Mobile Development Skill — Quick Reference
This skill equips mobile developers with execution-ready patterns for building native and cross-platform mobile applications. Claude should apply these patterns when users ask for iOS/Android app architecture, UI components, navigation flows, API integration, offline storage, authentication, or mobile-specific features.
When to Use This Skill
Claude should invoke this skill when a user requests:
- iOS app development (Swift, SwiftUI, UIKit)
- Android app development (Kotlin, Jetpack Compose)
- Cross-platform development (React Native, WebView)
- Mobile app architecture and patterns
- Navigation and routing
- State management (Redux, MobX, MVVM)
- Network requests and API integration
- Local data storage (Core Data, Room, SQLite)
- Authentication and session management
- Push notifications
- Camera and media access
- Location services
- App Store / Play Store deployment
- Mobile performance optimization
- Offline-first architecture
Quick Reference Table
| Task | iOS | Android | Cross-Platform | When to Use |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Native UI | SwiftUI + UIKit | Jetpack Compose + Views | React Native | Native: Best performance; Cross-platform: Code sharing |
| Navigation | NavigationStack | Navigation Component | React Navigation | Platform-specific for native feel |
| State Management | @State/@Observable | ViewModel + StateFlow | Redux/MobX | iOS: @Observable; Android: ViewModel; RN: Redux |
| Networking | URLSession + async/await | Retrofit + Coroutines | Axios/Fetch | Native: Type-safe; RN: JavaScript ecosystem |
| Local Storage | Core Data + SwiftData | Room Database | AsyncStorage/SQLite | Native: Full control; RN: Simpler |
| Push Notifications | APNs | FCM | React Native Firebase | Native: Platform-specific; RN: Unified API |
Decision Tree: Platform Selection
Need to build mobile app for: [Target Audience]
├─ iOS only?
│ └─ Use Swift + SwiftUI (templates/swift/)
│
├─ Android only?
│ └─ Use Kotlin + Jetpack Compose (templates/kotlin/)
│
├─ Both iOS and Android?
│ ├─ Need maximum performance?
│ │ └─ Build separate native apps (Swift + Kotlin)
│ │
│ ├─ Need faster development + code sharing?
│ │ └─ Use React Native (templates/cross-platform/)
│ │
│ └─ Wrapping existing web app?
│ └─ Use WebView wrapper (templates/cross-platform/template-webview.md)
Navigation
Resources
- resources/ios-best-practices.md — iOS architecture, concurrency, testing, and performance
- resources/android-best-practices.md — Android/Kotlin architecture, coroutines, Compose, testing, performance
- README.md — Folder overview and usage notes
- data/sources.json — Curated external references by platform
Templates
- Swift: templates/swift/template-swift.md, templates/swift/template-swift-concurrency.md, templates/swift/template-swift-combine.md, templates/swift/template-swift-performance.md, templates/swift/template-swift-testing.md
- SwiftUI: templates/swiftui/template-swiftui-advanced.md
- Kotlin/Android: templates/kotlin/template-kotlin.md, templates/kotlin/template-kotlin-coroutines.md, templates/kotlin/template-kotlin-compose-advanced.md, templates/kotlin/template-kotlin-testing.md
- Cross-platform: templates/cross-platform/template-platform-patterns.md, templates/cross-platform/template-webview.md
Related Skills
- ../software-frontend/SKILL.md — Web-facing UI patterns and Next.js integration
- ../software-backend/SKILL.md — API design, auth, and backend contracts for mobile clients
- ../software-testing-automation/SKILL.md — Mobile CI, test strategy, and reliability gates
- ../quality-resilience-patterns/SKILL.md — Resilience patterns for networked mobile apps
Operational Playbooks
- resources/operational-playbook.md — Mobile architecture patterns, platform-specific guides, security notes, and decision tables