CocoaPods is Dying: Why You Should Migrate to Swift Package Manager Now

After 13 years of being the dominant iOS dependency manager, CocoaPods is officially sunsetting. The CocoaPods trunk will become read-only on December 2, 2026, meaning no new pods can be added and no updates to existing pods will be accepted. If you’re still using CocoaPods for your Capacitor project, now is the time to migrate to Swift Package Manager (SPM).

Why CocoaPods is Shutting Down

In August 2024, the CocoaPods team announced they were entering maintenance mode. By November 2024, they confirmed the specs repository would become read-only by December 2, 2026. The team isn’t killing CocoaPods—existing projects will still work as long as GitHub and jsDelivr continue operating—but they’re putting it into retirement.

Key Timeline

Date	Event
January 2025	First notification to CocoaPods contributors
September-October 2026	Second notification before final switch
November 1-7, 2026	Test run of read-only mode
December 2, 2026	Trunk becomes permanently read-only

Why Swift Package Manager is Better

SPM isn’t just the alternative—it’s the superior choice. Here’s why:

1. Faster Dependency Installation

SPM is significantly faster than CocoaPods when installing and updating dependencies. CocoaPods requires:

Running pod install which can take minutes
Cloning the entire specs repository
Analyzing the dependency graph from scratch each time

SPM uses a more efficient resolution algorithm and caches packages intelligently, resulting in dramatically faster build times.

2. Apple’s Official Support

SPM is built and maintained by Apple. It’s integrated directly into Xcode and Swift, meaning:

Native Xcode integration: No workspace files, no extra configuration
First-party support: Updates come directly from Apple with each Xcode release
Future-proof: Apple will continue investing in SPM as part of the Swift ecosystem

CocoaPods, on the other hand, was always a community tool working around Apple’s limitations rather than with Apple’s blessing.

3. Simpler Project Structure

With CocoaPods, you need:

A Podfile
A Podfile.lock
A Pods directory (often gigabytes in size)
A .xcworkspace file

With SPM, dependency information lives directly in your Xcode project. No extra files, no workspace, no bloat.

4. Better Security

SPM packages are resolved and verified using checksums. The package manifest (Package.swift) is type-safe Swift code, reducing the risk of malformed configurations that could introduce vulnerabilities.

Capacitor and SPM

Capacitor 8 now uses SPM as the default dependency manager for new iOS projects. This isn’t just a preference—it’s the direction the entire ecosystem is moving.

Capgo Plugins Are SPM-Ready

All Capgo plugins fully support SPM. We’ve migrated our entire plugin ecosystem and now primarily test on SPM. This includes:

@capgo/capacitor-updater
@capgo/capacitor-inappbrowser
@capgo/capacitor-flash
@capgo/capacitor-screen-recorder
And all other Capgo plugins

Future Capacitor Versions

The next major version of Capacitor will enforce SPM as the default, with CocoaPods becoming a legacy option. Get ahead of the curve by migrating now.

How to Migrate Your Capacitor Project to SPM

Migrating is straightforward with Capacitor’s built-in tools.

Option 1: Fresh Migration (Recommended)

If you haven’t made manual changes to your Xcode project:

# Remove the existing iOS directory
rm -rf ios

# Re-add iOS with SPM
npx cap add ios --packagemanager SPM

This gives you a clean SPM-based project.

Option 2: In-Place Migration

For projects with custom Xcode modifications:

npx cap spm-migration-assistant

This tool guides you through the migration while preserving your customizations. Two manual steps are still required:

Removing the CocoaPods configuration from your project
Adding SPM package dependencies in Xcode

Adding iOS to a New Project

For new Capacitor projects:

npx cap add ios --packagemanager SPM

That’s it—your project is now using SPM from the start.

Handling Third-Party Plugins

One important note: you cannot mix SPM and CocoaPods in the same project. While all Ionic-maintained Capacitor plugins support SPM, some third-party plugins may still need updates.

Checking Plugin Compatibility

Before migrating, verify your plugins support SPM. Most actively maintained plugins have already added SPM support. If a plugin you depend on doesn’t support SPM yet:

Check if there’s an open issue or PR for SPM support
Consider using Ionic’s capacitor-plugin-converter to convert simple plugins
Reach out to the plugin maintainer

Plugin Limitations

If your plugin mixes Objective-C and Swift, automatic conversion tools won’t work—SPM doesn’t allow mixing these languages in the same target. These plugins require manual conversion.

Migration Checklist

Before you migrate:

Verify all your plugins support SPM
Back up your project (or create a new git branch)
Document any custom Xcode project modifications
Run your test suite to establish a baseline

During migration:

Run the migration assistant or fresh migration
Update any custom build scripts that reference CocoaPods
Verify the project builds successfully
Run your test suite again

After migration:

Remove any leftover CocoaPods files (Podfile, Podfile.lock, Pods/)
Update your CI/CD pipelines to remove pod install steps
Update your documentation

Conclusion

CocoaPods served the iOS community well for over a decade, but its time is ending. Swift Package Manager offers faster builds, better Xcode integration, and long-term support from Apple. With Capacitor 8 defaulting to SPM and future versions enforcing it, there’s no reason to wait.

Start your migration today. Your CI/CD pipelines—and your sanity—will thank you.