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iOS Virtual Devices on Apple Silicon

Sauce Labs now supports iOS 18, iOS 26, and iOS 27 on Apple Silicon-based Simulators. These environments offer improved performance, alignment with modern architecture, and compatibility with Xcode's latest features. This allows you to test apps in the most current Apple environments across iPhone and iPad Simulators.

Availability

iOS 17.5 and newer Simulators on Apple Silicon are available to customers with the required subscription. If you don't have access, contact your account manager to discuss upgrading.

Key Benefits​

  • High-fidelity iOS testing environments on M-series macOS hosts.
  • Improved performance and stability, with faster start-up times and faster test execution.
  • More efficient for development teams that adopt arm64 across their development and testing pipelines.

Getting Started with Apple Silicon on Sauce Labs​

Building Your iOS/iPadOS App​

Xcode can build apps for Simulators that support both arm64 and x86_64 architectures.

To build specifically for Apple Silicon (arm64) Simulators:

xcodebuild -arch arm64 -sdk iphonesimulator -destination 'platform=iOS Simulator,name=iPhone 15,OS=17.5' -configuration Debug

Locate the .app File​

  • Xcode UI: $HOME/Library/Developer/Xcode/DerivedData/<project-name>/Build/Products/Debug-iphonesimulator

  • Terminal: $PROJECT_PATH/<project-name>/build/Debug-iphonesimulator

Archive the Build​

To archive the build, follow the steps below:

  1. Create a folder named Payload.
  2. Copy your .app file into the Payload directory.
  3. Compress the folder into a .zip.
  4. Rename the file to match your app, for example MyApp.zip.

Uploading the App to Sauce Labs​

You can upload the .zip archive in the following ways:

  • Via the App Management section in the Sauce Labs web UI.
  • Or via the Sauce Labs File Storage API.

➡️ Uploading Apps to Sauce Labs

Appium Capabilities for iOS​

To test your app on Apple Silicon Simulators, use the following capabilities:

Specific Capabilities​

For full sample configurations and lists of available devices per version, use the Platform Configurator.

OS VersionAppium VersionDevice Name (for example)armRequired†
iOS 17.52.1.3iPhone 15 Simulatortrue
iOS 16.4
iOS 18.0
iOS 18.6		2.11.3iPhone 16 Simulatortrue
iOS 26.12.19.0iPhone 17 Simulatortrue
iOS 26.53.3.0iPhone 17 Simulatortrue
iOS 27.03.3.0iPhone 18 Pro Simulatortrue
†armRequired now optional

Prior to March 15th, 2026 the armRequired parameter was required for tests to execute, but is now optional and can be excluded for future test runs.

Known Issues and Migration Notes​

As you upgrade to newer verisons on Sauce Labs Simulators, Appium and related driver updates may require you to modify existing tests to remove deprecated features no longer supported.

Check Appium Version Details for full bundle details on supported versions.

Changes to Content Scope​

Appium VersioniOS Versions AffectedContent Scope
2.0.xiOS 16WebView content elements accessed in their own context
2.1.xiOS 17WebView content elements accessed in the App's context
2.11.xiOS 18WebView content elements accessed in their own context

Changes to iOS Alerts​

Changes to Appium XCUITest Driver v7+ have modified how System alerts are interacted with, potentially requiring modifications to tests run on iOS 18 Simulators.

Solution: Use the respectSystemsAlerts setting (Settings, not Capabilities) to true as in this Java example:

options.setSetting("respectSystemAlerts", true);

For more details and alternative options see the Appium documentation.

Changes to Gestures​

Appium commands TouchActions and MultiTouchActions have been deprecated in XCUITest Driver 7+.

Solution: Refer to Appium Documentation for additional implementation options.

More details ➡️ Migrating to Appium 2

Changes in iOS 26​

Users migrating from iOS 17.5 or 18.0 to iOS 26 should be aware of the following updates:

  • Appium Server: Updated to version 2.19.0.
  • Appium XCUITest Driver: Updated to version 9.10.15.

WebDriver Expected Conditions: Visibility vs. Presence​

You may encounter failures when using the visibility_of_element_located Expected Condition (EC) with iOS 26.1 Simulators. The driver may fail to verify the visibility state even if the element is present in the hierarchy.

❌ Fails: EC.visibility_of_element_located((AppiumBy.NAME, 'Element_Name'))

✅ Works: EC.presence_of_element_located((AppiumBy.NAME, 'Element_Name'))

Recommended Solution: Update your WebDriverWait calls to use presence_of_element_located. Since the XCUITest driver often handles visibility checks internally during interaction, verifying presence is sufficient for element discovery and significantly more stable in this release.

Changes in iOS 26.5 and iOS 27​

iOS 26.5 and iOS 27.0 Simulators run on Appium 3. Appium 3.3.0 is the only Appium version available for these platform versions, so set appiumVersion to 3.3.0 in sauce:options. The bundle includes:

  • Appium Server: 3.3.0.
  • Appium XCUITest Driver: 10.43.0, with WebDriverAgent 11.4.1.

iOS 27.0 adds the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max Simulators. For the full list of iPhone and iPad Simulators available on each version, use the Platform Configurator.

Moving from Appium 2 to Appium 3​

Appium 3 supports only the W3C WebDriver protocol. Before you move tests from iOS 26.1 (Appium 2.19.0) to iOS 26.5 or iOS 27.0, check the following:

  • Use a current Appium client and vendor-prefixed capabilities. The legacy desiredCapabilities request format and the JSON Wire Protocol (JSONWP/MJSONWP) endpoints have been removed. Upgrade your Appium client library to a version that speaks W3C, and prefix driver capabilities with appium: (for example, appium:deviceName).
  • Replace removed legacy commands. Touch and gesture commands such as TouchAction and MultiAction must be replaced by W3C Actions. App lifecycle and device commands such as launch, close, reset, lock, unlock, and shake must be replaced by the XCUITest driver's mobile: commands, for example mobile: launchApp, mobile: lock, and mobile: shake.

See the official Appium 2 to Appium 3 migration guide for the complete list of changes, and the XCUITest driver release notes for driver-level changes between the 9.x driver used with iOS 26.1 and the 10.x driver used with iOS 26.5 and iOS 27.0.

Learn More​

Have questions? Visit the Sauce Labs Community or contact our support team.