AVKit

High-level media playback UI built on AVFoundation. Provides system-standard video players, Picture-in-Picture, AirPlay routing, transport controls, and subtitle/caption display. Targets Swift 6.3 / iOS 26+.

Contents

• Setup
• AVPlayerViewController
• SwiftUI VideoPlayer
• Picture-in-Picture
• AirPlay
• Transport Controls and Playback Speed
• Subtitles and Closed Captions
• Common Mistakes
• Review Checklist
• References

Setup

Audio Session Configuration

Playback apps need an audio session category and the matching background mode when they support background audio, AirPlay, or PiP.

1. Enable Background Modes > Audio, AirPlay, and Picture in Picture (the audio value in UIBackgroundModes)
2. Set the audio session category to .playback
3. Defer setActive(true) until playback begins so you do not interrupt other audio prematurely

import AVFoundation

func configureAudioSessionForPlayback() {
    let session = AVAudioSession.sharedInstance()
    do {
        try session.setCategory(.playback, mode: .moviePlayback)
    } catch {
        print("Audio session category failed: \(error)")
    }
}

func activateAudioSessionWhenPlaybackBegins() {
    do {
        try AVAudioSession.sharedInstance().setActive(true)
    } catch {
        print("Audio session activation failed: \(error)")
    }
}

Imports

import AVKit          // AVPlayerViewController, VideoPlayer, PiP
import AVFoundation   // AVPlayer, AVPlayerItem, AVAsset

AVPlayerViewController

AVPlayerViewController is the standard UIKit player. It provides system playback controls, PiP, AirPlay, subtitles, and frame analysis out of the box. Do not subclass it.

Basic Presentation (Full Screen)

import AVKit

func presentPlayer(from viewController: UIViewController, url: URL) {
    let player = AVPlayer(url: url)
    let playerVC = AVPlayerViewController()
    playerVC.player = player

    viewController.present(playerVC, animated: true) {
        player.play()
    }
}

Inline (Embedded) Playback

Add AVPlayerViewController as a child view controller for inline playback. Call addChild, add the view with constraints, then call didMove(toParent:).

func embedPlayer(in parent: UIViewController, container: UIView, url: URL) {
    let playerVC = AVPlayerViewController()
    playerVC.player = AVPlayer(url: url)

    parent.addChild(playerVC)
    container.addSubview(playerVC.view)
    playerVC.view.translatesAutoresizingMaskIntoConstraints = false
    NSLayoutConstraint.activate([
        playerVC.view.leadingAnchor.constraint(equalTo: container.leadingAnchor),
        playerVC.view.trailingAnchor.constraint(equalTo: container.trailingAnchor),
        playerVC.view.topAnchor.constraint(equalTo: container.topAnchor),
        playerVC.view.bottomAnchor.constraint(equalTo: container.bottomAnchor)
    ])
    playerVC.didMove(toParent: parent)
}

Key Properties

playerVC.showsPlaybackControls = true                    // Show/hide system controls
playerVC.videoGravity = .resizeAspect                    // .resizeAspectFill to crop
playerVC.entersFullScreenWhenPlaybackBegins = false
playerVC.exitsFullScreenWhenPlaybackEnds = true
playerVC.updatesNowPlayingInfoCenter = true              // Auto-updates MPNowPlayingInfoCenter

Use contentOverlayView to add non-interactive views (watermarks, logos) between the video and transport controls.

Delegate

Adopt AVPlayerViewControllerDelegate to respond to full-screen transitions, PiP lifecycle events, interstitial playback, and media selection changes. Use the transition coordinator's animate(alongsideTransition:completion:) to synchronize your UI with full-screen animations.

Display Readiness

Observe isReadyForDisplay before showing the player to avoid a black flash:

let observation = playerVC.observe(\.isReadyForDisplay) { observed, _ in
    if observed.isReadyForDisplay {
        // Safe to show the player view
    }
}

SwiftUI VideoPlayer

The VideoPlayer SwiftUI view wraps AVKit's playback UI.

Basic Usage

import SwiftUI
import AVKit

struct PlayerView: View {
    @State private var player: AVPlayer?

    var body: some View {
        Group {
            if let player {
                VideoPlayer(player: player)
                    .frame(height: 300)
            } else {
                ProgressView()
            }
        }
        .task {
            let url = URL(string: "https://example.com/video.m3u8")!
            player = AVPlayer(url: url)
        }
    }
}

Video Overlay

Add a SwiftUI overlay above the video content and below the system playback controls. The overlay can be interactive, but it only receives events the system controls do not handle.

VideoPlayer(player: player) {
    VStack {
        Spacer()
        HStack {
            Image("logo")
                .resizable()
                .frame(width: 40, height: 40)
                .padding()
            Spacer()
        }
    }
}

UIKit Hosting for Advanced Control

VideoPlayer does not expose all AVPlayerViewController properties. For PiP configuration, delegate callbacks, or playback speed control, wrap AVPlayerViewController in a UIViewControllerRepresentable. See the full pattern in references/avkit-patterns.md.

Picture-in-Picture

PiP lets users watch video in a floating window while using other apps. AVPlayerViewController supports PiP automatically once the app is configured, the device supports PiP, and the current AVPlayerItem is playable video content in an AVPlayer-compatible format. Audio-only items, unsupported containers/codecs, or items that are not ready to display video can make PiP unavailable even when app and device setup are correct. For custom player UIs, use AVPictureInPictureController directly.

Prerequisites

1. Audio session category set to .playback (see Setup)
2. Background Modes > Audio, AirPlay, and Picture in Picture enabled
3. Ready AVPlayerItem with playable video media, not audio-only content
4. Current playback context allows PiP; for custom players, observe isPictureInPicturePossible

Standard Player PiP

PiP is enabled by default on AVPlayerViewController. Control automatic activation and inline-to-PiP transitions:

let playerVC = AVPlayerViewController()
playerVC.player = player

// PiP enabled by default; set false to disable
playerVC.allowsPictureInPicturePlayback = true

// Auto-start PiP when app backgrounds (for inline/non-fullscreen players)
playerVC.canStartPictureInPictureAutomaticallyFromInline = true

Restoring the UI When PiP Stops

When the user taps the restore button in PiP, implement the delegate method to re-present your player. Call the completion handler with true to signal the system to finish the restore animation.

func playerViewController(
    _ playerViewController: AVPlayerViewController,
    restoreUserInterfaceForPictureInPictureStopWithCompletionHandler completionHandler: @escaping (Bool) -> Void
) {
    // Re-present or re-embed the player view controller
    present(playerViewController, animated: false) {
        completionHandler(true)
    }
}

Custom Player PiP

For custom player UIs, use AVPictureInPictureController with an AVPlayerLayer or sample buffer content source. Check device support before creating PiP UI, then check the controller's isPictureInPicturePossible before starting PiP in the current playback context. See references/avkit-patterns.md for full custom player and sample buffer PiP patterns.

guard AVPictureInPictureController.isPictureInPictureSupported() else { return }
let pipController = AVPictureInPictureController(playerLayer: playerLayer)
pipController.delegate = self
pipController.canStartPictureInPictureAutomaticallyFromInline = true

// Call this from the user's PiP button action, never automatically.
if pipController.isPictureInPicturePossible {
    pipController.startPictureInPicture()
}

Linear Playback During Ads

Interstitial breaks can come from the media stream/manifest, which AVFoundation exposes through AVPlayerItem.interstitialTimeRanges, or from an app-owned AVPlayerInterstitialEventController schedule. Do not assign interstitialTimeRanges directly on iOS. Use requiresLinearPlayback only to prevent seeking during required ad or legal segments:

// During an ad
playerVC.requiresLinearPlayback = true

// After the ad completes
playerVC.requiresLinearPlayback = false

AirPlay

AVPlayerViewController supports AirPlay automatically when app configuration, media, routes, and device support allow external playback. No additional code is required when using the standard player. The system displays the AirPlay button in the transport controls when AirPlay-capable devices are available.

AVRoutePickerView

Add a standalone AirPlay route picker button outside the player UI:

import AVKit

func addRoutePicker(to containerView: UIView) {
    let routePicker = AVRoutePickerView(frame: CGRect(x: 0, y: 0, width: 44, height: 44))
    routePicker.activeTintColor = .systemBlue
    routePicker.prioritizesVideoDevices = true  // Show video-capable routes first
    containerView.addSubview(routePicker)
}

External Playback

AVPlayer allows external playback by default. Leave it enabled for AirPlay, or set it explicitly when code elsewhere may disable it:

player.allowsExternalPlayback = true

Set usesExternalPlaybackWhileExternalScreenIsActive only when you want the player to automatically switch to external playback while an external screen mode is active.

Transport Controls and Playback Speed

Custom Playback Speeds

Provide user-selectable playback speeds in the player UI:

let playerVC = AVPlayerViewController()
playerVC.speeds = [
    AVPlaybackSpeed(rate: 0.5, localizedName: "Half Speed"),
    AVPlaybackSpeed(rate: 1.0, localizedName: "Normal"),
    AVPlaybackSpeed(rate: 1.5, localizedName: "1.5x"),
    AVPlaybackSpeed(rate: 2.0, localizedName: "Double Speed")
]

Use AVPlaybackSpeed.systemDefaultSpeeds to restore the default speed options.

Skipping and Seeking

On iOS, use the standard transport controls and AVPlayer.seek(...) for custom app controls. AVPlayerViewController skipping behavior APIs such as isSkipForwardEnabled, isSkipBackwardEnabled, and skippingBehavior are tvOS-focused; keep them out of iOS player implementations.

Now Playing Integration

AVPlayerViewController updates MPNowPlayingInfoCenter automatically by default. Disable this if you manage Now Playing info manually:

playerVC.updatesNowPlayingInfoCenter = false

Subtitles and Closed Captions

AVKit handles subtitle and closed caption display automatically when the media contains appropriate text tracks. Users control subtitle preferences in Settings > Accessibility > Subtitles & Captioning.

Programmatic Selection

let asset = player.currentItem?.asset

if let group = try await asset?.loadMediaSelectionGroup(for: .legible),
   let english = group.options.first(where: { option in
       option.locale?.language.languageCode?.identifier == "en"
   }) {
    player.currentItem?.select(english, in: group)
}

allowedSubtitleOptionLanguages, requiresFullSubtitles, and the AVPlayerViewControllerDelegate media-selection callback are tvOS-only. For iOS, load the asset's .legible media selection group and select an option on the AVPlayerItem when the app needs a default.

Providing Subtitle Tracks in HLS

Subtitles and closed captions are embedded in HLS manifests. AVKit reads them from AVMediaSelectionGroup on the AVAsset. For local files, use media that already includes legible subtitle or closed-caption tracks, or author those tracks into the playable asset before presenting it with AVKit.

Common Mistakes

DON'T: Subclass AVPlayerViewController

Apple explicitly states this is unsupported. It may cause undefined behavior or crash on future OS versions.

// WRONG
class MyPlayerVC: AVPlayerViewController { } // Unsupported

// CORRECT: Use composition with delegation
let playerVC = AVPlayerViewController()
playerVC.delegate = coordinator

DON'T: Skip audio session configuration for PiP

PiP and background playback depend on the playback audio session category and the Audio, AirPlay, and Picture in Picture background mode.

// WRONG: Default audio session
let playerVC = AVPlayerViewController()
playerVC.player = player // PiP won't work

// CORRECT: Configure the category, then activate when playback starts
try AVAudioSession.sharedInstance().setCategory(.playback, mode: .moviePlayback)
try AVAudioSession.sharedInstance().setActive(true)
let playerVC = AVPlayerViewController()
playerVC.player = player

DON'T: Forget the PiP restore delegate or its completion handler

Without restoreUserInterfaceForPictureInPictureStopWithCompletionHandler, the system cannot return the user to your player. Failing to call completionHandler(true) leaves the system in an inconsistent state.

// WRONG: No delegate method or missing completionHandler call
// User taps restore in PiP -> nothing happens or animation hangs

// CORRECT
func playerViewController(
    _ playerViewController: AVPlayerViewController,
    restoreUserInterfaceForPictureInPictureStopWithCompletionHandler completionHandler: @escaping (Bool) -> Void
) {
    present(playerViewController, animated: false) {
        completionHandler(true)
    }
}

DON'T: Create AVPlayer in a SwiftUI view's init

Creating the player eagerly causes performance issues. SwiftUI may recreate the view multiple times.

// WRONG: Created on every view init
struct PlayerView: View {
    let player = AVPlayer(url: videoURL) // Re-created on every view evaluation

    var body: some View { VideoPlayer(player: player) }
}

// CORRECT: Use @State and defer creation
struct PlayerView: View {
    @State private var player: AVPlayer?

    var body: some View {
        VideoPlayer(player: player)
            .task { player = AVPlayer(url: videoURL) }
    }
}

Review Checklist

• Audio session category set to .playback with mode: .moviePlayback
• Audio session activation deferred until playback begins
• Audio, AirPlay, and Picture in Picture background mode added to UIBackgroundModes
• AVPlayerViewController is not subclassed
• PiP tested with supported video media, not only app/device setup
• PiP restore delegate method implemented and calls completionHandler(true)
• Custom PiP checks both device support and current isPictureInPicturePossible
• Custom PiP starts only from explicit user interaction
• AVPlayer deferred to .task in SwiftUI (not created eagerly)
• canStartPictureInPictureAutomaticallyFromInline set for inline players
• requiresLinearPlayback toggled only during required ad/legal segments
• tvOS-only skipping APIs are not used for iOS transport controls
• External playback is not disabled accidentally when AirPlay is required
• Subtitle selection tested with actual media tracks
• Video gravity set appropriately (.resizeAspect vs .resizeAspectFill)
• isReadyForDisplay observed before showing the player view
• Error handling for network-streamed content (HLS failures, timeouts)

References

• Advanced patterns (custom player UI, interstitials, background playback, error handling): references/avkit-patterns.md
• AVKit framework
• AVPlayerViewController
• VideoPlayer (SwiftUI)
• AVPictureInPictureController
• AVRoutePickerView
• AVPlaybackSpeed
• Configuring your app for media playback
• Adopting Picture in Picture in a Standard Player
• Playing video content in a standard user interface