Candidates look for four things when deciding which career path is best: a learning environment, job satisfaction, decent pay, and career growth. Everything else comes down to priorities. Some people would rather work in a pleasant setting and not be restricted in time.
Apple is taking the lead even in smartphones. Most people prefer iPads and iPhones. And as the demand for iOS developers grows, you can be sure that you will have a bright future because every tech company is open to hiring ingenious and extremely experienced iOS developers.
iOS is one of the most well-known portable application advancement stages. With over 2.22 million apps available on the iOS app store as of 2021, the field of iOS app development has grown rapidly since its inception. As a result, iOS developers are among the most sought-after professionals and iOS developer skills are the most in demand skills.
iOS became the most preferred platform for developers worldwide for a number of different reasons. The simplicity of application improvement, high-benefit potential, brought together UI, and a generally speaking moderate appearance, to give some examples, prompted the broad advancement of iOS applications. Furthermore, a unified user interface leaves little room for fragmentation issues.
The main part of fostering an iOS application is employing capable iOS application engineers with areas of strength for an in versatile turn of events and a capable iOS improvement range of abilities.
The top ten iOS developer skills you should look for when hiring iOS developers for your team are covered in this article. To start with, let us examine the reason why precisely there is an unexpected expansion popular for iOS engineers and why you want them for your organization.
Why there is a demand for iOS developer skill set?
Even though Android apps have a larger share of the global market, Apple has over a billion iPhones in use, all of which run iOS. Accordingly, the interest for talented iOS engineers has soar as of late.
The App Store will have 2.22 million apps as of 2021, and by 2023, sales of mobile apps are expected to exceed $935 billion. Ten apps are used daily and thirty are used monthly by the typical smartphone user.
CIO magazine says that mobile developers are one of the top ten most in-demand tech jobs. Between 2019 and 2029, app developer positions will grow by 22%, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Why should you hire iOS developers for your company?
An iOS developer creates, tests, and enhances mobile applications for Apple’s iOS operating system that meet the needs and goals of their client or business. They are able to tailor their apps to the requirements of their company or client, as well as have a solid understanding of iOS and how it works with various Apple devices like the iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and Apple TV.
21 must have iOS developer skills
There are the people who keep up with it doesn’t really exist, and other people who call it an emergency. The numbers are honest, and the truth probably lies somewhere in the middle. In the last five years, for instance, the size of the US market for developers of mobile apps has grown more quickly than the economy as a whole.
This indicates that anyone who wishes to pursue a career as an app developer currently has access to an incredible amount of opportunities.
The operating system that powers both the iPhone and the iPad—arguably the two most significant pieces of technological hardware produced in the past two decades—is iOS. iOS developers are in such high demand as a result. Any business that wants to reach the tens of millions of people who love and use Apple mobile devices must employ iOS experts, and they are currently looking all over the place.
So, how does one become an iOS developer who can be hired? We have compiled a fantastic list to answer that question for you.
Here are 21 must have skills to become an iOS developer:
- Practical knowledge of Swift 3.0
- Experience in Xcode IDE
- Spatial reasoning
- Core data
- Design guidelines
- Apple Human Interface Guidelines
- Networking
- Experience in memory management
- Skilled in source control
- Experience in unit testing
- Proficiency in Grand Central Dispatch
- Git and GitHub
- Spatial reasoning ability
- UI and UX design experience
- Knowledge of storyboards
- Good communication skills
- Critical thinking
- Adaptability
- Team player attitude
- Ability to Innovate
- Work ethic
1. Practical knowledge of Swift 3.0
The iOS app development language of choice is Swift 3.0.
Apple’s object-oriented programming language, Swift, has a straightforward syntax and is simple to use. Applications for Apple’s platforms, including macOS, iOS, watchOS, and tvOS, are developed using this robust and user-friendly programming language.
Quick programming language is quick and stable, permitting any iOS designer to create responsive and include rich iOS applications rapidly. Also, it is open-source and fast to learn.
One of the most sought-after skills for iOS developers is a thorough understanding of Swift 3.0.
Apple developed the programming language Swift specifically for app development. All iOS development in the future will be done in this language. Thus, you must be aware of it!
Our own specialists recognize it’s anything but a “little” language, however you don’t need to know it all to land a lesser iOS designer position. You will need to ensure that you are at ease with:
- Basic syntax
- Optionals
- Control Flow (If and Switch Statements)
- Classes, inheritance & initialization
- Error handling
- Objective-C Interoperability
Created by Apple, Quick 3.0 is the worldwide and most preferred language that is utilized in iOS versatile application advancement organization. You ought to be capable in Quick 3.0 like a cricketer is capable is gifted in getting a ball.
2. Experience in Xcode IDE
When looking to hire an iOS developer, one of the skills they need is the ability to use the Xcode IDE, or Integrated Development Environment.
Automating, debugging, programming, interpreting, and compiling can all be simplified with the help of an integrated development environment (IDE). An IDE’s resources simplify the application development and deployment processes for both new and existing applications.
In addition, the IDE reduces iOS app development time and costs while also providing an outstanding user experience. Make sure to look for developers with the iOS developer skill set that includes the Xcode IDE.
It is the most important thing to include in your skillset. The Xcode IDE is a great tool that creates a one-of-a-kind application and provides a magnificent user experience.
It is joined with Cocoa Contact structures and Cocoa and is the principal climate to create applications for a few Macintosh gadgets like Mac, iPad, television, iPhone, Macintosh, and so on.
It urges an engineer to permit a few Apple administrations like Passbook, Major advantage. You must be familiar with the Apple Xcode IDE in order to develop iOS apps.
3. Spatial reasoning
Successful app developers must be able to visualize the spatial relationships between objects in three dimensions.
Simply put, you need to think about how users will interact with your application when designing interfaces for devices like the iPhone, Apple Watch, and the new Apple TV. So you want to:
- Comprehend the various kinds of controls and inputs that are offered by and popular on various platforms.
- Learn about the devices you want to target by using them yourself!
While some people may exhibit this ability more naturally, it is a learned skill that can be learned by building real projects and practicing. Find out more about the design process used by UX designers.
The ability to reason spatially is one of the most important aspects of app development. Each app is designed with the user in mind and the user’s intended use in mind. To provide the best possible user experience for the intended audience, you should think outside the box.
You will be able to design an interface and compute more convenient functionalities if you think logically in terms of the user. Users will be able to access your website with it. As a designer, it’s your obligation to make the application more significant and helpful.
4. Core data
Core Data is a framework that makes managing model objects and their relationships easier to manage, making it easier to build data-driven applications. This lets the engineer free from routine assignments related with object life cycle and diagram the executives.
Center Information fundamentally diminishes how much code an iOS designer writes to help the model layer. Core Data can be used by iOS developers to cache temporary data, save application data for offline use, and add undo functionality to an app on a single device. Center Information consequently reflects the construction to a CloudKit holder while matching up across different gadgets in a solitary iCloud account.
In order to create applications that are focused on the customer, businesses need to hire iOS developers who are familiar with how to use Core Data.
This is the very thing that one of our Educated authorities as of late needed to say regarding Center Information: ” It’s like working out when you learn Core Data: You can’t believe you survived without it after the first few days, which feel like torture!
Core Data is essentially Apple’s device persistence framework. Imagine if your data disappeared each time you used an app. This would be similar to the early days of video games, when you couldn’t save your progress and had to beat Super Mario Brothers all at once. The most crucial framework for storing data on Apple devices is Core Data.
Because Core Data eliminates this obstacle by storing data on Apple’s devices, it is the most supportive tool you can use to provide a smooth user experience. It will eliminate the user’s frustration of having to start over each time they use the app.
5. Design guidelines
Fruitful iOS applications are known and appreciated for being especially instinctive. This is because these apps follow a stringent set of design guidelines. How information is put away and shown to the client is taken care of in quite certain ways.
To fabricate your own natural applications, you really want to be aware and comprehend these plan designs. That is the reason, assuming you seek after turning into an iOS engineer through our iOS Designer Nanodegree program, you’ll learn basic ideas like:
- Swift, the iOS application development programming language.
- UIKit, Apple’s front-end framework for making web interfaces that are quick and powerful.
- Network solicitations and Apple’s Fantastic Focal Dispatch (GCD).
- Learn about simple persistence, the iOS File System, and the “sandbox” for data persistence.
The motivation behind why Apple clients are wild about their gadgets is their uniqueness that baits them to buy Apple items. There are clearly defined guidelines to follow when creating iOS apps.
During your time working as a trainee in an iOS app development company, you will need to learn how to create amazing apps while adhering to Apple’s design guidelines. You will be ready to achieve great things once you have cultivated this skill within yourself.
6. Apple Human Interface Guidelines
The most important skill that will make you the best iOS app developer is your knowledge of Apple Guidelines. It will make your learning process straightforward and painless. These rules support an application designer to create applications that have most extreme contact with unrivaled visuals, and stunning client experience.
7. Networking
To comprehend the significance of systems administration to application improvement, first attempt to consider an application on your telephone that doesn’t connect with the web. Could you come up with one? Because almost every app we use communicates with the web in some way, either you were unable to or it took you some time to think of one. As a result, knowing how to send and receive data from the network is essential.
How this is done is through something generally alluded to as JSON, which represents JavaScript Item Documentation. If you aren’t used to it, that might sound complicated, but it actually follows a fairly straightforward format.
To understand how data is transmitted and accepted over networks, you must be familiar with JSON—JavaScript Object Notation. It is a common format for exchanging data, and in order to become an iOS developer, you must also have this skill set.
8. Experience in memory management
The hardware that your device uses to store data is known as memory. Data is temporarily stored by the primary short-term memory system that is integrated into an iPhone or iPad. This allocated memory is determined dynamically by the operating system of the device. Because iOS devices have limited memory resources, managing this memory is very important.
Applications get just such a lot of memory access from the framework, which can make them run increasingly slow accident.
Any senior iOS developer should be aware that the app might stop working if it exceeds the limit set for each process, and they should know how to fix this by managing memory properly.
9. Skilled in source control
Source control is a framework the board methodology used to follow the progressions made in the source code. It’s an important part of making apps. Conflicts between developers working on the same application can be avoided with this method.
The majority of iOS developers benefit from collaborative and streamlined iOS development when they have hands-on experience with source control. Hire iPhone app developers who are adept at teamwork and management.
10. Experience in unit testing
A function that checks how well the app works is called a unit test. Small, quick, and isolated, unit tests are effective. Each test only one thing on its own. For instance, if you were working on a calculator app and added a feature that calculates the total amount of time spent on activities within the app, you might write one-unit test to ensure that this new feature functions properly. To find any issues as soon as possible, you should run this new test right after building your most recent code changes.
Bugs can be prevented with unit tests. They really take a look at the usefulness of each capability in an application by utilizing sets of given inputs and guaranteeing that they produce the right results.
Therefore, to effectively test the app’s validity and functionality, hire iOS developers who are familiar with these development skills.
11. Proficiency in Grand Central Dispatch
Applications for iOS perform a variety of operations at once, such as responding to touch inputs, displaying pertinent information on the screen, and retrieving data from the network. This can altogether strain the gadget’s equipment.
In the iOS ecosystem, Grand Central Dispatch is used to implement concurrency and parallelism in the operating system so that heavy computing tasks can be carried out in the background without interfering with the user experience.
To avoid crashes and ensure high performance, you need to hire iOS developers who are proficient in GCD.
Grand Central Dispatch, more commonly referred to as GCD, enables you to easily add what is referred to as “concurrency” to your apps, making it possible for multiple tasks to run simultaneously.
Why is this crucial? Our apps accomplish a lot at once: Reading touch inputs from the user, displaying information on the screen, and pulling data from a network all at once would put an enormous strain on the user’s phone: It would either crash or run extremely slowly.
Most of the time, an app does many things at once, like get data from the internet, listen to what people say, show data, and more. In order to carry out all of these functions, Apple devices rely heavily on Grand Central Dispatch. It makes the user’s experience easy.
12. Git and GitHub
Compelling utilization of rendition control is a significant and valuable expertise for any engineer chipping away at extensive (or even medium-lived) projects, and is crucial for working with groups.
13. Spatial reasoning ability
One of the essential abilities for an iOS application engineer is spatial ability to think. It is the ability to mentally manipulate objects and comprehend them at various scales. It responds to the question, “How will the user utilize this app?” You should employ iOS designers who comprehend the client’s viewpoint to foster strong and easy to understand applications.
Because the developer must take into account all of the parameters in order to provide an unparalleled user experience, this skill is very important to have.
14. UI and UX design experience
UI/designers, or “client experience plan specialists,” represent considerable authority in the stylish components of an iOS application. They make applications’ look, feel, and route to further develop the client experience.
UI and UX are basic to the plan of an application. While UI deals with the appearance, UX incorporates route, marking, ease of use, and so on. If you want to make applications that look good, you should hire iOS developers who are familiar with design principles.
To create appealing designs, you should hire iOS developers with a solid understanding an app’s design is largely determined by its user interface (UI) and user experience (UX), but its functions vary slightly. UI structure the appearances of the application and UX incorporates route and so on. When UI/UX design is done well, a mobile app can dramatically change how it looks, which in turn gets more people to use it.
As a result, a mobile app developer for iOS should be able to come up with exciting UI/UX designs and have a good understanding of design concepts of design principles.
15. Knowledge of storyboards
An iOS application’s storyboard is a diagram that depicts user interface screens and their connections. A storyboard consists of a view controller and its views, which are linked together by segue objects, which signify screen transitions.
You can visualize the user interface’s appearance and flow with the help of storyboards. Because they will give you a complete picture of how your application behaves, storyboards are the method that should be used to design its user interface.
When hiring iOS developers, companies must look for the technical skills listed above. However, in order to hire an iOS developer who is creative and competent, it is essential to consider soft skills alongside technical abilities.
16. Good communication skills
While chipping away at a task, iOS engineers should connect with the clients and other colleagues to cooperatively show up at the ideal result.
Having good conversational and communication skills is absolutely necessary for the iOS developer skill set. This not only helps the developers comprehend the requirements of the project or the client, but it also helps them present a better alternative scenario.
17. Critical thinking
Each occupation accompanies a decent amount of difficulties. Additionally, iOS development is not an easy task.
To create a successful iOS app, developers must overcome a number of obstacles. In order to find a solution, an iOS developer must always approach a problem logically and analyze the circumstances. You should employ engineers with the right mentality who can think and react quickly, as this can make all the difference in the midst of emergency. This sort of decisive reasoning prompts organization development too.
18. Adaptability
With the advancement of technology, the workplace is constantly evolving, introducing new trends at every turn. Therefore, it is essential to adapt and actively learn how to deal with change when things don’t go as planned. However, this does not imply giving in at the first sign of difficulty. Hire candidates who are able to adapt to a world that is always changing and learn how to incorporate those changes into your app to make it better fit the current situation.
19. Team player attitude
A well-curated iOS application can only be created by working together. Consequently, synergy is essential for achieving the desired result and meeting client expectations. To accomplish these objectives, one should not be only a cooperative person but rather likewise a solid communicator who knows how to draw out the best in others.
Maintaining the team’s dynamic is essential, despite the fact that some individuals struggle with teamwork. Therefore, when selecting iOS developers to hire, look for developers who are able to collaborate effectively with others and utilize their strengths to advance the team.
20. Ability to Innovate
Not all clients have an unmistakable image of what they need as the final result. What’s more, on occasion things become mixed up in interpretation also. Or, there is a strong possibility that the client’s requirements cannot be met.
On occasions such as these, iOS designers should improve and foster the best application that is productive as well as easy to use. Finding and hiring iOS developers who are creative and able to provide an in-depth evaluation that separates the best from the rest can be challenging.
21. Work ethic
A solid work ethic that includes things like being on time, being organized, meeting deadlines, staying focused, etc. may seem insignificant in comparison to important aspects of the job. However, they are significant and demonstrate the candidate’s dedication to work.
Whether you’re working in a group or on your own, a disciplined and focused approach will help you get better results. Therefore, in order to ensure cultural compatibility and expansion, businesses must employ developers with a professional work ethic.
Conclusion
At every stage of iOS app development, iOS developers are crucial. iOS developers are responsible for ensuring that the project runs smoothly from the beginning to the end, from gathering client requirements and planning to creating a scalable user interface and integrating all components.
When selecting an iOS developer, take into account all of the necessary technical and non-technical skills because hiring iOS developers is essential for app development. If you are only hiring for a specific project, you can also hire freelance iOS developers. Furthermore, assuming you are effectively hoping to employ iOS designers, we have a few splendid ones.
There are numerous routes to success as an iOS developer. We are pleased to provide a Nanodegree program and free courses that will instruct you precisely on what you need to know. Regardless of the learning way you pick to seek after, dominating the above ought to be a piece of your arrangement in the event that you have your sights set on turning into an iOS engineer.
Therefore, if you want to be involved in iOS app development, the aforementioned ideas will help you tremendously.
Never forget that an iOS developer is more than just a developer; They go far beyond that. You will be a crucial part of the app’s development at every stage. It is your responsibility to ensure that everything runs smoothly, from gathering specifications for the client’s business through planning, development, designing a scalable user interface, coding, and integrations.
There are a number of technical online courses that provide comprehensive iOS app development instruction. It is possible to sign up and become a leader.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Which skill is required for an iOS developer?
The most important skills iOS developers need is proficiency with languages like Swift 3.0 and Objective C, experience using the Xcode IDE, and knowledge of UI/UX design.
How much does it cost to hire an iOS developer?
A fixed cost for hiring an iOS developer is not appropriate because there are too many variables involved. But it’s important to know that using Turing to hire iOS developers doesn’t cost anything up front. On the other hand, Turing gives you access to your developers for a risk-free two-week trial.
What coding language do iOS developers use for iOS apps?
The most frequently used coding languages for developing iOS apps are Swift and Objective C.
What is an iOS Developer?
Software programs and applications for iOS-based devices are developed by iOS developers. Learn about the skills and salary requirements for iOS developers, as well as how to become one.
What do iOS developers do?
An iOS developer creates, builds, and tests apps for Apple iOS-based devices. Here are the responsibilities of an iOS developer:
- Develop, code, and optimize apps for the iOS ecosystem.
- Update the application and fix bugs in the code.
- Ensure that applications meet user requirements in terms of functionality and quality.
- Team up with architects and different engineers all through application advancement.
What is the importance of an iOS developer?
An iOS engineer guarantees portable applications are functional and drawing in for up to great many clients consistently. The majority of Apple mobile devices may become inaccessible or unusable if apps fail to function properly or are not properly updated.
What are iOS developer hard skills?
Here are the hard skills of an iOS developer:
- Programming language expertise (Objective-C, Swift).
- Experience using IDEs (AppCode, CodeRunner, Xcode).
- Experience with app development frameworks (AVFoundation, RxSwift, UIKit, XCTest, XCUITest).
- Familiarity with Apple OS frameworks (Core Animation, Core Data, Core Graphics, Core Text).
- Understanding of CI/CD pipelines and tools (Azure, Jenkins, GitLab).
- Knowledge of UI and UX design principles.
What are iOS developer soft skills?
Here are the soft skills of an iOS developer:
- Good communication skills
- Critical thinking
- Adaptability
- Team player attitude
- Ability to Innovate
- Work ethic
- Problem-solving
What are iOS developer qualifications?
Here are the qualifications of an iOS developer:
- Bachelor’s degree in computer science, software engineering or related field.
- Experience with full-cycle mobile app development in iOS.
- Ability to integrate APIs and RESTful web services for mobile apps.
- Fluency in Objective-C, Swift, Cocoa Touch and C-based library fundamentals.
What are the tools used by an iOS developer?
Here are the tools and programs that are used by an iOS developer:
- AppCode
- CocoaPods
- Cocoa Touch
- CodeRunner
- Objective-C
- Swift
- UIKit
- Xcode
Hey, I am Sachin Ramdurg. I run and manage futuredecider.com website that helps students, graduates, and professionals, to find and decide on their future career with ultimate future career advices and future career guides. I have an overall 12+ years of career guidance experience in multiple domains which has helped multiple students, graduates, and professionals to find the best career path for their future.