Display and control simulators with Xcode 27+, and switch between NeoSimulator and Xcode's Device Hub from one Mac app. Xcode continues to handle Build & Run.
Requires Apple Silicon, macOS 26.4+, and Xcode 27+.
- Download the DMG from Releases.
- Open it and drag NeoSimulator.app to Applications.
- Open NeoSimulator and choose NeoSimulator or Device Hub in Settings.
The app stays in the Dock in either mode. Choose Display Host in Settings to switch hosts while leaving simulator devices running. To update, quit NeoSimulator, replace the app in Applications, and reopen it.
NeoSimulator supports iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, Apple TV, and Apple Vision Pro, with device windows, input, screen capture, pasteboard exchange, and simulator controls. Select a device in the main window and choose View Screen to display it in the center pane. Switch to Compact Window moves the same screen into a separate window; Show in Main Window returns it to the browser. You can also choose Device in the Dock menu or File → Open Simulator to start a device or bring its window forward. The menus group devices by OS version.
Use the main window's right inspector to view device information, manage installed apps and profiles, or export and replace app data. Choose Settings, Reports, or Info in its toolbar. Available actions depend on the selected device; see the user guide.
NeoSimulator uses private Apple frameworks and undocumented Xcode preferences. Compatibility is checked before switching. Choose Restore Original Settings… in Settings before uninstalling to restore the saved preference values.
The app replaces the xcode-simulator-host command and Legacy mode. It reuses
the previous preference-recovery receipt, so existing settings can be restored
from the app. An older CLI installation is not removed automatically. If you
used the installer's default location, quit the old NeoSimulator first, then
remove these obsolete files after installing the app:
rm "$HOME/.local/bin/xcode-simulator-host"
rm -r "$HOME/.local/libexec/xcode-simulator-host"Keep ~/Library/Application Support/xcode-simulator-host/state.plist until you
have restored preferences or no longer need the saved original values. Custom
CLI installation paths must be removed from the location you selected.
Read the documentation for the user guide, input and peripherals, configuration and recovery, and architecture.
Source builds require Swift 6.4+ and Xcode 27+.
git clone https://github.com/lynnswap/NeoSimulator.git
cd NeoSimulator
scripts/build-local.sh
open .build/local/arm64/NeoSimulator.appFor a local app you keep using, sign each update with the same identity to keep its signing requirement stable across builds. Pass a certificate name or SHA-1 hash from your keychain:
scripts/build-local.sh --signing-identity 'Developer ID Application: Your Name (TEAMID)'You can also set CODE_SIGN_IDENTITY explicitly. Without either option, local
and validation builds continue to use an ad-hoc signature.
Open NeoSimulator.xcworkspace to work on the app, renderer, and host-switching
library. See Development for
tests, documentation builds, and DMG release tooling.