A free micro course by RN Mastery
Learn GraphQL the way React Native developers actually use it: real screens, real Apollo Client code, and a real e-commerce GraphQL API already waiting for you.
Most GraphQL tutorials start with backend architecture and schema design. This one starts where React Native developers actually live: screen rendering, Apollo Client, cache updates, pagination, auth, offline behavior, and API integration.
You will use a ready-made GraphQL API hosted at:
- GraphiQL:
https://backend.ecom.subraatakumar.com/graphiql - GraphQL API:
https://backend.ecom.subraatakumar.com/graphql
The backend is an e-commerce domain, so every lesson can map to real mobile app features:
- Browse products
- Filter by category, price, or search term
- Sign in and refresh tokens
- Fetch orders and order status
- Create, cancel, return, and manage orders
- Work with chat configuration and message history
This course is not about becoming a GraphQL backend engineer first. It is about building production-ready mobile apps that consume GraphQL cleanly.
For React Native developers, GraphQL is most valuable when it reduces client complexity.
This course emphasizes:
- Fewer API calls
- Better screen-specific data fetching
- Strong cache behavior in mobile apps
- Production auth patterns
- Pagination that fits
FlatList - Typed operations with GraphQL Code Generator
- Working with a live schema instead of inventing a toy backend
The balance is intentional:
- 30% GraphQL theory
- 70% React Native implementation
The backend already provides the operations you need for the course. The most important ones are:
GraphiQL also includes starter examples for the main queries and mutations, including auth, products, orders, and chat setup.
healthcategoriesallProductsproducts(page, size, limit, category, minPrice, maxPrice, q)ordersorderStatus(id)chatMessages(chatKey)
signUp(input)signIn(input)refreshToken(token)logout(token)createOrder(input)cancelOrder(id)returnOrder(id, input)outForDelivery(id, input)deliverOrder(id)rejectOrder(id, input)configureChat(mongodbUri)
newMessage(chatKey)
The schema includes the subscription field for learning and architecture discussions. The hosted course flow should treat real-time transport as a topic to understand, not something you need to build from scratch for every lesson.
Protected requests use:
Authorization: Bearer <accessToken>Product:id,name,price,category,imageUrl,description,brand,inStock,quantity,unit,discount,ratingOrder:id,userId,products,paymentMode,status,assignedStaff,createdAt,deliveredAt,statusHistoryMessage:content,username,createdAt
You are a React Native developer who has either:
- never used GraphQL in a real app
- copied Apollo Client setup without understanding the cache
- used REST for everything and wants to compare the ergonomics
- joined a team with an existing GraphQL backend and needs to become productive fast
This course is also useful if you already know Apollo Client and want to get better at the parts that matter in mobile apps: pagination, cache updates, auth, and error handling.
| Skill | Level needed |
|---|---|
| React Native | Comfortable - you have built screens before |
React Hooks (useState, useEffect) |
Comfortable |
| JavaScript async/await | Comfortable |
| TypeScript | Helpful, but not required |
| Backend / Node.js | Not required |
A React Native screen implemented once with REST and once with GraphQL so students can see the difference immediately.
A product catalog experience with a product list screen and a product details screen backed by the real GraphQL API.
A production-style order flow:
- Create order
- Cancel order while it is still preparing
- Return delivered orders
- Inspect status history
A complete e-commerce React Native app with:
- Authentication
- Product browsing
- Search and filters
- Pagination and infinite scrolling
- Order history and order status
- Role-aware order actions
- Chat support surface
- Apollo cache updates
- GraphQL Codegen
- TypeScript
- Offline-friendly data handling
The right opening for React Native developers: why GraphQL often fits mobile screens better than REST.
Topics
- REST vs GraphQL
- Over-fetching
- Under-fetching
- Multiple API calls
- How GraphQL solves mobile data-shaping problems
- Understanding GraphQL architecture
Practical
Build the same React Native screen twice: once with REST and once with GraphQL.
Learn GraphQL through the live e-commerce schema instead of abstract examples.
Topics
- Schema
- Types
- Scalars
- Queries
- Mutations
- Arguments
- Variables
- Aliases
- Fragments
Practical
Query product catalog and auth response data from the GraphQL API using the actual schema.
Set up Apollo in a React Native app with the right mental model from day one.
Topics
- What is Apollo Client?
- Installation
- Apollo Provider
- Apollo Client configuration
- HTTP links
- Error links
Practical
Configure Apollo Client in a React Native project and connect it to the live backend.
Build real screens that use useQuery against the product catalog.
Topics
useQuery- Loading states
- Error handling
- Refetching
- Polling
- Pagination basics
Practical
Build:
- Product list screen
- Product details screen
Use mutations for real mobile app workflows, not toy examples.
Topics
useMutation- Creating records
- Updating records
- Deleting records
- Mutation responses
Practical
Build an order management flow:
- Create Order
- Cancel Order
- Return Order
This is where most React Native developers get stuck, so we make it concrete.
Topics
- Normalized cache
- Cache-first strategy
- Network-first strategy
- Cache-and-network
- Updating cache after mutation
refetchQueriescache.modify
Practical
Instant UI updates for product and order screens without unnecessary refetches.
Use the real products(page, size, ...) API to learn pagination patterns that fit mobile apps.
Topics
- Offset pagination
- Cursor pagination
- Infinite scrolling
Practical
Build an Instagram-style product feed with FlatList and infinite loading.
Learn auth the way mobile apps actually do it: tokens, refresh flows, and protected screens.
Topics
- JWT authentication
- Login mutation
- Refresh tokens
- Secure storage
- Token injection
Practical
Build a production-ready auth flow using signIn, refreshToken, and logout.
Understand how real-time GraphQL maps to mobile chat and support flows.
Topics
- Subscriptions
- WebSockets
- Apollo subscription links
Practical
Build a chat support surface around the backend's chat configuration and message history, and learn where subscription transport fits in a production architecture.
One of the highest-leverage topics for React Native teams.
Topics
- GraphQL Code Generator
- Generating TypeScript types
- Typed queries
- Typed mutations
Practical
Remove manual interfaces and let the schema drive your types.
Use GraphQL without making your app slower or more complex.
Topics
- Query optimization
- Lazy loading
- Avoiding unnecessary rerenders
- Offline strategies
- Cache persistence
Practical
Build an offline-friendly mobile experience with cached product and order data.
Production apps need good failure states, not just a red error message.
Topics
- Network errors
- GraphQL errors
- Retry strategies
- User-friendly error screens
Practical
Add a production-grade error handling layer to the app.
Compare the tools honestly and use the right one for the job.
Topics
- Apollo vs React Query
- When to use each
- Hybrid architectures
Practical
Build the same app surface with both approaches and compare tradeoffs.
Testing should be part of the flow, not an afterthought.
Topics
MockedProvider- Unit testing
- Integration testing
- MSW GraphQL
Practical
Test a complete product or order feature end to end.
Not deep backend development, just enough to work well with backend teams and read the schema confidently.
Topics
- GraphQL server basics
- Resolvers
- Schema design
- N+1 problem
- DataLoader
Practical
Inspect the provided backend schema and understand how the resolvers power the mobile app.
Build a complete React Native e-commerce application on top of the ready-made GraphQL API.
- Authentication
- Product catalog
- Search and category filtering
- Product details
- Infinite feed
- Order history
- Order status tracking
- Role-based order actions
- Chat support
- Offline support
- GraphQL Codegen
- TypeScript
- Apollo cache
- GraphQL queries
- GraphQL mutations
- Authentication
- Cache management
- Pagination
- Error handling
- Offline-first patterns
- Production app structure
| Tool | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Apollo Client | GraphQL client for queries, mutations, and cache |
| graphql | Core GraphQL library |
| graphql-ws | WebSocket transport for subscription-based architectures |
| GraphQL Code Generator | Generate TypeScript types from the schema |
| React Native CLI | Mobile app framework used for the course examples |
This course is designed to be read linearly, because each module builds on the previous one.
- Already know REST vs GraphQL basics? Start at Module 2
- Already using Apollo Client? Jump to Module 6 for cache and Module 7 for pagination
- Primarily interested in auth and order flows? Focus on Modules 8 and 5
- Working with backend teams? Read Module 15 after the core client modules
Every lesson should include:
- A clear goal
- A real React Native implementation
- A GraphQL operation you can run in GraphiQL
- Practical mobile tradeoffs, not abstract theory
All modules are free. No account required to read. No paywalls.
RN Mastery is a community-first platform. The goal is to make high-quality React Native education accessible to every developer, regardless of where they are or what they can afford.
RN Mastery is a free, contributor-driven React Native learning platform built by a React Native developer, for React Native developers.
If this helped you, the best thing you can do is share it with another developer who is trying to level up.
If you spot a bug, a broken link, or an explanation that does not land, open an issue or reach out directly. Every piece of feedback makes the course better for the next person.
Built with love by Subrata Kumar
Connect with me:
- GitHub: https://github.com/TechCraft-By-Subrata
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/subraatakumar/
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@techcraftclub
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/subraatakumar/
- Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/ReactNativeMastery/
- DEV.to: https://dev.to/subraatakumar
- Discord: https://discord.gg/cA5fhVT8
- WhatsApp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VbCz72vFCCoUsMV4K30M
- Topmate: https://topmate.io/subrata
- React Native Mastery: https://rnm.subraatakumar.com/