Carthage

Carthage is a decentralized dependency manager for Cocoa applications on macOS and iOS, written in Swift. It builds dependencies into binary frameworks and links them directly into Xcode projects, giving developers full control over their project structure without modifying the Xcode project file. Unlike other dependency managers, Carthage does not require a centralized repository and uses Git submodules to manage dependencies.

Also known as: Carthage Dependency Manager, Carthage for iOS, Carthage for macOS, Carthage Cocoa, Carthage Swift

Why learn Carthage?

Developers should use Carthage when they need a lightweight, non-intrusive dependency manager for Swift or Objective-C projects, especially in environments where they want to avoid modifying Xcode project files or prefer decentralized dependency management. It is ideal for projects that require binary frameworks for faster build times or when integrating with CI/CD pipelines that benefit from pre-built dependencies.

Learning Resources

• docs: Carthage GitHub Repository
• tutorial: Carthage Getting Started Guide
• tutorial: Ray Wenderlich: Carthage Tutorial
• tutorial: Hacking with Swift: Carthage Tutorial
• docs: Apple Developer Documentation: Managing Dependencies