capacitor-app-upgrade-v4-to-v5

Capacitor App Upgrade v4 to v5

Upgrade a Capacitor app from version 4 to version 5.

When to Use This Skill

• User says the app is on Capacitor 4 and must move to v5
• User wants the exact v4 to v5 migration path
• User needs v5-specific native and package updates

Live Project Snapshot

Current Capacitor packages from package.json: !node -e "const fs=require('fs');if(!fs.existsSync('package.json'))process.exit(0);const pkg=JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync('package.json','utf8'));const out=[];for(const section of ['dependencies','devDependencies']){for(const [name,version] of Object.entries(pkg[section]||{})){if(name.startsWith('@capacitor/'))out.push(section+'.'+name+'='+version)}}console.log(out.sort().join('\n'))"

Procedure

1. Start from the injected package snapshot and confirm the current @capacitor/core version.
2. Update all @capacitor/* packages to the v5-compatible range.
3. Review the v4 to v5 migration notes before editing native files.
4. Run npm install.
5. Sync with npx cap sync.
6. Verify the iOS and Android builds.

Error Handling

• If the automated migration misses a package, update it manually before syncing again.
• If iOS fails, check the deployment target and Xcode compatibility for Capacitor 5.
• If Android fails, check the Gradle and Java requirements for Capacitor 5.