What is Tidepush?
Tidepush lets you send JavaScript updates to your Expo / React Native app without a new store release.
If you have used eas update, Tidepush does the same job. You sign up, create an app, point your build at it, and publish updates from your terminal or CI.
The short version
- Your app uses the official
expo-updateslibrary. You do not add any Tidepush code to the app. - You change one setting in the app (
updates.url) so it asks Tidepush for updates:https://tidepush.yugenecodes99.workers.dev/<appId>/manifest. - You publish updates with
npx tidepush, run from your Expo app directory. There is nothing to install or clone. - You watch and control updates in the dashboard at
https://tidepush-web.yugenecodes99.workers.dev.
What you get
| Feature | What it means for you |
|---|---|
Stock expo-updates client | Nothing custom in the app. Follow Expo's own docs for the client side. |
| Signed manifests | The app checks a signature on every update. A stolen update URL or API token is not enough to run unsigned code on your users' phones. |
| Channels | Separate lines of updates, for example staging and production. |
| Staged rollouts | Send an update to 10% of devices first, then widen it. |
| Rollback | Undo a bad update in one command. |
| Promote | Copy a tested staging update to production without rebuilding it. |
| Dashboard | See updates, device adoption and an audit log. Manage your team, apps and API tokens. |
| Teams | An organization holds your apps and members, with owner, admin and read-only roles. See Team & access. |
What Tidepush is not
- Not a build service. It does not build your APK or IPA. You still build those yourself (or with EAS Build) and ship them through the stores.
- Not a way to change native code. OTA updates can only change JavaScript and assets such as images. Read What are OTA updates? for the exact line.
Who it is for
Teams that ship an Expo app (SDK with expo-updates) and want:
- staged rollouts, rollbacks and promotion without running their own server,
- predictable cost based on active devices (see Plans & limits),
- a way out: Tidepush is open source, so they are never locked in.
Open source
Tidepush is open source under the AGPL. Teams that must run it on their own infrastructure can: see Self-hosting.
Where to go next
- New to OTA updates? Read What are OTA updates?.
- Learn the words used everywhere in these docs: Key concepts.
- Ready to try it? Follow the Getting started tutorial.