XCFrameworks — New Format for Packaging Frameworks in iOS

At WWDC 2019, Apple introduced a new format for packaging frameworks called XCFrameworks, which allows developers to conveniently distribute binary libraries for multiple platforms and architectures in a single bundle.

Binary Frameworks in Swift - WWDC 2019 - Videos - Apple Developer

This means we no longer need to merge multiple architectures into a single binary (also known as Fat Frameworks) only to have to remove the Simulator slice later during the archive phase before uploading to App Store Connect.

Why Embrace XCFrameworks?

With the release of Xcode 12 and Apple moving to Apple Silicon (which established a common architecture across all Apple products), we were forced to change how we distributed our frameworks.

Apple announces Mac transition to Apple silicon