Swift Playgrounds for Mac Now Available

In 2014 Apple introduced a new programming language called Swift. Swift took the best of existing programming languages and wrapped it into one. In 2016 Apple introduced a new way to work with Swift, called Swift Playgrounds.

Swift Playgrounds are, as the name implies, areas where you can play with the different aspects of Swift within a single area. Swift Playgrounds was introduced for iOS as an iPad-only app. Swift Playgrounds is no longer an iPad exclusive with the release of Swift Playgrounds on for macOS Catalina.

Swift Playgrounds on macOS is a Catalyst app. This means that it is the same code that is used with the iOS version of Swift Playgrounds. With this, it means that the app is the same as the iOS version, just available on macOS. Now that Swift Playgrounds is available on macOS you are able to use the existing playgrounds that you used on iOS on your Mac and vice versa. Additionally, any changes that you make on either platform will synchronize to the other.

The fact that Swift Playgrounds is on both platforms will allow those who may only have access to Mac and not an iPad the ability to learn how to code using Swift Playgrounds on the Mac. There is a version of Swift Playgrounds available within Xcode, but that does not have all of the same features, like code completion, the tutorials, and connectivity to the bluetooth accessories like Sphero.

If you have ever wanted to learn how to program, Swift Playgrounds is a great tool for doing so and now you can use it on your Mac. You can download Swift Playgrounds for free on the Mac App Store today. It does require macOS 10.15.3 or later.