Stop switching to Xcode just to hit Cmd+R.

Xcode Run Shortcut is a lightweight macOS menu bar utility that lets you trigger Xcode builds from anywhere without stealing focus from your current app. Whether you're in your editor, IDE different from Xcode, or terminal, your build is just one keystroke away.

⚡ Features

Global Keyboard Shortcut

- Trigger builds with a customizable hotkey (default: ⌘⇧R)

- Works from any app: your editor, browser, Cursor, Antigravity, Claude Code, whatever!

- No focus stealing: stay exactly where you are while Xcode builds

AI Coding Assistant Integration

- Built-in CLI for seamless integration with AI tools

- Claude Code, Cursor, Aider, and other AI assistants can trigger builds as the final step of their workflow

- Simple command: "XcodeRunShortcut trigger" and you're building

Smart & Reliable

- Uses menu clicking instead of keystrokes: works with any Xcode language or custom shortcuts

- Automatically restores focus to your previous app (≈150ms switch)

- Minimal permissions: just Accessibility for global shortcuts

Customizable

- Set your own keyboard shortcut through the menu bar UI

- Preferences persist across sessions

- Clean, native macOS interface (only a menubar item!)

🎯 Perfect For

iOS/macOS Developers who want to stay in flow without context switching

AI-Assisted Development: Let Claude Code or Cursor trigger builds after making changes:

# AI assistants can do this:

XcodeRunShortcut trigger && echo "Build started!"

Multi-Monitor Setups: Keep Xcode on one screen while working on another

Automation & Scripting: Integrate with git hooks, file watchers, or custom workflows

🛠 Technical Details

- Platform: macOS 13.0+

- Size: ~500KB

- Permissions: Accessibility (for global shortcuts), Automation (for Xcode control)

- Architecture: Swift, native macOS APIs, zero dependencies

- Signed & Notarized: No Gatekeeper warnings

📦 What's Included

- XcodeRunShortcut.app (signed & notarized)

- Lifetime updates for v1.x

🚀 Setup

1. Download and drag to Applications

2. Launch the app and grant Accessibility permission (one-time)

3. Customize your shortcut if desired

4. Optional: For CLI access, run:

sudo ln -sf /Applications/XcodeRunShortcut.app/Contents/MacOS/XcodeRunShortcut /usr/local/bin/xcode-run

After that, you can use:

xcode-run trigger

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One-time purchase. No subscriptions. No analytics. Just a focused tool that does one thing well.

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Works with Xcode 14+ on macOS Ventura and later. Requires an active Xcode installation.