How to write text using SKLabelNode

Swift version: 5.1

Paul Hudson    @twostraws    May 28th 2019

The SKLabelNode class is a fast and efficient way to draw text in SpriteKit games. To use it, first create a property in your game scene:

var scoreLabel: SKLabelNode!

Now create the label node by telling it want font use, its alignment, and also an initial text value if you want one. This code creates a label node using the Chalkduster font, places it in the top-right corner of the screen, and gives it the initial text "Score: 0":

scoreLabel = SKLabelNode(fontNamed: "Chalkduster")
scoreLabel.text = "Score: 0"
scoreLabel.horizontalAlignmentMode = .right
scoreLabel.position = CGPoint(x: 980, y: 700)
addChild(scoreLabel)

With that score label in place, you can now create a score integer property to store the actual number of a player's score, then use a property observer to modify the label whenever the score changes:

var score: Int = 0 {
    didSet {
        scoreLabel.text = "Score: \(score)"
    }
}

Available from iOS 7.0 – see Hacking with Swift tutorial 11

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