Xcode Xip How To Install

How To Download, Install and Update Xcode

By | Terminal Updated on December 3rd, 2022 10:34 am |four-min read

Xcode is the Mac app that developers utilise to create apps for Apple's platforms, like iOS. In this tutorial, yous'll acquire how yous tin download and install Xcode on your Mac.

Here's what we'll get into:

3 approaches to download and install Xcode on your Mac
Tips and tricks to proceed your Xcode up-to-engagement
How to install Xcode betas on your Mac

How practise you download Xcode for macOS? You've got a few options:

Get Xcode via the Mac App Store
Download Xcode via programmer.apple.com/downloads
Install through Mac App Shop CLI (see below)

Let's walk through the approaches you can use to download and install Xcode on your Mac, and their advantages. We'll start with the Mac App Store, because that'due south the simplest option.

Here's how you can download and install via the Mac App Shop:

Make sure you're logged into macOS with your Apple ID
Open the Mac App Store app
Search for "xcode" in the search field, at the top-left
Click on the Xcode app particular that appears
Click on the Get or Install buttom at the peak-correct to download and install Xcode

There are a few things yous should know, though. Xcode is a huge app, about seven gigabyte (GB) in size. Y'all'll demand near fifteen GB of gratis space on your Mac to install Xcode this mode.

Installing via the App Shop is simple, piece of cake and seamless. Unfortunately, issues with downloading, like a lost connection, etc., usually means you'll have to reattempt the download.

Author's Note: Installing Xcode via the App Shop never maxes out my download speed — not even close. On a 500 Mbps fiber line, it regularly drops downwardly to 200 KB/due south.

Installing Xcode via the Mac App Store is as simple as clicking Install. However, there's an approach that gives you more control: programmer.apple.com/download.

Hither'southward how that works:

Become to developer.apple.com/download and log in with your Apple ID
Click on More in the tiptop-right of the page, side by side to Beta and Release
In the search field on the left, type "xcode" and press Enter
Locate and click the advisable version of Xcode in the list
In the panel slides out, click the .xip filename, i.e. Xcode 12.xip and save/download that file onto your Mac

This will download a .xip file, which includes Xcode. The download size is currently about vii gigabyte (GB). You'll need at least twice that size of gratis storage on your Mac to install Xcode with this approach. Downloading Xcode this way is often faster than through the Mac App Shop.

Once y'all've downloaded Xcode, open up and unzip the .xip file. This may have a while. You tin and so drag-and-driblet the Xcode.app file to your ~/Applications folder. Finally, commencement the Xcode app. You'll exist greeted with the following prompt:

Click Install in this prompt. Xcode will at present attempt to install the Xcode Command Line Tools on your Mac. They are CLI tools used to compile apps with Xcode, among other things. You often need these tools to work with other programming languages on Mac, as well.

A disadvantage of manually installing Xcode through the Developer portal is that Xcode won't automatically update. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, yet, considering you lot can use this approach to install multiple versions of Xcode side-past-side. This is helpful for debugging or trying out beta versions of Xcode (come across beneath).

In that location'southward another, more hidden benefit. Installing Xcode through the Mac App Store limits yous to the most recent version of Xcode. If your version of macOS or Mac Os X doesn't back up the latest version of Xcode, you can usually install older versions via developer.apple.com!

You tin pinpoint the latest version of Xcode that your Mac supports by cross-referencing a few tables on Wikipedia. First, effigy out what macOS version you have. Then, go to the Xcode wiki, and find your version of macOS in the min macOS version to run column betwixt Xcode 9.x and 12.ten. The version of Xcode yous tin can run is in the row higher up the one y'all institute. For instance, the latest version of Xcode yous can run on macOS ten.13.six (High Sierra) is Xcode 10.1. Keep in mind that running an older version of Xcode often limits for which iOS, Swift and SwiftUI versions yous can build.

How practise you keep your Xcode up-to-date? Apple tree regularly releases new versions of Xcode. They typically include bug fixes and performance improvements, as well equally new Xcode features, like the minimap.

More importantly, new Xcode versions include new versions of the iOS SDKs, Swift and SwiftUI. You lot tin can simply utilise these new technologies with the latest versions of Xcode.

You can update your Xcode to the latest versions similar this:

If you lot've installed Xcode via the App Store, updates happen automatically, or y'all tin can manually initiate an update in the Updates tab of the app
If y'all've manually installed Xcode via developer.apple.com, you'll too need to manually install the newer version; updates aren't automatic

How do you lot know if Xcode has a new version?

You go a notification on your Mac (if installed via App Store)
Keep an eye on programmer.apple.com/news/releases (official)
Check out xcodereleases.com
Follow @XcodeReleases on Twitter

Past the way, there'due south a tertiary way to download and install Xcode on your Mac. It'south chosen mas-cli, and it's substantially a Command Line Interface (CLI) wrapper for the Mac App Store. It uses the App Store – from the command line… Dainty!

You can install mas-cli via Homebrew, a bundle director for Mac. Installing mas-cli via Homebrew happens similar this:

$ brew install mas
You can then listing apps installed through the App Store on your Mac, with:

$ mas listing
Yous can then search for Xcode like this:

$ mas search Xcode
Then, copy the numerical lawmaking you run into on screen to install Xcode:

$ mas install 123456789
Yous can detect outdated apps with mas outdated. Yous can then upgrade all outdated apps with mas upgrade, or selectively update Xcode by its identifier:

$ mas upgrade 123456789
Awesome!

Author's Annotation: As I understand information technology, you'll need to take installed an app via the App Store earlier you tin can install it again with mas-cli.

Apple regularly releases beta versions of upcoming software, like iOS, macOS and Xcode. This enables developers to try out new features before they become available to the general public, and provide feedback and bug reports back to Apple tree.

How tin you download and install Xcode'south beta versions? Here'southward how:

Go to developer.apple tree.com/download and log in with your Apple tree ID
Cull one of the following:

Click Beta in the pinnacle-correct:

Select Applications
Locate the featured Xcode beta yous need
Click Download

Click More in the top-right

Use the search field to find "xcode"
Locate the Xcode beta you need
Expand the panel past clicking on it
Click the .xip to download

Once you've got a .xip, unzip it, re-create the .app to your ~/Applications binder, and first the Xcode app.

As nosotros've discussed before, you can install multiple versions of Xcode side-by-side with this approach. You can, for case, have the regular Xcode installed via the App Shop, and install a beta version of Xcode next to it.

Y'all don't demand to have a paid Developer Account to install betas of Xcode. But use the free Apple Developer Account. Information technology can occasionally happen that Apple restricts beta software to paid subscribers only, however.

If yous're installing multiple Xcodes, change their filenames to reflect their versions. That makes it easier to tell them apart! Just so you know: when you switch between installed Xcode versions, you usually get that "Install additional components" prompt again. There are ways effectually that, just it'due south simplest to just allow it install again whenever Xcode needs to.

Managed to install Xcode on your Mac? Awesome! Now yous know how to install Xcode'due south betas adjacent to information technology, and keep everything up-to-date. Hither's what nosotros discussed in this tutorial: