Rider & Driver iOS Apps
Real-time location tracking, efficient battery management, complex map integrations, push notification orchestration, and Apple CarPlay support serving millions of daily rides.
Property Discovery & Booking
High-performance image galleries, map-based search, multi-step booking flows with payment integration, and offline-first features for travelers.
Mobile Banking App
Biometric authentication (Face ID/Touch ID), real-time transaction alerts, check deposit via camera, and secure communication with banking infrastructure.
Professional Networking App
Complex feed rendering with varied cell layouts, real-time messaging, profile media handling, and notification center integration for hundreds of millions of users.
What Swift Developers Actually Build
Before writing your job description, understand what Swift developers do at real companies. Here are examples from industry leaders:
Transportation & Logistics
Uber's rider and driver apps are built with Swift. Their iOS engineers handle:
- Real-time location tracking with efficient battery usage
- Complex map integrations with route visualization
- Push notification orchestration for ride updates
- Offline capabilities for areas with poor connectivity
- Deep integration with Apple CarPlay
Lyft uses Swift for similar transportation features, with particular focus on:
- Accessibility features for riders with disabilities
- Apple Pay integration for seamless payments
- Widget development for quick ride requests
Travel & Hospitality
Airbnb's iOS app handles property discovery and booking. Swift developers build:
- High-performance image galleries with smooth scrolling
- Complex search interfaces with map integration
- Multi-step booking flows with payment processing
- Host tools for property management
- Offline-first features for travelers with limited connectivity
Financial Services
Capital One and JPMorgan Chase use Swift for mobile banking:
- Biometric authentication (Face ID, Touch ID)
- Real-time transaction notifications
- Check deposit via camera capture
- Account aggregation dashboards
- Secure communication with backend services
Square (now Block) builds merchant tools with Swift:
- Point-of-sale interfaces
- Inventory management
- Sales analytics dashboards
- Hardware integration (card readers)
Social & Productivity
LinkedIn's iOS app serves hundreds of millions of professionals:
- Feed rendering with complex cell layouts
- Messaging with real-time updates
- Profile views with media handling
- Notification center integration
- Deep linking between app sections
Swift vs Objective-C: What Recruiters Need to Know
Understanding this distinction helps you evaluate candidates and write better job descriptions.
The Transition Timeline
- Pre-2014: All iOS development was Objective-C
- 2014-2017: Swift introduced, early adopters migrated
- 2018-2020: Swift became dominant for new projects
- 2021-present: Swift is the standard; Objective-C is legacy maintenance
What This Means for Hiring
| Aspect | Swift | Objective-C |
|---|---|---|
| New features | Yes | Rarely |
| Talent availability | Growing | Shrinking |
| Codebase age | Modern (2017+) | Legacy (pre-2017) |
| Learning resources | Abundant | Limited |
| Apple investment | Primary focus | Maintenance mode |
If you have a legacy Objective-C codebase: You need developers who know both. Be upfront about the migration timeline. Good candidates will ask "What percentage is Swift vs Objective-C?" and "Is there a migration plan?"
If you're starting fresh: Pure Swift is the way. Don't require Objective-C unless you genuinely need it—this artificially limits your candidate pool.
SwiftUI vs UIKit: The New Divide
Since 2019, Apple has been pushing SwiftUI as the future of UI development. This creates a new skill split in the market.
UIKit (The Established Framework)
- Used by most production apps today
- Mature, well-documented, battle-tested
- Required for complex, custom UI behaviors
- Most existing iOS developers know it well
SwiftUI (The Future)
- Declarative syntax (similar to React)
- Less code for common patterns
- Better for rapid prototyping
- Some limitations for complex UIs
- Increasingly adopted for new features
What to Require
| Your Situation | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Existing UIKit codebase | UIKit required, SwiftUI nice-to-have |
| New app development | SwiftUI preferred, UIKit for edge cases |
| watchOS or widgets | SwiftUI preferred (better support) |
| Complex custom UI | UIKit experience essential |
Senior candidates should know both. A strong iOS developer can explain when each framework is appropriate and how to integrate them in the same app.
Recruiter's Cheat Sheet: Evaluating Swift Developers
Conversation Starters That Reveal Skill Level
Instead of asking "Do you know Swift?", try these:
| Question | Junior Answer | Senior Answer |
|---|---|---|
| "How do you handle memory management in Swift?" | "Swift handles it automatically" | "ARC handles most cases, but I watch for retain cycles in closures and delegates, use weak/unowned references appropriately, and profile with Instruments" |
| "Tell me about a challenging iOS feature you built" | Generic CRUD app features | Specific: "Built offline sync that handles conflict resolution when users edit data without connectivity" |
| "How do you approach App Store releases?" | "Just submit and wait" | Discusses phased rollouts, crash monitoring, beta testing with TestFlight, handling review rejections |
Resume Signals That Matter
✅ Look for:
- Published apps on the App Store (link them, download them)
- Specific features they built ("Implemented Apple Pay integration")
- Performance metrics ("Reduced app launch time by 40%")
- SwiftUI experience for newer candidates
- WWDC attendance or watching sessions
🚫 Be skeptical of:
- "5+ years Swift experience" (Swift only became stable around 2015-2016)
- Only tutorial projects (no production apps)
- No mention of App Store process or TestFlight
- Listing every iOS framework without depth
GitHub Portfolio Assessment
- Look for actual iOS projects, not just Swift algorithms
- Check for proper project structure (MVVM, Coordinator patterns)
- README with screenshots or videos of the app
- Recent Swift code (language evolves quickly)
- Tests—especially UI tests and snapshot tests
Common Hiring Mistakes
1. Treating iOS Like Web Development
iOS has its own ecosystem, patterns, and constraints. Don't apply web hiring frameworks directly.
The constraint: App Store approval adds 1-7 days to any release. Candidates should understand phased rollouts, A/B testing within Apple's guidelines, and handling rejection appeals.
2. Ignoring Platform-Specific Skills
Swift syntax is learnable. What's hard to learn:
- Memory management debugging with Instruments
- Navigating App Store review guidelines
- Understanding iOS app lifecycle
- Working within Apple's Human Interface Guidelines
3. Overvaluing Cross-Platform Experience
React Native or Flutter experience doesn't translate directly to Swift. Native iOS development requires understanding Apple's frameworks, not just mobile concepts.
Airbnb's lesson: They famously moved away from React Native back to native development (Swift/Kotlin) because cross-platform couldn't meet their performance and integration needs.
4. Requiring Too Many Frameworks
Apple has dozens of frameworks (Core Data, CloudKit, ARKit, HealthKit, etc.). No developer knows all of them deeply. Focus on your actual needs:
- Building a health app? HealthKit experience matters.
- E-commerce? Apple Pay and StoreKit matter.
- Generic consumer app? UIKit/SwiftUI and networking fundamentals matter.