Technically, Xcode can’t be installed on Windows PC because there are compatibility issues, but there are ways to emulate Xcode on Windows 10 via Virtual machine. So, in this article, we have decided to share the best method to download & install Xcode on Windows 10, 8, and 7 operating systems. This version includes the SDKs for iOS 14, iPadOS 14, macOS Big Sur, tvOS 14, and watchOS 7. Download the beta. If you want to take your app development seriously when it comes to iOS one of the best suites you can download to help you along with this is XCode 10. This suite of software development tools can be used directly on a Mac OS system or through an iOS Emulator that can be downloaded for your PC.

1. Download Simulators Xcode Tutorial
2. Download Simulators Xcode Software
3. Download Simulators Xcode

Xcode is coding software or to precisely say is an app development software for Apple devices created by Apple Inc. The devices like iPhone, iPad & MacOS can use the software or applications developed using the Xcode. The Xcode IDE (Integrated Development Environment) can easily analyze the project made by the user and even identify the mistakes or issues that can arise because of an incorrect logic or syntax. But still, you can’t use the application because you do not have a system having MacOS and you want to download Xcode for Windows now.

So, today in this article I will help you install Xcode in Windows PC if available and if not available then will let you know what are the best alternatives instead of Xcode.

Contents

• 2 How to Install and Run Xcode on Windows?
• 3 Windows Alternatives for Xcode

Is Xcode available for Windows?

Since it is developed by Apple, meaning that it is not officially available for Windows platform to develop applications and users can use it for Mac OS only. But, though there are some ways using which we can use Xcode in Windows.

Below, in the next point, I will discuss a few methods using which you can install the Xcode for Windows OS. Just follow the steps that I provide and you can install Xcode easily and start developing applications for various Apple devices.

How to Install and Run Xcode on Windows?

Apple has not launched any software or application using which one can use Xcode on Windows and create applications for iPhone, iPad or MacOS. Meaning you would need MacOS to run the Xcode software and create your own apps. So, you should install MacOS in your system first and then you can install Xcode for your Windows.

1. Virtual Box.

A Virtual Box is a software developed that allows users to use multiple operating systems in one single operating system of a PC. You can use any operating systems like Windows, Linux, Mac, whichever you want to use and the best part of using this app is you don’t need to remove your old operating system.

• You can download the Virtual Box software from here.
• Install the software and run it.
• Open the OS that you want to open using the Add button in Virtual Box. But you need to download the Virtual Box image file of that O.S. in your system beforehand.
• After the O.S. is added you can use the Xcode software to create the apps of Apple devices howsoever you wish.

Apart from Virtual Box, there is another similar software for using multiple operating systems i.e. VMWare Player. If you have already installed VMWare then you can use it for the installing Xcode for Windows.

2. VMWare Player

VMware player is also the same as Virtual Box and can be used to install any operating systems on a single PC and run multiple OS at the same time. The steps for the installing VMware would be the same as those of Virtual Box but for your reference, I will guide you using these simple steps:

• Download the VMware using the link.
• Install & run the software now.
• You must have download OS image file (MacOS image file for VMware) already in your PC.
• Add the OS using the add button and after installation is done, you can start using it.

You can now create applications for various Apple devices like iPhone, iPad or Mac or if you are a beginner then you can start learning & creating applications slowly.

3. Boot Windows to Mac OS

In this method, you can download and create a bootable drive(like pen drive) to install the MacOS on your Windows PC. You can use the devices as an external bootable drive to use it for MacOS(but it should have a large space of more than 16GB) or you can boot it into your device keeping or removing your Windows OS during the process and install MacOS.

The whole process can be followed using this link.

After the MacOS is installed using any of the above mentioned 3 methods, you can now download and install Xcode software to your MacOS.

The link to download Xcode for Windows is here.

Using these methods you can download Xcode for Windows 32 bit or 64 bit and use it for developing the apps. But an important note – Apple has not legalized the use of MacOS in Windows by anyway yet and using the Xcode in Windows is illegal.

Windows Alternatives for Xcode

Now since we know that Xcode is not officially available for Windows and so, we can use some alternatives instead of Xcode to develop applications for Apple devices.

1. These applications/platforms might help

• React Native – Uses JavaScript to build native mobile apps for Android & iOS.
• Xamarin – It uses C# language to build mobile apps that you can deploy natively to Android, iOS, and Windows operating systems.
• Appcelerator – It can also be used to build native mobile apps using JavaScript.
• PhoneGap – It builds a hybrid cross-platform mobile app using HTML, CSS, and JavaScript languages.
• Flutter – Flutter is a mobile application development framework created by Google to develop applications for Android and iOS.
  

These are the best alternatives available in the market which can develop apps for both Apple & Android and some can develop for Windows too. But using them to develop applications for Apple devices won’t be of worth because as a result, you will be needing the Xcode software to check the application & also you would need an Apple developer I’d to add the application to the Apple Store.

2. Other Alternatives

• Rent the MacOS over a cloud – The cheapest way to use MacOS for those who can’t afford to buy the MacOS system then you can use MacOS by renting it through the cloud. You can just google rent MacOS using cloud and there will be a bunch of results helping you out. Review the site properly before renting the MacOS and then only pay. Using this method, you can use MacOS and complete your needs for a short term period.

• Buy a Mac – The best option and the last option left is to buy a system from Apple and use it for developing applications for Apple devices. The easiest and legal way for those who can afford the system.

Also Read: Best Android Emulators for Win 10

Conclusion

The Xcode isn’t available for Windows since Apple hasn’t launched anything on this topic yet. Also, if you really need to install MacOS and use Xcode for Windows then the alternatives are there for your help. For more help, we are there for you and you can comment below and let us know if in case you have any doubts or queries. Also, you can comment below if you find any new method or alternative that can help people use Xcode on Windows OS.

I have downloaded Xcode 6.2 today which replaced previous Xcode 6.1
now to use simulator 7.1 & 8.1 it asks to download both simulators , but for some reason after trying 4-5 times it shows network issues in downloading or request time out (note: in n/w diagnostic after it shows net is working properly)

so is there any direct link from where i can download the simulator package directly or somewhere at least it shows progress in percentage/size instead just a bar

if it’s not possible i have read about copying the older simulator to new Xcode so how can i place the old simulator(7.1 & 8.1) in Xcode 6.2 that it works directly without downloading again

Clicking on Download in Xcode didn’t do anything – the progress bar did not progress (does that make it a regress bar?).

This is what worked for me:

1. Open Xcode, open preferences, go to the Downloads section.
2. Open the Console App, clear the console.
3. Go back to the Xcode preferences. Start the simulator download, then cancel it.
4. Now in the Console, you will see something about the cancellation with the download URL.

5. Copy the URL from the Console. Then in Terminal in some suitable scratch folder, download it:

   curl [the url you copied] -O (the letter O, not a zero)

6. Finally, copy this file to ~/Library/Caches/com.apple.dt.Xcode/Downloads
   Remove all *.dvtdownloadableindex files (maybe it doesn’t matter, but I removed them).

7. In Xcode, in the Downloads section, start the Simulator download again, it should find the file you downloaded and install it.

Download Simulators Xcode Tutorial

How easy was that! Only 7 steps, hah!

So a quick tip for the people who use a download manager to download the .dmg file and didn’t manage to get it work.

Once you place the file inside the ‘Downloads’ folder,
Copy and paste the url somewhere and copy the file name alone.

( for me I was downloading iOS 9.3 so the url was –
https://devimages.apple.com.edgekey.net/downloads/xcode/simulators/com.apple.pkg.iPhoneSimulatorSDK9_3-9.3.1.1460411551.dmg

and rename the file you just copied to the ‘Downloads’ folder, even if it looks exactly the same.

I wasted 2 to 3 hours trying to figure this out. The problem is that the filename looks exactly the same. But there was an extra space somewhere.

Another Tip: Also to get the download url – open system console. Make sure all messages are selected and search for xcode inside the Search box. Go to xcode simulator download screen, start and stop the download for the simulator you want and check inside console log. You should find the url there.

so is there any direct link from where i can download the simulator
package directly or somewhere at least it shows progress in
percentage/size instead just a bar

You can’t download the simulators package directly. Instead, you can download the xcodes from developer.apple using this link, which provides you the required simulators.

If you want the old simulators in new Xcode, download the desired Xcode using the above link,after downloading it, Open the DMG or open your existing older Xcode, right click on the Xcode application and click ‘Show Package Contents’, navigate to:Contents/Developer/Platforms/iPhoneSimulator.platform/Developer, copy the found simulator folder (eg. iPhoneSimulator7.1.sdk folder), repeat steps 2 & 3 for your current Xcode application, paste the simulator folder,restarting the Xcode will show you the new added simulators.

Often, what it takes with Xcode is a good ‘ol fashioned restart. This didn’t work for me, so I restarted my MacBook Pro. Now it works 🙂

It’s a quick thing to do when you’re stuck.

Follow these steps to add a (new) simulator (Xcode 9 onwards)

1. Click on Simulator icon and open simulator list.
2. At the end of list, there is an option to add new simulator “Add Additional Simulator“. That will open ‘Device & Simulator’ window.
3. Switch to ‘Simulator’ tab.
4. There are three field in simulator tab.
5. Click on ‘+’ icon, on left bottom corner of window.
6. Simulator Name: Enter simulator name here
7. Device Type: Select iPad from this dropdown list
8. OS Version: Select OS version from this dropdown list
9. Click on ‘Create’

A new simulator will be added in your Simulator option list.

Look at this snapshot to understand flow of above steps:

And if there is no simulator/OS version in simulator list, you’re looking for,

1. Click on Simulator icon and open simulator list.
2. At the end of list, there is an option to add new simulator “Download Simulator“. That will open ‘Component’ window (from Xcode >> Preferences).
3. Select/click simulator from list, which you need to download.

Download Simulators Xcode Software

Look at this snapshot:

Download Simulators Xcode

Tags: xcode