react-native-installed-apps-android, an npm package for React Native
A Turbo Module that gives a React Native app the list of apps installed on an Android phone: the ones with a launcher icon, along with their versions.
- Year
- 2025
- Type
- npm package
- Built with
- React Native, Turbo Modules, TypeScript, Android
Why I built it
At Frautect I was building a React Native app that checks a phone for risky apps, and it needed the list of apps installed on the device. I wrote a native module for that and published it on npm so other React Native developers can use it too.
What it returns
Only user-facing apps, meaning apps with a launcher activity. Background system services that the user never sees are left out, so the list matches what someone sees in their app drawer. Each app comes back with its details, including its version.
Install
npm install react-native-installed-apps-androidThe package ships TypeScript types and is built as a Turbo Module for React Native’s new architecture. On Android 11 and later, an app also needs package-visibility rules in its manifest to see other apps; in Expo projects that can be added with a config plugin.
Versions
The first version was published in July 2025, and the package is now on its third major version.