what’s new in ios26 with SwiftData
Asked on 06/11/2025
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In iOS 26, SwiftData has introduced several new features and improvements. Here are some of the highlights:
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Schema Macro: A new schema macro helps avoid duplicate models, making it easier to manage your data models efficiently.
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Model Containers: There are new ways to set up and configure model containers, which are crucial for managing the data flow within your app.
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Query Optimization: SwiftData now allows for more complex filters and introduces a new macro to improve query performance.
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Indexing and Unique Constraints: The addition of index and unique constraints helps make queries more efficient and ensures data integrity by preventing duplicate entries.
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Custom Data Stores: SwiftData now supports custom data stores, allowing you to use alternative backends like SQLite or a remote web service, providing greater flexibility in how data is stored and managed.
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History API: The new history API allows you to track changes in your data store, which is useful for syncing local changes with a remote service.
For more detailed information, you can check out the session What’s new in SwiftData (00:01:01).
What’s new in SwiftData
SwiftData makes it easy to add persistence to your app with its expressive, declarative API. Learn about refinements to SwiftData, including compound uniqueness constraints, faster queries with #Index, queries in Xcode previews, and rich predicate expressions. Join us to explore how you can use all of these features to express richer models and improve performance in your app. To discover how to build a custom data store or use the history API in SwiftData, watch “Create a custom data store with SwiftData” and “Track model changes with SwiftData history”.
Create a custom data store with SwiftData
Combine the power of SwiftData’s expressive, declarative modeling API with your own persistence backend. Learn how to build a custom data store and explore how to progressively add persistence features in your app. To get the most out of this session, watch “Meet SwiftData” and “Model your schema with SwiftData” from WWDC23.
What’s new in UIKit
Modernize your app with the latest APIs in UIKit, including enhanced menu bar support, automatic observation tracking, a new UI update method, and improvements to animations. We’ll also cover how you can include SwiftUI scenes in your UIKit app and explore SF Symbols, HDR color pickers, and more.