Trending Swift Design Patterns to Build Powerful iOS Apps

The all-time increasing growth in the app development industry is not a new thing anymore. Today, people are spending most of their time in front of their mobile screens. But do you know where? Well, according to a study by eMarketer, most American adults spend 88% of their mobile time on mobile applications.

Due to this reason, a large section of business owners is focusing on mobile app development, iOS app development to be specific. And this upsurge has even risen to an entirely new level since the evolution of Swift, Apple’s programming language, in 2014. It is a robust, multipurpose language that offers developers an opportunity to craft intuitive iOS applications.

Although it has been over eight years since it was launched, Swift and its functionalities are still pretty new for most users. Many of them aren’t aware that by using specific iOS Swift design patterns, they can create top-notch applications.

Do you also belong to that section of the users? If yes, this informational piece can provide you with insights into the most popular iOS app design patterns used in Swift. So, let’s get started!

What Exactly Are Swift Design Patterns?

Before discussing the whats and hows of iOS application design patterns in Swift, let’s understand why we need to know about it in the first place. So, here it goes.

Witnessing the surge in mobile app usage, almost all businesses are investing more and more in this market. This is because the mobile app industry has become one of the greatest contributors to generating revenue globally. It has been reported that the global market app size is estimated to reach $206.73 billion in 2022.

Going into details, based on the app platform, iOS apps generated revenue way more than Android ones with a share of 62.88% in 2021, according to Statista. It is an interesting figure keeping in mind the number of applications present in the Google Play Store, almost three times greater than that of iOS applications.

Because of this, the expectations from iOS developers have also increased. Now, every product owner desires an app that could satisfy their target audience’s needs and business requirements.

Although a hi-tech, protocol-oriented language like Swift makes most of the operations effortless, you still need specific functionalities to build creative and reliable UIs. And that’s when Swift UI design patterns come into play and transform the coding landscape. These design patterns not only provide developers with a template to write code, but they also help create a simple and easy-to-work environment for them. However, the creative aspect lies in your hands and it’s up to you whether you fit your code into this template or not. Let’s walk through the benefits you can avail of with design patterns used in iOS.

Benefits of Design Patterns in iOS App Development

Make Programming Easy and Fun

The primary objective of using Swift design patterns for iOS app development is to make coding easier for programmers. These design patterns provide developers with a set of reusable techniques that help them craft interactive UIs while addressing specific development issues.

A Tested Solution to Begin with

The iOS Swift design patterns are properly checked and made free of bugs and errors. That’s why they are in high demand and a perfect solution to design the architecture of your mobile apps. And that’s not it. These design patterns can also aid developers in solving new issues associated with the development.

Therefore instead of creating these patterns and testing them to make them bug-free, they can be used as they are and even reused for saving time and effort.

An Easy Unification of Code

One of the most significant benefits of iOS design patterns is that they provide you with typical solutions to identify errors in code, detect bugs, and structure the application in the best way possible. It mitigates the chances of making mistakes while developing and designing your apps.

Comprehensible Vocabulary That Anyone Can Understand

Who says that to tackle a challenging situation you need a complex solution, too? While using design patterns in Swift, there is no need to incorporate a lengthy, in-depth explanation of how to resolve an issue. You can simply define the design pattern used in the development process and the other developers will get an idea about the solution implemented.

Types of Software Design Patterns in iOS

When it comes to different types of design patterns in iOS app development, there are three broad categories of classification, which are further divided into different subcategories. Here are they:

• Creational
• Behavioral
• Structural

Let’s discuss each of these ios swift design patterns one by one:

Creational

The first type in this list is Creational design patterns that deal with object creational mechanisms. When developers create an object, they mainly instantiate a class, or in simple words, create an instance of a class. Creational design patterns in Swift provide you with concrete facts that support the objects in a specific situation. The most commonly used ios UI design patterns are:

• Builder
• Factory
• Abstract
• Singleton

Behavioral

To identify and implement a common communication pattern between different entities, behavioral design patterns are used. The most popular design patterns included in this category are:

• Template Method
• Observer
• Chain of Responsibility
• Command
• Momento
• Iterator
• Mediator
• Strategy
• State

Structural

As the name suggests, this category of Swift design patterns for iOS app development is responsible for maintaining the structure of the app. These design patterns streamline the design and identify the simplest way to form a connection between objects and classes. Here are some of the widely used structural design patterns:

• Adapter
• MVC
• Facade
• Decorator
• Bridge
• Flyweight
• Composite

The Most Widely Used Swift Design Patterns You Should Be Aware Of

Builder

It is one of the most popular creational design patterns in Swift used for creating complex objects from basic objects. In this design pattern, you can generate multiple views of an object using the same code.

One of the things to keep in mind while working on this design pattern is that you need to separate the building process for an object based on its class. The development process is multi-step and it requires the allocation of special objects known as builders. You have to repeatedly call the builder methods to develop an object. However, you don’t need to follow every step; only the ones that are required to construct an object would be needed.

When to Use Builder Design Pattern in Swift

• This pattern is a boon if you are avoiding the use of a Telescopic constructor. A telescopic constructor means a constructor having more than one perimeter which is challenging to comprehend and manage. 
• You can use the Builder design pattern if the code wants you to build multiple views of an object.
• This design pattern can also be used when you want to assemble complex objects.

Factory

The Factory design pattern in Swift is used to create objects without revealing the logic of creation. In simple terms, you don’t need to specify objects’ concrete classes to create them.

This method has several ‘flavors’, such as simple factory, abstract factory, etc. However, all of them have a single primary objective – to segregate objects’ creation logic within their construct.

When to Use the Factory Method

• It can be a perfect choice when you have to offer top-level flexibility for your code.
• You can also use this design pattern when you consist of a single product type, and it requires information or dependencies to make the product.

Singleton

As the name suggests, the Singleton design pattern is all about developing an individual instance of a class with global accessibility. Whenever you need a single instance for the first time, you can get one through this design pattern by using lazy loading.

You might wonder what’s the logic of having a single instance of a class. Well, there are times when only one instance of an item will make sense.

When to Use the Singleton Swift Design Pattern

• The Singleton design pattern can be used when you require only a single instance of a class in your application that could work with all your users.
• You can also use this option when stricter control over global variables is needed.

Template Method

The Template Method is one of the behavioral Swift UI design patterns used widely in the iOS app development industry. It is used for defining the overall structure of the operational algorithm and assigning responsibilities to specific subclasses. This pattern allows subclasses to modify a few steps without making changes to the overall structure of the algorithm.

This design pattern in Swift breaks down the entire algorithm into a series of steps, segregates them into methods, and then calls them one by one using a single template method.

When to Use the Template Method

• If you want to extend the fundamental algorithm without affecting its overall structure, the Template Method can be the perfect option.
• You can also use this Swift design pattern if you have different classes having similar actions.

Observer

As the name suggests, the Observer design pattern in Swift notifies when a specific object’s state changes. In this behavioral design pattern, there is a specific object type, also known as the ‘subject’ that manages a list of dependents, or observers, coordinating in a one-to-many relationship.

The primary objective of the subject is to observe the behavior of specific objects and alert all the observers when the state of the object changes.

When to Use the Observer Design Pattern in Swift

• With this design pattern, users can react to actions occurring in other objects without integrating with their respective classes.
• It sends push notifications to users on their respective iOS devices by creating subscription services.
• The Observer design pattern can also be used when you need to change the status of one of your objects.

Facade

The second design pattern in the list is the Facade which presents complex systems in the simplest way. It offers an easy interface to a group of classes, libraries, and frameworks. With Facade, you can easily build your class and integrate various objects into it to a user-friendly interface and code. It eliminates the necessity of showing different methods using multiple interfaces.

When to Use the Facade Design Pattern in Swift

• You can use this design pattern if you want to make a complicated system accessible through a simple and user-friendly interface.
• To understand a subsystem clearly, you need to break down it into layers. The Facade design pattern can be a perfect option for this task.

Adapter

There can be times when you will have objects with incompatible or different interfaces and you want to make them function together flawlessly. The Adapter design pattern can be your savior in such situations. It allows objects with different interfaces to interact with each other by transforming the interface of one object to adapt it to the other.

Eventually, you can use the Adapter to implement third-party classes when the interface is unsynchronized with the rest of the app code.

When to Use the Adapter Swift Design Pattern

• You can use the Adapter design pattern when you want to use a third-party class but the interface is not compatible with your application’s code.
• You can also use this design pattern when you want to implement multiple existing subclasses not having the specific functionality you need.

Decorator

With the Decorator design pattern, you can include additional dynamic functionalities to an existing object by enclosing them in useful wrappers. That’s why it is also known as the ‘Wrapper Design Pattern.’

The central idea behind this design pattern is that you can place the target objects into another object if all of them have the same interface. You can also include responsibility and behavior to an object without changing the code. In addition to this, you can use various wrappers simultaneously to get their collective behavior.

When to Use the Decorator Swift Design Pattern

• You can use the Decorator design pattern to assign responsibilities to different objects dynamically. Besides this, you can also hide those objects in the program that uses them.
• With this design pattern, you can add additional functionalities and features to the objects without including them in the code.

MVC (Model-View-Controller)

Often referred to as the king of iOS design patterns, MVC is one of the most widely used architecture patterns for iOS applications. In this design pattern, you do not need to link the model with the data. The view can manage other things, such as animated buttons and interface design. However, as per the recommendation, you must choose another class to create the animation.

The controller is responsible for collecting all the data in one place. It is a complex component as it accesses the data from the model and presents it with the view. It also handles the data and makes modifications whenever necessary.

When to Use the MVC Design Pattern in Swift

• You can use the MVC design pattern to maintain the data flow and signal transfer within the application system.
• It is also an excellent choice if you want to provide your teams and clients with a seamless transition from one project to another.
• The MVC design pattern can also be used if you do not want to transform your code into a pile of mess.

Choosing the Right Swift UI Design Patterns: Critical Factors to Consider

After walking through the most commonly used design patterns in iOS Swift one thing is probably clear to you — each of them has different characteristics and applications of use and you should pick one based on your business requirements.

Here are a few practices you can consider while choosing a suitable design pattern for your iOS application:

Identify which design pattern can fix the issues you are facing

The most important benefit of design patterns is to simplify the mobile app development process. While analyzing the application’s core idea, you might come across several issues that might turn up while developing the app. Observing the problem, ensure you choose a design pattern that can help you fix it.

Check the purpose of the selected design pattern

The next step is to identify the objective of the design pattern you are going to pick. Make sure its feature aligns with your business goals.

Compare all the design patterns that fulfill your needs

Sometimes, you can find more than one design pattern that might suit your business application needs. In that case, you need to compare them to identify the similarities and differences among them to make an effective decision.

Figure out the relation between different design patterns

If your application demands choosing different iOS UI design patterns, make sure you derive the relation between them and pick the ones that correlate with each other. Choosing the correlated iOS application design patterns in Swift and grouping them can help you get an interactive design.

Analyze and define the variable part of the design that needs to be fixed

You do not need to redesign the application completely when you know what part of the app design has issues. You can easily fix them with the right iOS app design patterns. However, for that, you need to determine what part of the design is variable and can be changed. Consequently, it will also help you choose a suitable design pattern in Swift.

How Can Appventurez Make iOS App Development Seamless Using the Right Swift Design Pattern?

In this era of digitization, your mobile app plays a key role in reflecting your brand image. The app design is the first thing that decides whether your app will get a green flag in the market or not. Therefore, choosing the right iOS UX design pattern becomes a critical decision, especially when you are expecting a robust iOS application.

Appventurez is an emerging iOS application development services that knows how valuable the role Swift design patterns play in maintaining the development flow. The professional iOS development team of Appventurez can comprehensively understand your project idea and needs. Based on that, they can help you pick a suitable design pattern that aligns with your core business objectives and build an app you have always desired.