Build and run an iOS app from the command line

You need Xcode installed. Run the commands from the folder that holds your project.

1. Find the scheme

xcodebuild -list

2. See where it can run

xcodebuild -scheme MyApp -showdestinations

3. Build for a simulator

xcodebuild -scheme MyApp \
  -destination 'platform=iOS Simulator,name=iPhone 17 Pro' build

Add -quiet to print nothing except warnings and errors.

4. Boot the simulator

xcrun simctl boot "iPhone 17 Pro"

xcrun simctl list devices shows every simulator with its name and identifier.

5. Install the app

The build lands in DerivedData, in a folder named after the configuration.

xcrun simctl install "iPhone 17 Pro" \
  ~/Library/Developer/Xcode/DerivedData/MyApp-*/Build/Products/Debug-iphonesimulator/MyApp.app

6. Launch it

xcrun simctl launch --console "iPhone 17 Pro" com.example.MyApp

--console keeps the command attached and prints what the app writes to its output.

The same loop, without the typing

Pitlane runs these tools for you. Add a project once and it remembers the scheme, the configuration and the destination. Build and Run boots the simulator, installs the app and launches it, and the errors arrive as a list you can click.

An AI agent can drive the same loop over Pitlane's local API.

Let Claude Code build and run your app