Cannot find module issues persist

[IrvingArmenta]

Requirements: This library requires Mapbox Maps SDK v11 and React Native 0.79+ with New Architecture (Fabric/TurboModules).

For sponsors-only support and resources: https://github.com/rnmapbox/maps/wiki/SponsorsRepo
Become a sponsor for special support: https://github.com/sponsors/rnmapbox

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Environment

• Dev OS: Windows 11 (PowerShell)
• @rnmapbox/maps version: 10.3.5
• React Native version: Expo SDK 57 (React Native 0.73+)
• Expo CLI version: 57.0.18
• pnpm version: 11.23.0

Steps to reproduce

pnpx create-expo-app sample
cd sample

# Install rnmapbox/maps
pnpm expo install @rnmapbox/maps@latest

# Add plugin
# app.json:
# {
# "expo": {
# "plugins": ["@rnmapbox/maps"]
# }
# }

pnpm expo prebuild --clean
pnpm expo run:android

Actual behavior

1. Expo cannot resolve the config plugin in app.json

In VS Code, hovering over "@rnmapbox/maps" inside "plugins" shows:
Cannot find module '@rnmapbox/maps'

2. Expo prebuild fails with module resolution errors

During the Expo config plugin phase, the build fails with:
Cannot find module '@rnmapbox/maps'

Expected Behavior

Expo’s config plugin should be discoverable in app.json, and Expo should load:
lib/module/Mapbox.js

[Hot-IOce]

This looks like pnpm's module layout rather than anything in @rnmapbox/maps — the giveaway is that it fails identically in the VS Code plugin resolution and in expo prebuild, on a package that is definitely installed.

By default pnpm uses the isolated node-linker: real packages live in node_modules/.pnpm and only your direct dependencies get symlinked at the top level. Expo's config-plugin resolution require.resolves the plugin from the project root and follows the realpath into the store, where the package's own dependency graph isn't resolvable — so it reports the plugin as missing even though it's installed.

Expo's recommended setup for pnpm is the hoisted linker. Create .npmrc next to package.json:

node-linker=hoisted
then reinstall from clean, because the existing tree is already in the wrong shape:

rm -rf node_modules pnpm-lock.yaml
pnpm install
pnpm expo prebuild --clean
(PowerShell: Remove-Item -Recurse -Force node_modules, pnpm-lock.yaml)

One extra thing specific to Windows 11: pnpm's default layout needs symlinks, and Windows only allows creating them with Developer Mode on or from an elevated shell. If that's off, pnpm silently produces a tree that looks right and doesn't resolve. Worth enabling Developer Mode before the reinstall — Settings → System → For developers.

Same failure shows up with other config plugins under pnpm — there are matching open reports against react-native-maps and react-native-datetimepicker — so it isn't Mapbox-specific, which hopefully saves you chasing it in the wrong repo.

If it still fails after the hoisted reinstall, post the output of pnpm why @rnmapbox/maps and whether node_modules/@rnmapbox/maps is a real directory or a symlink — that'll separate a resolution problem from an install problem.

[IrvingArmenta]

@Hot-IOce

Thanks for the explanation. I’ve moved from pnpm to bun, and I’m installing everything with bun install --linker hoisted as recommended in the bun docs. After switching, Expo no longer reports a resolution issue, but now app.json shows a different message saying the Mapbox plugin itself isn’t set up correctly.

I can import the package normally (import Mapbox from '@rnmapbox/maps') and VS Code resolves the .d.ts file without problems. The folder node_modules/@rnmapbox/maps exists as a real directory, not a symlink. However, when running the app in an EAS development build, the module is undefined at runtime.

I’m on Expo SDK 57 (React Native 0.73+), Expo CLI 57.0.18, and bun 1.3.14;
bun expo prebuild --clean, expo-doctor, and expo install --check all pass without errors.

Also, the pnpm workaround you mentioned is outdated. Recent pnpm versions changed their linker behavior, so the old fix doesn’t apply anymore.

Just adding this context in case it helps narrow down what’s actually happening.

Attaching screenshot of the text that app.json shows now