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Use contentInsetAdjustmentBehavior for Safe Areas

Use contentInsetAdjustmentBehavior for Safe Areas

Section titled “Use contentInsetAdjustmentBehavior for Safe Areas”

Use contentInsetAdjustmentBehavior="automatic" on the root ScrollView instead of wrapping content in SafeAreaView or manual padding. This lets iOS handle safe area insets natively with proper scroll behavior.

Incorrect (SafeAreaView wrapper):

import { SafeAreaView, ScrollView, View, Text } from 'react-native'
function MyScreen() {
return (
<SafeAreaView style={{ flex: 1 }}>
<ScrollView>
<View>
<Text>Content</Text>
</View>
</ScrollView>
</SafeAreaView>
)
}

Incorrect (manual safe area padding):

import { ScrollView, View, Text } from 'react-native'
import { useSafeAreaInsets } from 'react-native-safe-area-context'
function MyScreen() {
const insets = useSafeAreaInsets()
return (
<ScrollView contentContainerStyle={{ paddingTop: insets.top }}>
<View>
<Text>Content</Text>
</View>
</ScrollView>
)
}

Correct (native content inset adjustment):

import { ScrollView, View, Text } from 'react-native'
function MyScreen() {
return (
<ScrollView contentInsetAdjustmentBehavior='automatic'>
<View>
<Text>Content</Text>
</View>
</ScrollView>
)
}

The native approach handles dynamic safe areas (keyboard, toolbars) and allows content to scroll behind the status bar naturally.