Apple’s Xcode Simulator is an essential tool for testing iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, tvOS, and visionOS apps without needing physical devices. However, Xcode doesn’t always install every simulator version by default. Whether you need to test against older OS versions or the latest betas, you’ll need to manually download additional simulators.
sudo xcodebuild -downloadPlatform iOS To download a specific version: xcode download simulators
#!/bin/bash # Install required iOS simulators for CI xcodebuild -downloadPlatform iOS -version 17.5 xcodebuild -downloadPlatform iOS -version 16.4 xcrun simctl list devices | grep "iPhone" Final Thoughts Downloading simulators in Xcode is straightforward once you know where to look. The Platforms tab inside Xcode Settings is your best friend for interactive use, while xcodebuild shines for automation. Apple’s Xcode Simulator is an essential tool for
xcrun simctl runtime list -a To see downloadable but not yet installed runtimes: sudo xcodebuild -downloadPlatform iOS To download a specific
xcodebuild -downloadPlatform iOS -version 17.5 Or download all available runtimes for a platform:
xcodebuild -downloadPlatform -all Find the identifier (e.g., iOS 17.5 ), then run:
xcodebuild -downloadPlatform Or, for more detail: