App Designer vs UIKit Lab
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
App Designer
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Turn your iPhone, iPad or Mac into a powerful Swift development environment. App Designer lets you write, run, preview, organize, and debug Swift code directly on your device — completely offline and without Xcode. Build SwiftUI, UIKit, and RealityKit projects with live code execution, a built-in canvas preview, professional editing tools, Xcode project import/export, and an integrated AI assistant that can work offline or with your own online provider. Write Swift Anywhere Run Swift code instantly and see real-time output while you build. Preview SwiftUI and UIKit interfaces side by side with your code and bring your ideas to life directly on your device. Professional Code Editor Enjoy syntax highlighting with 89 color themes, smart autocomplete for Swift, SwiftUI, and UIKit, adjustable font size, line wrap, bracket matching, and automatic bracket insertion. Built-in Debugging Tools Set breakpoints, step through your code, highlight the current execution line, and view inline errors and warnings directly in the editor. SwiftUI, UIKit & RealityKit Create modern SwiftUI interfaces with VStack, HStack, NavigationStack, @State, gestures, animations, and more. Build UIKit views with buttons, labels, Auto Layout, and Core Animation. Explore 3D content with RealityKit, including RealityView, MeshResource, and Entity loading. Xcode Project Import & Export Import existing Xcode projects, continue working on the go, and export them back to Xcode when you're ready to keep building on your Mac. Project & Asset Management Manage your growing app gallery with folders, multiple pages, sorting options, Spotlight-style search, and an “Only Active” filter. Browse resources with a built-in file explorer, import images and files, add custom app icons, personalize your gallery with wallpapers, and duplicate, rename, or delete projects with ease. Learn by Example Start quickly with built-in example projects covering SwiftUI animations, UIKit layouts, file handling, image manipulation, and more. 100% Offline No internet connection required. App Designer gives you the tools to build real Swift apps right from your pocket. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
UIKit Lab
An interactive guide for designers to explore and customize UI components. Visualize and understand interface essentials through hands-on demos. Get a feel for how components look and behave with real-time adjustments.
- Interactive UI component demos
- Browse organized interface essentials
- Customize UI components
- Real-time visual feedback
- Designed for designers
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UIKit Lab is an interactive guide to UIKit for designers. Browse interface essentials that are thoughtfully organized. Play with interactive demos of UI components. Customize UI components to quickly get a sense of their new look and feel right from UIKit Lab.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: UIKit Lab at Free against App Designer's $2.99. UIKit Lab also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 3). App Designer's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 4 weeks) and chart position (#52 vs unranked). On ads, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
UIKit Lab is free to download; App Designer costs $2.99 up front. App Designer sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. UIKit Lab asks for nothing beyond the download.
App Designer ships an update weekly, UIKit Lab every 4 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and September 17, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | App Designer | UIKit Lab |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $2.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | — | 4.5 (43 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | — | 70.6% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | — | 43 — better |
| Update frequency | Weekly — better | Every 4 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | — | Free |
| Best chart rank | #52 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 16.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 40 MB | 25 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Norbert Grieger | Wenchang Yang |
In-app purchases
App Designer
- Pro Monthly3 Days trial$3.991 Month
- Pro Yearly3 Days trial$24.991 Year
- Pro Lifetime$49.99
UIKit Lab
No in-app purchases









