Building Offline-First Mobile Apps

Users don't care why the app froze on the subway, they just blame the app. Offline-first design treats connectivity as optional, not assumed.

Local first, sync second

Read and write to a local database instantly, then sync to the server in the background. The interface never waits on the network.

Plan for conflicts

When two devices edit the same data offline, you need a resolution strategy, last-write-wins, merging, or user choice. Decide deliberately rather than hoping it won't happen.

Communicate state

Show sync status honestly. Users tolerate "saving…" far better than silent data loss they discover later.