How it works
Create React App hid webpack, Babel, ESLint and Jest behind a single package (react-scripts), so a beginner could run one command and start writing components without touching any configuration. For years it was the default way to learn React and start a project.
It fell behind: slow start-up and rebuilds, no server rendering, and few updates after 2022. In February 2025 the React team officially deprecated it and pointed people to frameworks such as Next.js and React Router, or to build tools such as Vite. Existing apps keep working, and moving one to Vite is usually a matter of a few configuration changes and relocating index.html.
Create React App pros and cons
Pros
- Zero configuration: one command gave a working React app
- Many existing tutorials and projects use it
- Existing apps still build and run
Cons
- Deprecated by the React team in 2025, with no new features coming
- Slow development server and builds compared with Vite
- No server rendering, routing or data loading
- Ageing dependencies trigger security warnings
When to use Create React App
Pick it when
- Maintaining an existing app until it can be migrated
- Following an older tutorial, for learning only
Skip it when
- Starting any new project (use Vite or a framework instead)
Create React App pricing
Create React App vs the alternatives
Related terms
More in Frontend
Build tools