Cross-platform vs native mobile development: what are the trade-offs?

**Native development** (Swift/Kotlin) offers the best performance and platform features but requires maintaining two codebases. **Cross-platform** (React Native, Flutter, Xamarin) shares code between iOS and Android, reducing development time but with performance and feature access trade-offs. **Key considerations:** - Performance requirements - Access to platform-specific APIs - Team expertise - Development speed vs optimization - Long-term maintenance **Interview tip:** Mention that many teams choose hybrid approaches (native for critical paths, cross-platform for shared UI).