What is RNQC?
The philosophy behind RNQC
RNQC (also known as React Native Quick Crypto) is a cryptography library for React Native compatible with Node's crypto API, differing from other libraries by being a complete re-implementation rather than just a fast wrapper. Developed by Margelo, it is built entirely on C++ JSI bindings to provide direct, synchronous access to native cryptographic primitives.
Why was it created?
React Native has historically lacked a robust, high-performance cryptographic standard. Developers largely relied on slower JS-only polyfills or incomplete wrappers.
RNQC was created because complex apps need a FULL, INDEPENDENT cryptographic standard.
We wanted a complete, standalone cryptographic library for React Native where you can simply call install() to polyfill the environment, ensuring all your cryptographic operations run smoothly and hundreds of times faster than standard JS solutions.
Built by Margelo
This library was built at Margelo, an elite app development agency, specifically to power high-performance crypto apps and wallets.
Philosophies
1. Seamless Integration
We believe improved performance shouldn't require code rewrites.
RNQC implements the exact Node.js API surface. If you know Node crypto, you know RNQC. There is zero learning curve.
2. Performance First (Nitro Modules)
We bypass the "Bridge". All operations communicate directly with C++ via Nitro Modules, a modern architecture built on top of JSI (JavaScript Interface).
Heavy tasks (like pbkdf2 or key generation) are offloaded to a dedicated native thread pool to ensure your UI never freezes, even during intensive encryption.
3. Secure Defaults
We don't roll our own crypto. All primitives map directly to the platform-native, battle-tested OpenSSL library:
- Android: OpenSSL (bundled or system)
- iOS: OpenSSL (via CocoaPods)
Architecture
RNQC bridges the gap between the JavaScript world and native C++ performance using Nitro Modules.
Nitro Modules Architecture
Unlike the legacy Bridge, which relies on asynchronous JSON message passing (slow, serializable-only), Nitro Modules provides a modern architecture built on JSI (JavaScript Interface), allowing C++ code to expose "Hybrid Objects" directly to the JavaScript runtime.
- Zero Serialization: Data (like
ArrayBuffer) is shared by reference. No cloning large buffers. - Synchronous Execution: Methods like
randomBytesorupdaterun instantly, just like native JS functions. - Thread Safety: Heavy operations automatically offload to a C++ thread pool to prevent UI jank.
When to use RNQC?
| Scenario | Use RNQC? | Why? |
|---|---|---|
| Web3 / Blockchain | Essential for wallet generation, signing transactions, and hashing (Keccak/SHA) securely and quickly. | |
| Auth (JWT/Jose) | Drastically speeds up token verification and signing compared to JS-only implementations. | |
| End-to-End Encryption | Using standard algorithms (AES-GCM, RSA) on the native thread prevents UI jank. | |
| Simple Random Strings | If you only need random numbers, consider react-native-get-random-values for a lighter alternative. Use RNQC if you need other crypto operations too. | |
| UI-Only Apps | If your app has zero security or hashing requirements, you probably don't need this. |