Skip to main content

iOS Virtual Devices on Apple Silicon

Sauce Labs now supports iOS 17.5 and iOS 18 on Apple Silicon-based Simulators. These environments offer improved performance, modern architecture alignment, and compatibility with Xcode's latest features. This enables you to test apps in the most current Apple environments across iPhone and iPad Simulators.

Enteprise Only

iOS 17.5 and iOS 18 Simulators on Apple Silicon are only available to Enterprise customers with the appropriate subscription plan. Contact your account manager to discuss upgrading.

Key Benefits​

  • High-fidelity iOS testing environments on M-series macOS VMs
  • Improved performance and stability with faster start-up times and test execution
  • More efficient for development teams that adopt arm64 throughout their development and testing pipelines.

Getting Started with Apple Silicon on Sauce Labs​

Building Your iOS/iPadOS App​

By default, Xcode builds apps for Simulators that support both arm64 and x86_64 architectures.

To build specifically for Apple Silicon (arm64) Simulators:

xcodebuild -arch arm64 -sdk iphonesimulator -destination 'platform=iOS Simulator,name=iPhone 15,OS=17.5' -configuration Debug

Locate the .app File​

  • Xcode UI: $HOME/Library/Developer/Xcode/DerivedData/<project-name>/Build/Products/Debug-iphonesimulator

  • Terminal: $PROJECT_PATH/<project-name>/build/Debug-iphonesimulator

Archive the Build​

  1. Create a folder named Payload
  2. Copy your .app file into the Payload directory
  3. Compress the folder into a .zip
  4. Rename the file to match your app, for example MyApp.zip

Uploading the App to Sauce Labs​

You can upload the .zip archive:

  • Via the App Management section in the Sauce Labs web UI
  • Or via the Sauce Labs File Storage API

➡️ Uploading Apps to Sauce Labs

Appium Capabilities for iOS​

To test your app on Apple Silicon Simulators, use the following capabilities:

Required Capabilities​

OS VersionAppium VersionDevice NamearmRequired
iOS 17.52.1.3iPhone 15 Simulatortrue
iOS 18.02.11.3iPhone 16 Simulatortrue
{
  "platformName": "iOS",
  "appium:deviceName": "iPhone 15 Simulator",
  "appium:platformVersion": "17.5",
  "appium:automationName": "XCUITest",
  "sauce:options": {
    "appiumVersion": "2.1.3",
    "armRequired": true
  }
}

Java Example for iOS​

MutableCapabilities caps = new MutableCapabilities();
caps.setCapability("platformName", "iOS");
caps.setCapability("appium:app", "storage:filename=<your app>.zip");
caps.setCapability("appium:deviceName", "iPhone 15 Simulator");
caps.setCapability("appium:deviceOrientation", "portrait");
caps.setCapability("appium:platformVersion", "17.5");
caps.setCapability("appium:automationName", "XCUITest");

MutableCapabilities sauceOptions = new MutableCapabilities();
sauceOptions.setCapability("appiumVersion", "2.1.3");
sauceOptions.setCapability("username", System.getenv("SAUCE_USERNAME"));
sauceOptions.setCapability("accessKey", System.getenv("SAUCE_ACCESS_KEY"));
sauceOptions.setCapability("name", "<your test name>");
sauceOptions.setCapability("armRequired", true);

caps.setCapability("sauce:options", sauceOptions);

Appium Capabilities for iPadOS​

For iPad Simulators with iOS 18.0:

{
  "platformName": "iOS",
  "appium:deviceName": "iPad Simulator",
  "appium:platformVersion": "18.0",
  "appium:automationName": "XCUITest",
  "sauce:options": {
    "appiumVersion": "2.11.3",
    "armRequired": true
  }
}

Java Example for iPadOS​

MutableCapabilities caps = new MutableCapabilities();
caps.setCapability("platformName", "iOS");
caps.setCapability("appium:app", "storage:filename=<your app>.zip");
caps.setCapability("appium:deviceName", "iPad Simulator");
caps.setCapability("appium:deviceOrientation", "portrait");
caps.setCapability("appium:platformVersion", "18.0");
caps.setCapability("appium:automationName", "XCUITest");

MutableCapabilities sauceOptions = new MutableCapabilities();
sauceOptions.setCapability("appiumVersion", "2.11.3");
sauceOptions.setCapability("username", System.getenv("SAUCE_USERNAME"));
sauceOptions.setCapability("accessKey", System.getenv("SAUCE_ACCESS_KEY"));
sauceOptions.setCapability("name", "<your test name>");
sauceOptions.setCapability("armRequired", true);

caps.setCapability("sauce:options", sauceOptions);

Known Issues and Migration Notes​

As you upgrade to iOS 17.5 and 18, be aware that Appium and related driver updates may require updates to existing tests to remove deprecated features no longer supported.

Check Appium Version Details for full bundle details on versions 2.1.3 and 2.11.3.

Changes to Content Scope​

Appium VersioniOS Versions AffectedContent Scope
2.0.xiOS 16WebView content elements accessed in their own context
2.1.xiOS 17WebView content elements accessed in the App's context
2.11.xiOS 18WebView content elements accessed in their own context

Changes to iOS Alerts​

Changes to Appium XCUITest Driver v7+ have modified how System alerts are interacted with, potentially requiring modifications to tests run on iOS 18 Simulators.

Solution: set respectSystemsAlerts setting to true — for more details and alernative options see the Appium documentation.

Changes to Gestures​

Appium commands TouchActions and MultiTouchActions have been deprecated in XCUITest Driver 7+.

Solution: Refer to Appium Documentation for additional implementation options.

More details ➡️ Migrating to Appium 2

Learn More​

Have questions? Visit the Sauce Labs Community or contact our support team.