Introduction

A good .gitignore for Xcode projects keeps temporary build artifacts and local IDE state out of source control. This reduces merge conflicts and prevents machine specific files from polluting pull requests. The same principles used for Xcode 6 still apply to modern Apple development workflows.

Ignore Build Artifacts and User State

Compiled outputs and intermediate build folders should never be committed. They change frequently, are reproducible from source, and create large noisy diffs.

1# Xcode build outputs
2build/
3DerivedData/
4
5# User specific workspace state
6*.xcworkspace/xcuserdata/
7*.xcuserdatad/
8*.xcuserstate

These patterns remove most high churn files that cause team friction.

Keep Shared Project Metadata Under Version Control

Do not ignore core project files that define targets, settings, and scheme structure. These files are required for consistent builds across machines.

1Keep tracked:
2- *.xcodeproj/project.pbxproj
3- Shared schemes in xcshareddata
4- Source code, assets, and configuration files

If your repository ignores too broadly, teammates may lose project settings and spend time rebuilding local configuration manually.

Include Dependency and Tooling Caches Carefully

Xcode projects often include package managers and tooling outputs. Ignore generated directories that can be recreated, but track lock files that pin dependency versions.

1# Swift Package Manager
2.build/
3
4# CocoaPods generated workspace users
5Pods/Local Podspecs/
6
7# Fastlane reports
8fastlane/report.xml
9fastlane/Preview.html
10fastlane/screenshots/**/*.png

Before adding new ignore rules, confirm whether the file is generated or source of truth. A quick team guideline helps avoid accidental loss of important metadata.

Example Baseline Gitignore

The template below is a practical starting point for Xcode repositories.

1# macOS
2.DS_Store
3
4# Xcode
5build/
6DerivedData/
7*.xcworkspace/xcuserdata/
8*.xcuserdatad/
9*.xcuserstate
10
11# SwiftPM
12.build/
13
14# Temporary files
15*.swp
16*.tmp

You can extend this baseline for project specific tooling, but keep changes minimal and intentional.

Verify Ignore Behavior

Run git status --ignored after editing .gitignore. This command shows ignored paths and helps confirm rules match your expectations.

git status --ignored

If previously tracked files should now be ignored, remove them from the index without deleting local copies.

git rm -r --cached DerivedData build

Then commit the .gitignore update and index cleanup together.

Keep Shared Build Inputs Tracked

Teams sometimes over ignore files and accidentally exclude project inputs that must stay versioned. Keep scheme files shared through xcshareddata, keep dependency lock files, and keep build scripts under source control. These files define reproducible builds and should move with every branch.

1Track examples:
2- MyApp.xcodeproj/project.pbxproj
3- MyApp.xcodeproj/xcshareddata/xcschemes/MyApp.xcscheme
4- Package.resolved
5- Scripts/build_release.sh

A lightweight team checklist helps keep rules stable as tooling evolves. Review .gitignore changes like code, and explain each new rule in the pull request so future maintainers know why the pattern exists.

Common Pitfalls

One pitfall is ignoring entire workspace directories, which can hide shared scheme files required by CI builds. Ignore only user specific subpaths.

Another issue is checking in DerivedData by mistake after running large local builds. Add a pre commit check or CI rule that blocks build artifact paths.

A third issue is project teams using different ignore templates with conflicting rules. Keep one repository level .gitignore and review updates like normal code changes.

Summary

• Ignore build outputs and user specific Xcode state directories.
• Keep core project metadata and shared schemes tracked.
• Treat generated caches differently from lock files and source of truth files.
• Validate rules with git status --ignored and clean stale tracked artifacts.
• Maintain one shared .gitignore policy for consistent team behavior.