To publish iOS, iPadOS, and tvOS games, you need a Code Signing Certificate identifying you as a valid Apple developer, as well as a Provisioning Profile identifying the services and permissions needed for your app. While Xcode automatically manages this process for building code, you need to provide these manually in your Unreal Engine project settings so that the Unreal Engine build system can cook and package a project. This guide will explain all the steps needed to set up valid Certificates and Provisioning Profiles.
This guide covers the full setup for building Unreal Engine C++ projects with MacOS and Xcode. While you need a MacOS machine with Xcode to build your project to ship on the app store, Unreal Engine provides several other paths for building iOS apps for development and testing purposes, including paths for working on Windows. Refer to Appendix B: Additional Build Options for more information.
1. Overview and Requirements
To build and distribute an Unreal Engine project for an iOS, tvOS, or iPadOS device, you need the following requirements:
A computer running MacOS.
An installation of Xcode that is compatible with your current version of Unreal Engine.
An Apple Developer Account.
An Unreal Engine Project.
Refer to the iOS, iPadOS, and tvOS Development Requirements page for more information about the MacOS and Xcode versions required for use with the current version of Unreal Engine. Refer to the iOS Quickstart Guide guide for instructions about how to set up Xcode to work with Unreal Engine.
You need an Apple Developer Account to create code signing certificates and provisioning profiles. If you do not already have one, visit developer.apple.com and create an Apple ID and a Developer Account.
While Epic's software is available free of charge, Apple Developer accounts cost a fee of $99 per year. Keep this in mind when registering your account.
Finally, you need to do the following on your Apple Developer Account:
Connect Xcode with your Developer Account.
Create an Identifier (App ID) for your app.
Create a Provisioning Profile for a deployment of your app.
Create a Signing Certificate identifying yourself as the creator of your app.
Register your iOS device with your account.
Once you have each of these components, you need to download the Provisioning Profile and Signing Certificate and add them to your Project Settings. After that, you can package projects and push them to your device. The sections below will detail each of these steps.
2. Connecting Xcode With Your Apple Developer Account
To make sure your Certificates and Provisioning Profiles are recognized correctly, connect Xcode with the Apple ID for your Apple Developer Account.
Open Xcode, then click Xcode > Preferences.
Click the Accounts tab.
Click Add (+) to add an account. Provide the information for your Apple Developer Account.
3. Creating Your Identifier (App ID)
All iOS apps require an Identifier with a Bundle ID. Your Provisioning Profile references this information in a later step. To create an Identifier, follow these steps:
Login to your Apple Developer Account.
![The sign-in screen for the Apple Developer page]()
Click Certificates, Identifiers, and Profiles.
![The Certificates, Identifiers, and Profiles option is where you configure most of the details in this guide]()
Click Identifiers, then click Register an App ID.
![Registering an Identifier in the Identifiers page]()
Select App IDs and click Continue.
Select App and click Continue.
In the Register an App ID menu, fill in your Description and Bundle ID. The Bundle ID should be a reverse-domain string taking the format
com.(OrganizationDomainName).(AppName). In this example, the app is calledcom.YourCompany.MobileTestGame.
Take note of the application name you provide for the App ID, as this information must match the name of your Unreal Engine project. You also need the Bundle ID to match in both your Xcode project and the Project Settings in Unreal Editor.
Select any permissions and services your app needs, then click Continue.
Confirm that all your settings are correct, then click Register.
4A. Creating a Code Signing Certificate from Xcode
If you have connected Xcode with your Apple Developer account, you can generate a Development Certificate automatically with these steps:
Open your project's solution in Xcode, then select your project in the navigation panel. This will display the project's settings.
In the General settings, provide your project's bundle identifier. This should be a reverse-domain style string reading com.(OrganizationName).(ProjectName). In this example, it reads
com.YourCompany.MobileTestGame.Click Signing and Capabilities. Set the Team to the name given by your Apple Developer profile.
Enable Automatically Manage Signing. Xcode will connect with the Apple Developer site and generate a Code Signing Certificate for Development.
This Certificate will only be available on the Mac you configured it on, and it will only be usable for development, not shipping. Refer to [Generating a Signing Certificate Manually(#4B.GeneratingASigningCertificateManually) to create a Certificate that is usable by your team.
4B. Generating a Signing Certificate Manually
Development Certificates generated by Xcode make it possible to deploy your project for testing, but to ship your project you may need to create a Signing Certificate that is configured for distribution on the app store. You may also need to create a Certificate that is usable by your team on other devices. Follow these steps to manually create a Certificate with your Apple Developer account:
Open the Keychain Access app. Click Keychain Access > Certificate Assistant > Request a Certificate From a Certificate Authority.
In the Certificate Information dialog, provide your Apple Developer Email address and your name. Click Continue, then save the signing request to a convenient location, such as the desktop.
Open the Apple Developer Page. In the Certificates, Identifiers, and Profiles menu, click Certificates, then click Create a Certificate.
Select iOS App Development, then click Continue. If you are creating a certificate to ship your app, you need to use iOS Distribution (App Store and Ad Hoc) instead.
![Creating a Code Signing Certificate]()
Click Choose File, then select the Certificate Signing Request file you generated. Click Continue to generate your Certificate.
Download the Certificate and open it to add it to your System Keychain.
6. Creating a Provisioning Profile
Your app's Provisioning Profile ties together your identity as an Apple Developer and information about your test devices with information about the app itself. To create a Provisioning Profile, follow these steps:
In the Certificates, Identifiers & Profiles menu on the Apple Developer page, click Profiles, then click Generate a Profile.
Select iOS App Development, then click Continue.
![Creating a Provisioning Profile]()
This page uses an iOS app as an example, but you can select the provisioning profile type that is appropriate to your target device. For example, if you are creating a tvOS app, choose tvOS App Development.
Click the App ID dropdown and select the App ID you generated in the previous section, then click Continue.
![Choosing the Identifier for your app for your Provisioning Profile]()
Choose the Signing Certificate for Development that you generated in the previous section, then click Continue.
If you need to share your Signing Certificate and Provisioning Profile with your team, create a Certificate manually.
Choose your registered device as a test device, then click Continue.
Provide a Provisioning Profile Name. In this example, the profile is called MobileTestGame_Development. Click Generate.
Download the Provisioning Profile and place it in a convenient location. Click and drag it onto the Xcode app icon in your dock to install it.
7. Adding Your Provisioning Profile and Signing Certificate to Unreal Editor and Sharing Them With Your Team
Xcode does not need a Provisioning Profile to build code if you have it set to automatically manage code signing. However, Unreal Engine's build system and the iPhone Packager need to refer to your Provisioning Profile and Signing Certificate to cook and package your project's executable for iOS.
Follow these steps to provide them in Unreal Engine's project settings:
Place your Provisioning Profile and Signing Certificate in a folder somewhere in your Unreal Engine project's directory. In this example, they are both placed in MobileTestProject/Provisioning. This will not interfere with any build processes, but it will make it possible to add your Provisioning profile and Signing Certificate to your version control system so that you can share them with your team.
Open Unreal Editor, then open Project Settings > Platforms > iOS. Make sure your Bundle Identifier is set to the same name as in both Xcode and your Apple Developer Account.
Wait for a moment for the editor to discover your Provisioning Profile and Signing Certificate. If the entries for your Provisioning Profile and your Certificate both turn green, they are recognized as valid profiles and will be used automatically. You can select the check box to manually set them as well.
You can perform the steps in this section on a Windows machine for Blueprint-only projects and remote builds.
The Signing Certificate you select in your Project Settings must match the one used to generate your Provisioning Profile, otherwise your project will fail to package.
If you are using a Signing Certificate generated by automatic code signing in Xcode, it will appear in your Project Settings automatically. However, it will not be available on other computers. You should manually create a Certificate if you want to share it.
8. Packaging Your Project
Click Platforms > iOS > Package Project to package for iOS. If all of your settings are correct and your Provisioning Profile and Signing Certificate are both valid, you create an iOS build.
Click the Platforms dropdown again. If your iOS device appears in the Quick Launch options, select it to deploy a build directly to your device.
Final Result
After following the steps in this guide, you have all the needed components to build and distribute iOS projects. When you need to create a Provisioning Profile for testing or shipping, refer to this guide again and configure your Identifier, Certificate, and Provisioning Profile accordingly.
Appendix A: Obtaining an Apple Worldwide Developer Relations (WWDR) Certificate
Apple requires an Apple Worldwide Developer Relations Certificate to build apps. This should be provided by Xcode automatically, but in some situations, you may need to manually install it on your Mac.
Go to the Apple Certificate Authority Page and download the latest WWDR Intermediate Certificate.
Open the Keychain Access app and drag the certificate into the System keychain.
Appendix B: Additional Build Options
The steps in this guide are for the full Signing and Provisioning process needed to distribute an app. There are several other options available during development and testing:
Blueprint-only iOS projects do not need to go through the Signing and Provisioning process to package builds or push them to devices for testing – you can package them directly out of the box. This path will also work on Windows. Refer to Building for iOS on Windows for more information.
Because most teams using Unreal Engine use Windows machines for development, a remote build process is available. This will create a secure connection with a MacOS device and have it automate a build. Refer to the Building for iOS on Windows guide for more information.