[xcode] Can I start the iPhone simulator without "Build and Run"?

I want to delete an app in the simulator before I "build and run". How can I start the simulator so I can do the deletion? If I start it by "build and run" I get a long log output that takes a while because of a bug I'm trying to fix. I'd like to avoid that.

This question is related to xcode ios-simulator

The answer is


The simulator is just an application, and as such you can run it like any other application.

To run the simulator straight from terminal prepend these locations with the open command

Xcode 7.x, 8.x, and 9.x

In Xcode 7.x, the iPhone Simulator has moved again: /Applications/Xcode.app/Contents/Developer/Applications/Simulator.app.

Xcode 6.x

In Xcode 6.x, the iPhone Simulator has moved yet again, and now resides here: /Applications/Xcode.app/Contents/Developer/Applications/iOS Simulator.app.


Xcode 4.x, 5.x

In Xcode 4.x (through 4.5 on Mountain Lion) and Xcode 5.0.x on Mavericks, it lives here: /Applications/Xcode.app/Contents/Developer/Platforms/iPhoneSimulator.platform/Developer/Applications/

In my version of Xcode (4.5.2), I find it quite convenient to use the Open Developer Tool menu from either the dock icon or the Xcode menu:

open iOS Simulator


Xcode 3.x

In Xcode 3.x, it lives here:

/Developer/Platforms/iPhoneSimulator.platform/Developer/Applications/iPhone Simulator.app


In some future version of Xcode, it will probably move again, it's a squirrelly little app.


From Terminal you can use:

open -a iPhone\ Simulator
open -a iOS\ Simulator
open -a Simulator

This all depends on the application name of the simulator, this can change with each iteration of Xcode.


Since XCode 4.3 the location has changed, the simulator can now be found at:

/Applications/Xcode.app/Contents/Developer/Platforms/iPhoneSimulator.platform/Developer/Applications/


To follow up on that the new command from @jimbojw to create a shortcut with the new Xcode (installing through preferences) is:

ln -s /Applications/Xcode.app/Contents/Developer/Platforms/iPhoneSimulator.platform/Developer/Applications/iPhone\ Simulator.app /Applications/iPhone\ Simulator.app

Which will create a shortcut in the applications folder for you.


Use Spotlight.

But only the last simulator will be opened. If you used iPad Air 2 last time, Spotlight will open it. If you wanna open iPhone 6s this time, that's a problem.


First, add the iOS Simulator to Applications:

ln -s /Developer/Platforms/iPhoneSimulator.platform/Developer/Applications/iPhone\ Simulator.app /Applications/iPhone\ Simulator.app

From there you can open it in Finder or drag it to the launch bar.

Source: http://www.bram.us/2010/05/05/xcode-iphone-simulator-location/


This is an older question, but if you simply want to run the simulator from the Xcode 4.5 UI, you can do: Xcode > Open Developer Tool > iOS Simulator.


The easiest way is start the simulator from the Xcode, and then on the dock, Ctrl + Click on the icon and select Keep in Dockenter image description here


Without opening Xcode:

open /Applications/Xcode.app/Contents/Developer/Applications/iOS\ Simulator.app/

For Xcode 7.2

open /Applications/Xcode.app/Contents/Developer/Applications/Simulator.app/Contents/MacOS/Simulator.app

sudo ./Simulator

And adding this path in your profile is the best way.


Questions with xcode tag:

Undefined Symbols error when integrating Apptentive iOS SDK via Cocoapods Xcode 12, building for iOS Simulator, but linking in object file built for iOS, for architecture arm64 iPhone is not available. Please reconnect the device Make a VStack fill the width of the screen in SwiftUI error Failed to build iOS project. We ran "xcodebuild" command but it exited with error code 65 The iOS Simulator deployment targets is set to 7.0, but the range of supported deployment target version for this platform is 8.0 to 12.1 Xcode 10.2.1 Command PhaseScriptExecution failed with a nonzero exit code Git is not working after macOS Update (xcrun: error: invalid active developer path (/Library/Developer/CommandLineTools) Xcode 10: A valid provisioning profile for this executable was not found Xcode 10, Command CodeSign failed with a nonzero exit code Problems after upgrading to Xcode 10: Build input file cannot be found Command CompileSwift failed with a nonzero exit code in Xcode 10 Xcode couldn't find any provisioning profiles matching Distribution certificate / private key not installed Codesign wants to access key "access" in your keychain, I put in my login password but keeps asking me Build fails with "Command failed with a nonzero exit code" Error ITMS-90717: "Invalid App Store Icon" Xcode 9 Swift Language Version (SWIFT_VERSION) Fixing Xcode 9 issue: "iPhone is busy: Preparing debugger support for iPhone" Xcode 9 error: "iPhone has denied the launch request" Download & Install Xcode version without Premium Developer Account How do you perform wireless debugging in Xcode 9 with iOS 11, Apple TV 4K, etc? Xcode Error: "The app ID cannot be registered to your development team." Linker Command failed with exit code 1 (use -v to see invocation), Xcode 8, Swift 3 How to update the constant height constraint of a UIView programmatically? How can I regenerate ios folder in React Native project? `React/RCTBridgeModule.h` file not found I get conflicting provisioning settings error when I try to archive to submit an iOS app Xcode: Could not locate device support files Failed to create provisioning profile Xcode error: Code signing is required for product type 'Application' in SDK 'iOS 10.0' Updating to latest version of CocoaPods? Swift 3 - Comparing Date objects How to make a simple rounded button in Storyboard? How to program a delay in Swift 3 How can I delete derived data in Xcode 8? Code signing is required for product type 'Application' in SDK 'iOS 10.0' - StickerPackExtension requires a development team error Hide strange unwanted Xcode logs Certificate has either expired or has been revoked Missing Compliance in Status when I add built for internal testing in Test Flight.How to solve? This action could not be completed. Try Again (-22421) This certificate has an invalid issuer Apple Push Services How to update Xcode from command line Xcode 7.2 no matching provisioning profiles found MacOS Xcode CoreSimulator folder very big. Is it ok to delete content? How do I completely rename an Xcode project (i.e. inclusive of folders)? "Could not find Developer Disk Image" Xcode 7 error: "Missing iOS Distribution signing identity for ..." Reason: no suitable image found 'Framework not found' in Xcode

Questions with ios-simulator tag:

The iOS Simulator deployment targets is set to 7.0, but the range of supported deployment target version for this platform is 8.0 to 12.1 flutter run: No connected devices Error Running React Native App From Terminal (iOS) How to uninstall downloaded Xcode simulator? Capture iOS Simulator video for App Preview iPhone 6 Plus resolution confusion: Xcode or Apple's website? for development How to enable native resolution for apps on iPhone 6 and 6 Plus? How to access iOS simulator camera Error Domain=NSURLErrorDomain Code=-1005 "The network connection was lost." Document directory path of Xcode Device Simulator Xcode 6: Keyboard does not show up in simulator Adjusting the Xcode iPhone simulator scale and size ios simulator: how to close an app iPhone/iPad browser simulator? Launch iOS simulator from Xcode and getting a black screen, followed by Xcode hanging and unable to stop tasks How to monitor network calls made from iOS Simulator Xcode Simulator: how to remove older unneeded devices? How to run iPhone emulator WITHOUT starting Xcode? How can I get the console logs from the iOS Simulator? Take screenshots in the iOS simulator Can I start the iPhone simulator without "Build and Run"? Is it possible to disable the network in iOS Simulator? Where does the iPhone Simulator store its data? Error when testing on iOS simulator: Couldn't register with the bootstrap server How can I install a .ipa file to my iPhone simulator Adding images or videos to iPhone Simulator How can I programmatically determine if my app is running in the iphone simulator? Set the location in iPhone Simulator