Swift version: 5.6
Auto Layout anchors make it easy to position your views relative to others. There are lots of anchors to choose from: leading and trailing edges, top and bottom edges, center X and center Y, and more.
To try it out, first create a view something like this:
let child = UIView()
child.translatesAutoresizingMaskIntoConstraints = false
child.backgroundColor = .red
view.addSubview(child)
Now we can position that view by activating various anchors. For example, we could pin it to the top and bottom edges of the screen, make it precisely 128 points wide, then center it horizontally:
child.topAnchor.constraint(equalTo: view.safeAreaLayoutGuide.topAnchor).isActive = true
child.bottomAnchor.constraint(equalTo: view.safeAreaLayoutGuide.bottomAnchor).isActive = true
child.widthAnchor.constraint(equalToConstant: 128).isActive = true
child.centerXAnchor.constraint(equalTo: view.safeAreaLayoutGuide.centerXAnchor).isActive = true
To explore anchors further, try typing child.anchor
and exploring the code completion options.
SAVE 50% To celebrate WWDC23, all our books and bundles are half price, so you can take your Swift knowledge further without spending big! Get the Swift Power Pack to build your iOS career faster, get the Swift Platform Pack to builds apps for macOS, watchOS, and beyond, or get the Swift Plus Pack to learn advanced design patterns, testing skills, and more.
Available from iOS 9.0
This is part of the Swift Knowledge Base, a free, searchable collection of solutions for common iOS questions.
Link copied to your pasteboard.