Swift Code Review
Review Swift code against industry best practices drawn from Google's Swift Style Guide,
Apple's API Design Guidelines, Apple's performance and memory documentation, and
real-world patterns from Apple's open-source projects.
Determine Review Scope
Figure out what to review based on the user's request:
| Request |
How to get the code |
| "Review this PR" / PR URL |
gh pr diff <number> or read the diff |
| "Review my changes" |
git diff (unstaged) and git diff --cached (staged) |
| "Review this file" / path |
Read the file(s) directly |
| "Review the codebase" |
Glob for **/*.swift files, prioritize by size/complexity |
| Xcode project review |
Also check *.xcodeproj, Package.swift, build settings |
When reviewing diffs, always read surrounding context (the full file or function) to
understand intent — don't review isolated hunks.
Review Checklist
Work through these categories in order. For each finding, cite the file, line, and
the specific guideline being violated. Skip categories that don't apply to the scope.
1. Naming & API Design
Read references/api-design.md for the complete rules.
Key checks:
- Types use
UpperCamelCase, everything else uses lowerCamelCase
- Methods read as grammatical English at the call site:
x.insert(y, at: z)
- Names describe roles, not types:
greeting not string
- Mutating/nonmutating pairs follow the
-ed/-ing convention
- Boolean properties read as assertions:
isEmpty, isValid
- Factory methods start with
make
- Protocol names use nouns for "what it is",
-able/-ible for capabilities
- Argument labels form grammatical phrases with the method name
- No abbreviations unless universally understood (
min, max, URL)
2. Code Style & Formatting
Read references/code-style.md for the complete rules.
Key checks:
- 100-character line limit
- K&R brace style (opening brace on same line)
- No semicolons
- One statement per line
// comments only, never /* */
- One variable per
let/var declaration
- Trailing commas in multiline array/dictionary literals
- Imports grouped: standard modules, then individual declarations, then
@testable
// MARK: comments to organize type members
- Shorthand syntax for arrays
[Element], dictionaries [Key: Value], optionals T?
3. Swift Patterns & Idioms
Read references/swift-patterns.md for the complete rules.
Key checks:
guard for early exits instead of nested if blocks
for-where instead of for + single if body
Optional over sentinel values (-1, empty string)
- Errors thrown, not merged with return types
- No force-unwrap (
!) without a comment explaining the invariant
- No implicitly unwrapped optionals except
@IBOutlet and test fixtures
- Explicit access control where it differs from
internal
- Nested types for scoping (error types, flag enums inside their parent)
- Prefer
let over var when value doesn't change
- Prefer value types (
struct, enum) over class when no identity needed
- Protocol extensions for default implementations, not base classes
- Computed properties omit
get when read-only
4. Build Performance
Read references/performance.md for the complete rules.
Key checks:
- No complex expressions that slow type-checker (break into smaller statements)
- Explicit types on complex closures and collection literals
- Minimize use of
AnyObject, Any — prefer concrete or generic types
- No unnecessary
@objc or dynamic unless needed for Objective-C interop
- Module boundaries are clean — no circular dependencies
- Prefer
final on classes not designed for inheritance (enables compiler optimizations)
- Large expressions broken into smaller sub-expressions with explicit types
- No excessive protocol conformance in extensions across files (merge where logical)
5. Memory Management
Read references/memory-management.md for the complete rules.
Key checks:
- No retain cycles in closures — use
[weak self] or [unowned self] appropriately
weak preferred over unowned unless lifetime is guaranteed
- Delegates declared as
weak var
- Large resources freed in
deinit or on memory warnings
- Discardable resource caches use
NSCache with count/cost limits; deterministic
maps or non-discardable data may use bounded dictionaries
- Autoreleasepool used in tight loops creating many temporary objects
- No strong reference chains between parent and child objects
- Image and data caches have size limits
- Observation tokens stored and invalidated properly
6. Testing
Read references/testing.md for the complete rules.
Key checks:
- Test methods named descriptively:
test_<condition>_<expectedResult>
- One assertion concept per test (test may have setup + multiple related asserts)
- No test interdependencies — each test stands alone
setUp() / tearDown() used for shared fixtures, not duplicated in every test
- Async code tested with expectations or Swift concurrency
- UI tests separated from unit tests
- Edge cases covered: nil, empty, boundary values, error paths
- No network calls in unit tests — use protocols and mocks
- Force-unwrap permitted in tests (fails the test if nil, which is desired)
7. Documentation
Key checks:
- Public API has
/// doc comments with summary, parameters, returns, throws
- Doc comments use verb phrases for methods, noun phrases for properties
- No
/** */ block comment syntax
Parameter, Returns, Throws tags in that order
- Complex algorithms have inline comments explaining why, not what
8. Concurrency (if applicable)
Key checks:
@Sendable closures don't capture mutable state
- Actors used for mutable shared state instead of locks
MainActor for UI updates
- No data races —
nonisolated used intentionally
- Structured concurrency (
async let, TaskGroup) preferred over unstructured Task {}
- Cancellation handled properly
Output Format
Structure the review as:
## Summary
<1-2 sentence overall assessment>
## Findings
### Critical
<issues that will cause bugs, crashes, or data loss>
### Important
<style violations, performance issues, missing tests>
### Suggestions
<minor improvements, alternative approaches>
## What's Done Well
<2-3 things the code does right — always include this>
For each finding, include:
- File and line:
Sources/Auth/TokenManager.swift:42
- Category: which checklist item it falls under
- Issue: what's wrong
- Fix: concrete code suggestion or direction
Keep findings actionable. Don't flag things that are clearly intentional project
conventions unless they cause real problems.
1---2name: swift-review3description: Reviews Swift/Xcode codebases, pull requests, local changes, or individual files against Swift best practices including Google's Swift Style Guide, Apple's API Design Guidelines, build performance, memory management, and testing standards. Use this skill whenever the user asks to review Swift code, audit a Swift PR, check Swift style, review an Xcode project, or mentions swift code review, swift lint, swift best practices review, or swift code quality. Also trigger when reviewing .swift files, Package.swift, or Xcode project changes — even if the user just says "review this" or "check this code" and the context involves Swift.4license: MIT5---67# Swift Code Review89Review Swift code against industry best practices drawn from Google's Swift Style Guide,10Apple's API Design Guidelines, Apple's performance and memory documentation, and11real-world patterns from Apple's open-source projects.1213## Determine Review Scope1415Figure out what to review based on the user's request:1617| Request | How to get the code |18|---|---|19| "Review this PR" / PR URL | `gh pr diff <number>` or read the diff |20| "Review my changes" | `git diff` (unstaged) and `git diff --cached` (staged) |21| "Review this file" / path | Read the file(s) directly |22| "Review the codebase" | Glob for `**/*.swift` files, prioritize by size/complexity |23| Xcode project review | Also check `*.xcodeproj`, `Package.swift`, build settings |2425When reviewing diffs, always read surrounding context (the full file or function) to26understand intent — don't review isolated hunks.2728## Review Checklist2930Work through these categories in order. For each finding, cite the file, line, and31the specific guideline being violated. Skip categories that don't apply to the scope.3233### 1. Naming & API Design3435Read `references/api-design.md` for the complete rules.3637Key checks:38- Types use `UpperCamelCase`, everything else uses `lowerCamelCase`39- Methods read as grammatical English at the call site: `x.insert(y, at: z)`40- Names describe roles, not types: `greeting` not `string`41- Mutating/nonmutating pairs follow the `-ed`/`-ing` convention42- Boolean properties read as assertions: `isEmpty`, `isValid`43- Factory methods start with `make`44- Protocol names use nouns for "what it is", `-able`/`-ible` for capabilities45- Argument labels form grammatical phrases with the method name46- No abbreviations unless universally understood (`min`, `max`, `URL`)4748### 2. Code Style & Formatting4950Read `references/code-style.md` for the complete rules.5152Key checks:53- 100-character line limit54- K&R brace style (opening brace on same line)55- No semicolons56- One statement per line57- `//` comments only, never `/* */`58- One variable per `let`/`var` declaration59- Trailing commas in multiline array/dictionary literals60- Imports grouped: standard modules, then individual declarations, then `@testable`61- `// MARK:` comments to organize type members62- Shorthand syntax for arrays `[Element]`, dictionaries `[Key: Value]`, optionals `T?`6364### 3. Swift Patterns & Idioms6566Read `references/swift-patterns.md` for the complete rules.6768Key checks:69- `guard` for early exits instead of nested `if` blocks70- `for-where` instead of `for` + single `if` body71- `Optional` over sentinel values (`-1`, empty string)72- Errors thrown, not merged with return types73- No force-unwrap (`!`) without a comment explaining the invariant74- No implicitly unwrapped optionals except `@IBOutlet` and test fixtures75- Explicit access control where it differs from `internal`76- Nested types for scoping (error types, flag enums inside their parent)77- Prefer `let` over `var` when value doesn't change78- Prefer value types (`struct`, `enum`) over `class` when no identity needed79- Protocol extensions for default implementations, not base classes80- Computed properties omit `get` when read-only8182### 4. Build Performance8384Read `references/performance.md` for the complete rules.8586Key checks:87- No complex expressions that slow type-checker (break into smaller statements)88- Explicit types on complex closures and collection literals89- Minimize use of `AnyObject`, `Any` — prefer concrete or generic types90- No unnecessary `@objc` or `dynamic` unless needed for Objective-C interop91- Module boundaries are clean — no circular dependencies92- Prefer `final` on classes not designed for inheritance (enables compiler optimizations)93- Large expressions broken into smaller sub-expressions with explicit types94- No excessive protocol conformance in extensions across files (merge where logical)9596### 5. Memory Management9798Read `references/memory-management.md` for the complete rules.99100Key checks:101- No retain cycles in closures — use `[weak self]` or `[unowned self]` appropriately102- `weak` preferred over `unowned` unless lifetime is guaranteed103- Delegates declared as `weak var`104- Large resources freed in `deinit` or on memory warnings105- Discardable resource caches use `NSCache` with count/cost limits; deterministic106 maps or non-discardable data may use bounded dictionaries107- Autoreleasepool used in tight loops creating many temporary objects108- No strong reference chains between parent and child objects109- Image and data caches have size limits110- Observation tokens stored and invalidated properly111112### 6. Testing113114Read `references/testing.md` for the complete rules.115116Key checks:117- Test methods named descriptively: `test_<condition>_<expectedResult>`118- One assertion concept per test (test may have setup + multiple related asserts)119- No test interdependencies — each test stands alone120- `setUp()` / `tearDown()` used for shared fixtures, not duplicated in every test121- Async code tested with expectations or Swift concurrency122- UI tests separated from unit tests123- Edge cases covered: nil, empty, boundary values, error paths124- No network calls in unit tests — use protocols and mocks125- Force-unwrap permitted in tests (fails the test if nil, which is desired)126127### 7. Documentation128129Key checks:130- Public API has `///` doc comments with summary, parameters, returns, throws131- Doc comments use verb phrases for methods, noun phrases for properties132- No `/** */` block comment syntax133- `Parameter`, `Returns`, `Throws` tags in that order134- Complex algorithms have inline comments explaining why, not what135136### 8. Concurrency (if applicable)137138Key checks:139- `@Sendable` closures don't capture mutable state140- Actors used for mutable shared state instead of locks141- `MainActor` for UI updates142- No data races — `nonisolated` used intentionally143- Structured concurrency (`async let`, `TaskGroup`) preferred over unstructured `Task {}`144- Cancellation handled properly145146## Output Format147148Structure the review as:149150```151## Summary152<1-2 sentence overall assessment>153154## Findings155156### Critical157<issues that will cause bugs, crashes, or data loss>158159### Important160<style violations, performance issues, missing tests>161162### Suggestions163<minor improvements, alternative approaches>164165## What's Done Well166<2-3 things the code does right — always include this>167```168169For each finding, include:170- **File and line**: `Sources/Auth/TokenManager.swift:42`171- **Category**: which checklist item it falls under172- **Issue**: what's wrong173- **Fix**: concrete code suggestion or direction174175Keep findings actionable. Don't flag things that are clearly intentional project176conventions unless they cause real problems.