Xcode Cloud is Apple's service that builds, tests and sends your app to TestFlight every time your code changes in Git. As of October 16, 2026, Apple Developer Program membership includes 25 compute hours a month, and more starts at $49.99 a month for 100 hours.
What Xcode Cloud is
Xcode Cloud is Apple's continuous integration and delivery (CI/CD) service. It ties together three tools, Xcode, TestFlight and App Store Connect (Xcode Cloud documentation). You push changes to your repository, and Xcode Cloud pulls the code, builds it on a temporary Mac running the latest macOS and Xcode, runs your tests and, if you want, sends the build to testers.
Your own Mac stays free for editing. Build reports show up in Xcode and by email, and logs live in App Store Connect. Apple opened paid plans for extra hours on August 30, 2022, and since January 2024 every membership includes 25 hours a month at no extra cost.
Where Xcode Cloud lives in Xcode and App Store Connect
In Xcode you start from the Report navigator › Cloud › Get Started. More workflows are added in the same place, by Control-clicking your app and choosing Manage Workflows.
In App Store Connect every app has an Apps › your app › Xcode Cloud tab with a Builds section holding the logs for each step, and you can edit workflows right in the browser. Team-wide usage is under Users and Access › Xcode Cloud, and per-app usage on the app's Xcode Cloud tab. Reports export to CSV.
Compute hours and Apple's prices
| Plan | Hours per month | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Apple Developer Program membership | 25 | included |
| Subscription | 100 | $49.99 a month |
| Subscription | 250 | $99.99 a month |
| Subscription | 1,000 | $399.99 a month |
| Subscription | 10,000 | $3,999.99 a month |
Per the Xcode Cloud page and Get started, checked October 16, 2026.
Time is counted per action. Apple counts five 12-minute tests as one compute hour. Tests run in parallel with other actions, so results come back sooner, but the hours still add up. Unused hours don't roll over. Upgrading resets the counter and starts a new billing period, and after you cancel a paid plan you drop back to the free 25 hours. Only the Account Holder can subscribe, from the Account tab of the Apple Developer app. Prices are in US dollars, or local currency where available.
Workflows
A workflow answers three questions. When to run, what to do and where the result goes. There are five start conditions, Branch Changes, Pull Request Changes, Tag Changes, On a Schedule for a Branch and Manual Start, as listed in Apple's documentation.
There are four actions, Build, Test, Analyze and Archive. Without Archive a build can't go to TestFlight or the App Store. The archive action has a Deployment Preparation setting with None, TestFlight (Internal Testing Only) and TestFlight and App Store. Your own build commands go in a folder next to the project, and Xcode Cloud runs them after cloning the repository, before the build and after it.
How to run your first workflow, step by step
- Push the project to a Git repository on GitHub, GitLab or Bitbucket. Xcode Cloud only works with a remote repository.
- In Xcode, open Product › Scheme › Edit Scheme › Build and tick Archive for the app target. Mark the scheme as Shared.
- Turn on Automatically manage signing on the Signing & Capabilities tab.
- Open Report navigator › Cloud › Get Started and pick your app. Xcode suggests a workflow that builds every change to the default branch and every pull request.
- Click Grant Access and let Xcode Cloud read the repository. If the app has no App Store Connect record yet, Xcode helps you create one.
- Choose a branch and click Start Build. To get builds to testers, add a TestFlight post-action.
Common mistakes
- A project that a third-party tool rebuilds on the fly. Apple requires a consistent project or workspace. If the project file is recreated on every build, Xcode Cloud setup and later builds may fail.
- The wrong deployment preparation. With TestFlight (Internal Testing Only) a build only reaches your team. External testers and the App Store need TestFlight and App Store, and external testing goes through Apple's review.
- Testing on a dozen devices on every commit. Parallel tests finish fast, but the hours add up. One or two devices per change is enough, and a wide device matrix fits a nightly schedule.
- Counting on leftovers. Hours don't carry over, so the free 25 expire at the end of each month.
Xcode Cloud and regional availability
The Xcode Cloud page lists no country-specific terms. Xcode Cloud works inside Apple Developer Program membership, and for membership Apple says enrollment may not be supported in certain regions, for example due to sanctions or other restrictions, and asks you to pay with a card that can be charged in USD (Purchase and activation, October 16, 2026). With an active membership the 25 monthly hours come on the same terms everywhere.
Appto uploads your build to App Store Connect from your own Mac and asks for a yes wherever it writes to App Store Connect, so you don't need Xcode Cloud to ship your app. More on the App Store Connect page.
Questions
What is Xcode Cloud?
Apple's cloud build service. It builds your app when the code in Git changes, runs tests and sends the build to TestFlight or App Store Connect.
Is Xcode Cloud free?
25 compute hours a month come with Apple Developer Program membership, 99 USD a year. More hours start at $49.99 a month for 100 hours (developer.apple.com, October 16, 2026).
Do unused Xcode Cloud hours roll over?
No. Apple says unused compute hours don't roll over to the next month.
Which Git hosts does Xcode Cloud support?
Bitbucket Cloud and Server, GitHub and GitHub Enterprise, GitLab and self-managed GitLab, with Xcode 15 or later on your Mac.
How does Xcode Cloud work with TestFlight?
An Archive action prepared for TestFlight produces the build, and a post-action hands it to testers. External testers get it after Apple's review, see the TestFlight page for limits.
Build your own app in Appto
Appto checks the niche on fresh App Store data, designs the screens, writes the code, builds the App Store page and submits to Apple from your account or shows you what to press in App Store Connect. Runs on your own Claude Code or Codex.
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