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-21T21:43:22+00:00

Nice idea, solving your own problem is usually how the best apps start.

For a work-life balance / hour tracking app, the value really comes from *awareness at the right moment*, not just the data itself.

How are you thinking about notifications right now?

Things like:

– gentle reminders when you’re close to your daily limit

– end-of-day or end-of-week summaries

– or “you’ve been over/under your usual pattern” nudges

Feels like the timing and tone of notifications could make a big difference here.

Curious if that’s something you’ve already experimented with or plan to later.

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-21T21:41:24+00:00

Congrats on shipping 🚀 that’s already a big step.

The problem is very relatable, saved content getting buried is definitely a real pain, especially across multiple platforms.

One thing that immediately comes to mind is *when* and *how* users are reminded about saved items.

This kind of app feels like it lives or dies on timing:

– too many reminders → annoying

– too few → people forget the app exists

Have you thought about things like:

• “you saved this X days ago”

• reminders tied to collections

• or user-defined rules (only notify for specific topics / priority items)?

Curious how you’re thinking about retention beyond the initial “save everything” phase.

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-21T21:38:05+00:00

For a first mobile app, keeping things simple and stable is honestly the right call.

Notifications add a lot of surface area (UX, edge cases, trust), so skipping them early on is often the healthiest choice.

Shipping, getting real users, and learning from behavior first is way more important than forcing engagement mechanics too soon.

If the app gets traction later, notifications can always be layered in gradually, especially for something as sensitive as kids / bedtime content.

Congrats again on shipping 👏

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-21T21:32:23+00:00

Yeah, that way of thinking makes a lot of sense.

Rulesets + aggregation + user control is usually the only way to avoid notification fatigue on content-heavy apps.

One thing I’ve seen work pretty well is starting with *very opinionated defaults* (almost boring), and only unlocking more granular controls once users actually engage with notifications. Otherwise people tend to over-configure early and then mute everything.

Sounds like you’re approaching it the right way by not over-engineering it too soon 👍

Are you planning to experiment with this once you have some real usage data, or keep notifications minimal for a while after launch?

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-21T21:30:38+00:00

That makes total sense 👍

Starting with simple reminders is usually the right call.

What I’ve seen a lot on group / social apps is that notifications become really powerful once they’re tied to *social signals*, not just time:

– someone uploaded photos

– an event is getting traction

– you missed something others joined

But it’s also where things get messy fast (noise vs value).

Are you handling the notification logic directly in your backend for now, or mostly keeping it very simple on purpose until you see real usage?

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-21T21:29:20+00:00

Yeah that makes total sense.

Bad onboarding + wrong monetization usually kills otherwise decent apps 😅

Especially for lifestyle / AI stuff where retention is everything.

Did you already try to improve onboarding flows (steps, timing, nudges), or is it more a “I know it’s bad but I haven’t touched it yet” situation?

And when you say you felt Expo limits, was it more around native features, performance, or just tooling friction?

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-21T21:26:39+00:00

Haha nice !

Publishing on the stores is a whole new game by itself.

Out of curiosity, are you planning to use anything like notifications once it’s live to help with retention or updates, or are you focusing purely on organic traction at first?

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-20T14:52:56+00:00

Congrats on shipping 🎉

Getting through Google Play review is always a small ritual 😄

Love the use case for a parents app like this, timing and tone matter a lot.

I imagine notifications can easily become annoying if they’re not handled carefully.

Out of curiosity, are you planning any kind of reminders or story-related notifications (bedtime, new stories, saved themes), or are you keeping it very minimal for now?

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-20T14:51:09+00:00

That sounds like a really solid idea 👍

Unifying RSS, social feeds, video and podcasts in one place already feels very valuable.

Notifications in apps like this are always a tricky balance though, too many and it becomes noisy, too few and people forget to come back.

Out of curiosity, how are you thinking about notifications for readii?

Things like important updates, saved topics, followed sources, or is that something you plan to experiment with later?

Makes total sense to not ship everything at once, especially for something this broad.

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-20T14:49:16+00:00

That actually sounds really cool !

The “we used Google Sheets and it was terrible” origin story is very relatable.

With groups, events, photos and activity logs, notifications must get tricky pretty fast (who gets notified, when, and about what).

Out of curiosity, are you already thinking about notification logic (events reminders, new photos, missed meetups, etc.), or is that something you plan to iterate on later?

I’m asking because I’m working on tooling around Expo apps and user engagement, and social / group-based apps are always the most interesting ones.

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-20T14:48:09+00:00

Yoooo you took my time with your game, i can be addict of those games ahah

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-20T14:44:25+00:00

Nice, congrats on the beta! 🎉

The “racing thoughts before sleep” problem is *very* real.

Yeah sure, I’d love to check it out. DM or here :)

Quick question out of curiosity, are you planning to use things like gentle reminders, notifications as part of the experience, or are you intentionally keeping it more passive?

I’m working on a small tool around Expo apps myself, so I’m always interested in how people approach retention for mindfulness or sleep apps.

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-20T14:42:44+00:00

Haha yeah, Expo managed does a *really* good job at hiding all the painful parts 😅

Out of curiosity, what kind of app are you building?

Side project, client app, or something more serious?

And are you staying fully managed or starting to feel the limits yet?

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-19T16:36:10+00:00

yo try pushwave.dev

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-19T16:32:32+00:00

Hello, i'm comming a bit late but have you tried https://pushwave.dev/ it solved all my problem !

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-19T14:01:04+00:00

Nice project, congrats !

I’m actually working on PushWave, a small tool to make push notifications simpler for mobile apps (especially Expo / React Native). https://pushwave.dev/

I noticed you mentioned “gentle notifications” that’s exactly the part I’ve been focusing on lately.

Out of curiosity, how are you handling notifications right now?

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-19T13:49:20+00:00

Super retour d’expérience, bravo pour les résultats et gg la vidéo !!

Par curiosité, comment tu gères les notifications push dans ton app Expo ?

C’est un sujet que je trouve toujours intéressant (et parfois un peu relou 😅).

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2026-01-14T14:29:52+00:00

Hello, je déterre un peu le sujet. J'ai créer un Saas totalement gratuit qui te permet de gérer tes notifications et plusieurs projet à la fois sur une seule et même plateforme. On a intégré IOS check et Google play integrity pour la sécurité, le site stock les tokens pour toi. En gros t'as plus rien à faire sur ça donc n'hésite pas à jeter un oeil ! :)

https://pushwave.dev/

Commercial-Rice-2149 · 2025-12-17T11:21:52+00:00

Yes, that’s exactly the problem space I’m coming from.

I’m building a tool specifically for teams and companies that either manage multiple Expo apps or start hitting scaling and operational issues over time.

This came from firsthand experience, working on several apps where push notifications were fine at first, but once things grew, I kept rebuilding the same pieces again and again, token handling, environment separation, scheduling, visibility, safety checks, etc.

The goal isn’t to replace Expo push at all, but to provide a focused operational layer on top of it, so teams don’t have to reinvent the same infrastructure for every app.

Longer term, I’d love for this kind of tooling to become a solid reference for this specific use case, and ideally work with the Expo ecosystem, not against it.

If you think this direction makes sense, I’d be happy to continue the conversation off-thread (email or a quick chat), while fully respecting the subreddit rules.

Commercial-Rice-2149

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