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This documentation is available as Markdown for AI agents and LLMs. See the full Markdown index or append .md to any documentation URL.

Expo Simulators limitations

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Known limits of Expo Simulators, including Android support, browser preview, session duration, physical devices, and controller features.

The Expo Simulators commands are experimental. Their flags and behavior can change. This page lists the known limits. For each limit, it also gives the alternative to use.

Access and versions

LimitAlternative
Only accounts on a paid plan can start sessions.Check access with eas simulator:availability. See Expo Simulators access.
The simulator:* commands and flags change often.Use the latest EAS CLI, and read eas simulator:start --help.

Platforms and devices

LimitAlternative
Expo Simulators does not provide physical devices.Use a physical device with local tools or a device cloud.
A session can run only an APK on Android and a simulator build on iOS. An iOS application archive must be a .tar.gz or .tgz file that contains the .app.Create an APK or an iOS Simulator build. See Install an app on a remote Android Emulator or iOS Simulator.
Local egress is an experimental feature that must be enabled for your account.Contact Expo to enable it. See Network traffic and local egress in Expo Simulators.

Session lifetime

LimitAlternative
A session runs for at most 40 minutes on the Free plan and 115 minutes on paid plans.Start a new session when the old one stops.
A session started with --non-interactive does not stop when the command returns.Run eas simulator:stop, and set --max-duration-minutes.
Watching the preview, or browser input on Android, does not reset the idle timer.Use --max-duration-minutes to limit a session that a person only watches, or an Android session that a person controls.
Android web-preview-only sessions do not support an idle timeout.Use --max-duration-minutes.

See How long an Expo Simulators session runs.

Controllers and tools

LimitAlternative
Each session provisions only the controller of its session type.Start a new session with the type that you need.
.env.eas-simulator holds one session at a time.Use a separate working directory for each parallel session, or use --out-config-type env and pass --id. See How EAS CLI and agents select an Expo Simulators session.
Fast Refresh, React DevTools, and React profiling need Metro and a development build.Use a development build with a Metro tunnel. See Use Fast Refresh with Metro on a remote simulator.
Fast Refresh and React features do not apply to apps that are not React Native apps.Use device-level commands. See Which apps and frameworks work with Expo Simulators.
Argent recordings include a watermark on Expo Simulators.Check the recording before you share it publicly.

Performance

LimitAlternative
Startup time varies. A session can wait for concurrency, then take time to start.Poll the existing session. Do not start a second session to retry.
On iOS, accessibility snapshots can take tens of seconds.Wait for the snapshot. Take a new snapshot after a timeout.
The first JavaScript bundle over a Metro tunnel is slow.Wait for the first bundle. Later Fast Refresh updates are fast.
Recordings may not capture every frame, so they cannot prove or disprove a short frame drop.Use a profiler for frame timing that a recording cannot show.

Data

LimitAlternative
Job logs on the session page are available for 30 days after the session is created.Copy the job logs that you need before they expire. Artifacts are not affected: Expo Simulators keeps session artifacts until you delete the session.

See Expo Simulators security, permissions, and data retention.