Add a splash screen to your iOS app

An iOS splash screen gives an app a brief, consistent beginning before its first interactive view appears. On Apple platforms, the usual implementation is the system launch screen: a static composition rendered from resources in the app bundle, rather than a Swift view that runs for a fixed number of seconds. It should already look like the app, so the transition into the running interface feels intentional.

I’m Askar Almukhamet, an iOS developer from Atyrau, Kazakhstan. I work with Swift, UIKit and Xcode, and I treat launch configuration as part of the interface rather than a separate marketing animation. The same resources need to work on iPhones, iPads and every appearance the app supports.

For Australian users, that polish has practical consequences. Someone may open an app on a train in Melbourne, check it in bright daylight in Brisbane, or install it in Perth after leaving the App Store. The screen must appear promptly, respect the system’s light or dark setting, and never promise functionality that arrives later than expected.

What iOS expects from a launch screen

Apple controls how long the launch screen remains visible because the system displays it as soon as the app can produce pixels. It is not an opportunity to fetch data, start a timer or hide slow startup work. The process may remain visible in the app switcher, so it should look finished rather than like a temporary placeholder.

A splash screen and a launch screen are not always the same thing. Some developers create a branded screen after launch and dismiss it when loading finishes. That can be useful when a real task takes time, but adding a fixed delay merely to advertise a logo makes the app feel slower and wastes the user’s patience.

Choose the right project resources

In a current Xcode project, open the target’s Info settings and use the Launch Screen section. Xcode exposes a background colour and an image, storing the supported launch configuration under UILaunchScreen in the app’s Info.plist. A named colour is assigned through UIColorName, and an asset through UIImageName. Keep referenced images in Assets.xcassets and give them clear names, such as AppLaunchLogo.

For apps that support iOS 13 or earlier, keep a LaunchScreen.storyboard as a fallback and point the launch storyboard setting to it. This matters when you inherit an older project: changing the deployment target does not guarantee that every launch configuration has been migrated. Check the bundle produced by a release build, not only what appears in the Xcode interface.

Configure the assets and appearance

A launch screen works best with one idea: the app’s name or symbol, centred against a clear background. Small text is difficult to read during a fast launch, while an elaborate illustration can look stretched on different devices. Export a crisp asset and let the surrounding colour carry most of the composition.

Use named colour assets when the background must differ in light and dark mode. A literal colour can flash incorrectly during an appearance change, whereas a named colour gives the system the right value from the start. Check portrait and landscape layouts, then compare the result with the app icon so the identity remains consistent.

Three approaches cover most projects, with different levels of control and maintenance:

Approach	How it is configured	What it controls	Best suited to
System launch screen	UILaunchScreen in Info.plist	Background colour and a centred image	Most current Xcode projects
Launch storyboard	UILaunchStoryboardName	Constraints, colours and layout details	Apps supporting iOS 13 or earlier
Custom post-launch screen	A view controller or overlay	Complete branding while work continues	A genuine loading period, not a fixed delay

Build and test the experience

Run the app repeatedly and watch the very first frame, not the polished home screen that follows. Terminate the process, relaunch it and test with the app already installed. Try an iPhone and an iPad, both orientations, and both light and dark appearances. A release build can expose missing asset variants that a simulator hides.

Ask testers for the device model and iOS version. Australian users may describe a fault as, “Yeah, it’s stuck on the logo on my iPhone,” but that phrase can mean either a launch-screen rendering issue or a long-running startup task. Separating those cases saves time: first check the bundle and assets, then profile the launch with Instruments.

Keep the startup path fast

Do not use the launch screen as cover for an expensive main-thread operation. Reading a large file, decoding several images or building a complex view can delay the first frame. Move optional work away from the main actor, load only what the first screen needs, and use Swift concurrency for network requests without blocking UI updates.

A useful test is to open the app after installation, when caches are empty and a network request may be waiting. That situation is common for users in regional Australia, where connectivity can be less consistent than a central Sydney office connection. The launch screen should appear from local resources, and the app should show a meaningful loading state once it takes over.

Prepare the release for App Store Connect

Archive the app, distribute it through Xcode Organizer and upload the build to App Store Connect. Then install a TestFlight build on real hardware. A simulator cannot reproduce every appearance combination, storage condition or thermal state, and a clean install is the closest rehearsal for an Australian customer who has just tapped Get from the App Store.

The Australian market includes many Android users as well as iPhone owners, so promotional material should describe the app accurately without implying that every promised action is instant. Likewise, a launch screen must not advertise data that the app cannot retrieve offline. Honest branding builds trust, which can influence word-of-mouth recommendations and repeat downloads in Australia’s competitive app market.

A related web example is a reader arriving from a search result. A tennis betting guide, for example, needs a clear explanation before someone explores odds or markets. An iOS launch screen has a smaller job, but the principle is the same: identify the service without delaying useful work.

Validate the final launch experience

Before release, compare the launch screen with the app’s icon, first view and App Store screenshots. The colours should agree, the logo should remain legible at small sizes, and the system appearance should not reveal an unfinished colour block. Remove unused launch artwork from the asset catalogue, then check the archive size so a high-resolution logo does not add unnecessary weight.

Invite one tester outside your own development setup to perform a cold launch after installation. On a busy evening in Melbourne, a simple screen can still feel slow if startup work blocks the main thread. Keep the first screen useful, provide an honest loading indicator when necessary, and remove any artificial delay before the build reaches customers.

The next concrete step is to open the current Xcode project, add or update its launch screen resources, and save one five-second recording of a cold launch in light and dark simulator appearances.