Dynamic Routes

Dynamic routes allow you to create flexible URL patterns that accept parameters. This is essential for pages like user profiles, blog posts, or product details.

Dynamic Segments

Use square brackets [param] in your file name to create a dynamic route segment:

app/
  user/
    [id].tsx         → /user/:id

Basic Example

app/user/[id].tsx

import { View, Text } from 'react-native';
import { useLocalSearchParams } from 'expo-router';

export default function User() {
  const { id } = useLocalSearchParams();
  
  return (
    <View>
      <Text>User ID: {id}</Text>
    </View>
  );
}

Matches:

/user/123 → { id: '123' }
/user/alice → { id: 'alice' }
/user/admin-2024 → { id: 'admin-2024' }

Accessing Parameters

Use the useLocalSearchParams() hook to access route parameters:

import { useLocalSearchParams } from 'expo-router';

const params = useLocalSearchParams();
// params.id, params.name, etc.

From the source (hooks.ts:244-314):

/**
 * Returns the URL parameters for the contextually focused route. 
 * Useful for stacks where you may push a new screen that changes 
 * the query parameters. For dynamic routes, both the route parameters 
 * and the search parameters are returned.
 */
export function useLocalSearchParams(): RouteParams;

Type-Safe Parameters

Add TypeScript types for type safety:

app/user/[id].tsx

import { useLocalSearchParams } from 'expo-router';
import { View, Text } from 'react-native';

export default function User() {
  const { id } = useLocalSearchParams<{ id: string }>();
  
  return <Text>User: {id}</Text>;
}

Multiple Dynamic Segments

Create routes with multiple parameters:

app/
  blog/
    [category]/
      [slug].tsx     → /blog/:category/:slug

app/blog/[category]/[slug].tsx

import { useLocalSearchParams } from 'expo-router';
import { View, Text } from 'react-native';

export default function BlogPost() {
  const { category, slug } = useLocalSearchParams<{
    category: string;
    slug: string;
  }>();
  
  return (
    <View>
      <Text>Category: {category}</Text>
      <Text>Post: {slug}</Text>
    </View>
  );
}

Matches:

/blog/tech/expo-router-guide → { category: 'tech', slug: 'expo-router-guide' }
/blog/design/ui-patterns → { category: 'design', slug: 'ui-patterns' }

Query Parameters

Access query parameters alongside route parameters:

app/search/[query].tsx

import { useLocalSearchParams } from 'expo-router';
import { View, Text } from 'react-native';

export default function Search() {
  const { query, filter, sort } = useLocalSearchParams<{
    query: string;
    filter?: string;
    sort?: string;
  }>();
  
  return (
    <View>
      <Text>Searching for: {query}</Text>
      {filter && <Text>Filter: {filter}</Text>}
      {sort && <Text>Sort: {sort}</Text>}
    </View>
  );
}

URL: /search/react?filter=recent&sort=popular Params: { query: 'react', filter: 'recent', sort: 'popular' }

Catch-All Routes

Use [...param] to match multiple segments:

app/
  docs/
    [...slug].tsx    → /docs/* (matches any depth)

Basic Catch-All

app/docs/[...slug].tsx

import { useLocalSearchParams } from 'expo-router';
import { View, Text } from 'react-native';

export default function Docs() {
  const { slug } = useLocalSearchParams<{ slug: string[] }>();
  
  // slug is an array of path segments
  const path = Array.isArray(slug) ? slug.join('/') : slug;
  
  return (
    <View>
      <Text>Documentation path: {path}</Text>
    </View>
  );
}

Matches:

/docs/getting-started → { slug: ['getting-started'] }
/docs/api/reference → { slug: ['api', 'reference'] }
/docs/guides/routing/dynamic → { slug: ['guides', 'routing', 'dynamic'] }

Practical Catch-All Example

app/docs/[...slug].tsx

import { useLocalSearchParams, Stack } from 'expo-router';
import { View, Text, ScrollView } from 'react-native';
import { useMemo } from 'react';

export default function DocsPage() {
  const { slug } = useLocalSearchParams<{ slug: string[] }>();
  
  const path = useMemo(() => {
    return Array.isArray(slug) ? slug.join('/') : slug || 'index';
  }, [slug]);
  
  const content = useMemo(() => {
    // Load content based on path
    return loadDocContent(path);
  }, [path]);
  
  return (
    <>
      <Stack.Screen
        options={{
          title: content.title,
        }}
      />
      <ScrollView>
        <View>
          <Text>{content.body}</Text>
        </View>
      </ScrollView>
    </>
  );
}

function loadDocContent(path: string) {
  // Your content loading logic
  return {
    title: `Docs: ${path}`,
    body: 'Documentation content...',
  };
}

Navigating to Dynamic Routes

Using Link Component

import { Link } from 'expo-router';

// String href
<Link href="/user/123">View User</Link>

// Object href
<Link
  href={{
    pathname: '/user/[id]',
    params: { id: '123' }
  }}
>
  View User
</Link>

// With multiple params
<Link
  href={{
    pathname: '/blog/[category]/[slug]',
    params: { category: 'tech', slug: 'expo-guide' }
  }}
>
  Read Post
</Link>

Using Router

import { router } from 'expo-router';

// String navigation
router.push('/user/123');

// Object navigation
router.push({
  pathname: '/user/[id]',
  params: { id: '123', tab: 'posts' }
});

// With query params
router.push('/search/react?filter=recent&sort=popular');

Dynamic List Example

app/users/index.tsx

import { View, FlatList, Pressable, Text } from 'react-native';
import { Link } from 'expo-router';

const users = [
  { id: '1', name: 'Alice', role: 'Admin' },
  { id: '2', name: 'Bob', role: 'User' },
  { id: '3', name: 'Charlie', role: 'Moderator' },
];

export default function UsersList() {
  return (
    <FlatList
      data={users}
      keyExtractor={(item) => item.id}
      renderItem={({ item }) => (
        <Link
          href={{
            pathname: '/users/[id]',
            params: { id: item.id, name: item.name }
          }}
          asChild
        >
          <Pressable style={styles.item}>
            <Text style={styles.name}>{item.name}</Text>
            <Text style={styles.role}>{item.role}</Text>
          </Pressable>
        </Link>
      )}
    />
  );
}

Optional Segments

Create optional dynamic segments with catch-all:

app/
  shop/
    [[...category]].tsx   → /shop/* (including /shop)

app/shop/[[...category]].tsx

import { useLocalSearchParams } from 'expo-router';
import { View, Text } from 'react-native';

export default function Shop() {
  const { category } = useLocalSearchParams<{ category?: string[] }>();
  
  if (!category || category.length === 0) {
    return <Text>All Products</Text>;
  }
  
  const path = category.join(' / ');
  return <Text>Category: {path}</Text>;
}

Matches:

/shop → { category: undefined }
/shop/electronics → { category: ['electronics'] }
/shop/electronics/phones → { category: ['electronics', 'phones'] }

Array Parameters

Handle array parameters from query strings:

app/products/index.tsx

import { useLocalSearchParams } from 'expo-router';
import { View, Text } from 'react-native';

export default function Products() {
  const { tags } = useLocalSearchParams<{ tags: string | string[] }>();
  
  const tagArray = Array.isArray(tags) ? tags : tags ? [tags] : [];
  
  return (
    <View>
      <Text>Filters:</Text>
      {tagArray.map((tag, i) => (
        <Text key={i}>{tag}</Text>
      ))}
    </View>
  );
}

URL: /products?tags=new&tags=sale&tags=featured Params: { tags: ['new', 'sale', 'featured'] }

URL Encoding

Parameters are automatically URL encoded/decoded:

import { router } from 'expo-router';

// Special characters are encoded
router.push({
  pathname: '/search/[query]',
  params: { query: 'hello world' }
});
// URL: /search/hello%20world

// Decoded automatically
const { query } = useLocalSearchParams();
// query = "hello world"

From the source (hooks.ts:286-311):

// Parameters are decoded automatically
if (Array.isArray(value)) {
  return [
    key,
    value.map((v) => {
      try {
        return decodeURIComponent(v);
      } catch {
        return v;
      }
    }),
  ];
} else {
  try {
    return [key, decodeURIComponent(value)];
  } catch {
    return [key, value];
  }
}

Updating Parameters

Update route parameters without navigation:

import { router } from 'expo-router';
import { Button } from 'react-native';

export default function ProductDetails() {
  const updateView = (view: string) => {
    router.setParams({ view });
  };
  
  return (
    <>
      <Button title="Grid View" onPress={() => updateView('grid')} />
      <Button title="List View" onPress={() => updateView('list')} />
    </>
  );
}

Global vs Local Params

useLocalSearchParams()

Updates only when the screen is focused:

import { useLocalSearchParams } from 'expo-router';

export default function Profile() {
  // Only updates when THIS screen is focused
  const params = useLocalSearchParams();
  return <Text>Profile {params.id}</Text>;
}

useGlobalSearchParams()

Updates even when screen is not focused:

import { useGlobalSearchParams } from 'expo-router';
import { useEffect } from 'react';

export default function Analytics() {
  // Updates for any route change, even when not focused
  const params = useGlobalSearchParams();
  
  useEffect(() => {
    trackPageView(params);
  }, [params]);
  
  return null;
}

From the source (hooks.ts:210-242):

/**
 * Returns URL parameters for globally selected route, including dynamic 
 * path segments. This function updates even when the route is not focused. 
 * Useful for analytics or other background operations that don't draw to 
 * the screen.
 *
 * When querying search params in a stack, opt-towards using 
 * useLocalSearchParams because it will only update when the route is focused.
 */
export function useGlobalSearchParams(): RouteParams;

Route Specificity

When multiple routes could match, Expo Router uses specificity:

app/
  products/
    index.tsx        # Matches /products exactly
    new.tsx          # Matches /products/new exactly
    [id].tsx         # Matches /products/:id
    [...all].tsx     # Matches /products/*

Specificity order (highest to lowest):

Exact matches: new.tsx
Dynamic routes: [id].tsx
Catch-all routes: [...all].tsx

Example:

/products → index.tsx
/products/new → new.tsx (exact match wins)
/products/123 → [id].tsx with { id: '123' }
/products/category/phones → [...all].tsx with { all: ['category', 'phones'] }

Best Practices

Use Descriptive Parameter Names

// Good: Clear what the parameter represents
app/user/[userId].tsx
app/post/[postId].tsx
app/category/[categorySlug].tsx

// Less clear
app/user/[id].tsx
app/post/[id].tsx
app/category/[slug].tsx

Validate Parameters

import { useLocalSearchParams, router } from 'expo-router';
import { useEffect } from 'react';

export default function User() {
  const { id } = useLocalSearchParams<{ id: string }>();
  
  useEffect(() => {
    // Validate parameter
    if (!id || !isValidUserId(id)) {
      router.replace('/404');
    }
  }, [id]);
  
  return <Text>User {id}</Text>;
}

function isValidUserId(id: string): boolean {
  return /^\d+$/.test(id);
}

Handle Missing Parameters

import { useLocalSearchParams } from 'expo-router';
import { View, Text } from 'react-native';

export default function Product() {
  const { id } = useLocalSearchParams<{ id?: string }>();
  
  if (!id) {
    return <Text>Product ID is required</Text>;
  }
  
  return <Text>Product: {id}</Text>;
}

Type All Parameters

import { useLocalSearchParams } from 'expo-router';

type Params = {
  category: string;
  productId: string;
  variant?: string;
  color?: string;
};

export default function ProductDetails() {
  const { category, productId, variant, color } = 
    useLocalSearchParams<Params>();
  
  return (
    <View>
      <Text>{category} / {productId}</Text>
      {variant && <Text>Variant: {variant}</Text>}
      {color && <Text>Color: {color}</Text>}
    </View>
  );
}

Common Patterns

Pagination

app/posts/index.tsx

import { useLocalSearchParams, router } from 'expo-router';
import { Button } from 'react-native';

export default function Posts() {
  const { page = '1' } = useLocalSearchParams<{ page?: string }>();
  const pageNum = parseInt(page, 10);
  
  const nextPage = () => {
    router.setParams({ page: String(pageNum + 1) });
  };
  
  const prevPage = () => {
    router.setParams({ page: String(Math.max(1, pageNum - 1)) });
  };
  
  return (
    <View>
      <Text>Page {pageNum}</Text>
      <Button title="Previous" onPress={prevPage} disabled={pageNum === 1} />
      <Button title="Next" onPress={nextPage} />
    </View>
  );
}

Tabs with Parameters

app/profile/[userId].tsx

import { useLocalSearchParams, Stack } from 'expo-router';
import { createMaterialTopTabNavigator } from '@react-navigation/material-top-tabs';

const Tab = createMaterialTopTabNavigator();

export default function UserProfile() {
  const { userId } = useLocalSearchParams<{ userId: string }>();
  
  return (
    <>
      <Stack.Screen options={{ title: `User ${userId}` }} />
      <Tab.Navigator>
        <Tab.Screen name="posts" component={PostsTab} />
        <Tab.Screen name="about" component={AboutTab} />
      </Tab.Navigator>
    </>
  );
}

Filtering and Sorting

app/products/index.tsx

import { useLocalSearchParams, router } from 'expo-router';
import { useState, useEffect } from 'react';

type Filters = {
  category?: string;
  minPrice?: string;
  maxPrice?: string;
  sort?: 'price' | 'name' | 'rating';
};

export default function Products() {
  const params = useLocalSearchParams<Filters>();
  const [products, setProducts] = useState([]);
  
  useEffect(() => {
    // Fetch products with filters
    fetchProducts(params).then(setProducts);
  }, [params]);
  
  const updateFilter = (key: keyof Filters, value: string) => {
    router.setParams({ [key]: value });
  };
  
  return (
    <View>
      <FilterControls onFilter={updateFilter} />
      <ProductList products={products} />
    </View>
  );
}

Next Steps

Layouts

Share UI across dynamic routes

Typed Routes

Type-safe dynamic routes

Deep Linking

Deep link to dynamic routes

API Routes

Create dynamic API endpoints

Introduction

Routing Fundamentals

Advanced Routing

Navigation UI

Dynamic Routes

Dynamic Routes

Dynamic Segments

Basic Example

Accessing Parameters

Type-Safe Parameters

Multiple Dynamic Segments

Query Parameters

Catch-All Routes

Basic Catch-All

Practical Catch-All Example

Navigating to Dynamic Routes

Using Link Component

Using Router

Dynamic List Example

Optional Segments

Array Parameters

URL Encoding

Updating Parameters

Global vs Local Params

useLocalSearchParams()

useGlobalSearchParams()

Route Specificity

Best Practices

Use Descriptive Parameter Names

Validate Parameters

Handle Missing Parameters

Type All Parameters

Common Patterns

Tabs with Parameters

Filtering and Sorting

Next Steps

Layouts

Typed Routes

Deep Linking

API Routes

Introduction

Routing Fundamentals

Advanced Routing

Navigation UI

​Dynamic Routes

​Dynamic Segments

​Basic Example

​Accessing Parameters

​Type-Safe Parameters

​Multiple Dynamic Segments

​Query Parameters

​Catch-All Routes

​Basic Catch-All

​Practical Catch-All Example

​Navigating to Dynamic Routes

​Using Link Component

​Using Router

​Dynamic List Example

​Optional Segments

​Array Parameters

​URL Encoding

​Updating Parameters

​Global vs Local Params

​useLocalSearchParams()

​useGlobalSearchParams()

​Route Specificity

​Best Practices

​Use Descriptive Parameter Names

​Validate Parameters

​Handle Missing Parameters

​Type All Parameters

​Common Patterns

​Pagination

​Tabs with Parameters

​Filtering and Sorting

​Next Steps

Layouts

Typed Routes

Deep Linking

API Routes

Dynamic Routes

Dynamic Segments

Basic Example

Accessing Parameters

Type-Safe Parameters

Multiple Dynamic Segments

Query Parameters

Catch-All Routes

Basic Catch-All

Practical Catch-All Example

Navigating to Dynamic Routes

Using Link Component

Using Router

Dynamic List Example

Optional Segments

Array Parameters

URL Encoding

Updating Parameters

Global vs Local Params

useLocalSearchParams()

useGlobalSearchParams()

Route Specificity

Best Practices

Use Descriptive Parameter Names

Validate Parameters

Handle Missing Parameters

Type All Parameters

Common Patterns

Pagination

Tabs with Parameters

Filtering and Sorting

Next Steps