# ARView A view that enables you to display an AR experience with RealityKit. ``` @MainActor @objc @preconcurrency class ARView ``` ## Overview Use an [`ARView`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView) instance to display rendered 3D graphics to the user. You typically add a single view to your app’s storyboard, and then provide an outlet for that view in your code. Alternatively, you can create and add a view to your view hierarchy programmatically at runtime, as you would any other view. A view has a single [`Scene`](/documentation/RealityKit/Scene) instance that you access through the read-only [`scene`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/scene) property. To the view’s [`Scene`](/documentation/RealityKit/Scene) instance you add one or more [`AnchorEntity`](/documentation/RealityKit/AnchorEntity) instances that tell the view’s AR [`session`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/session) how to tether content to something in the real world. To each anchor, you attach a hierarchy of other [`Entity`](/documentation/RealityKit/Entity) instances that make up the content of the scene.  Additionally, you can use the view to: - Configure render options, environmental characteristics, and the camera mode. - Handle platform-appropriate user interaction in the form of mouse, keyboard, or gesture input. - Find entities at a given point in the view. - Access statistics and visualizations that help you debug your app. Note that with [`ARView`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView), a [`ModelEntity`](/documentation/RealityKit/ModelEntity) casts a grounding shadow on a physical surface by default. [`RealityView`](/documentation/RealityKit/RealityView) does not have this default behavior. ## Topics ### Creating a view [`init(frame:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/init(frame:)) Creates an AR view with the specified dimensions. [`init(frame:cameraMode:automaticallyConfigureSession:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/init(frame:cameraMode:automaticallyConfigureSession:)) Creates an AR view with the specified dimensions, camera mode, and session configuration state. [`init(coder:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/init(coder:)) Creates an AR view initialized from data in a given decoder. [`init(frame:cameraMode:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/init(frame:cameraMode:)) Creates an AR view with the specified dimensions and camera mode. ### Working with the scene [`scene`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/scene) The scene that the view renders and simulates. ### Configuring the AR session [`session`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/session) The AR session that supports the view’s rendering. [`automaticallyConfigureSession`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/automaticallyConfigureSession) An indication of whether to use an automatically configured AR session. [`renderOptions`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/renderOptions-swift.property) The render options that configure the view’s AR session. [`renderCallbacks`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/renderCallbacks-swift.property) A container that holds the view’s render callbacks. ### Providing environmental context [`environment`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/environment-swift.property) The view’s background, lighting, and acoustic properties. [`physicsOrigin`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/physicsOrigin) The entity that defines the origin of the scene’s physics simulation. [`audioListener`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/audioListener) The entity that defines the listener position and orientation for spatial audio. ### Managing the camera [`cameraMode`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/cameraMode-swift.property) A setting that chooses between the AR session’s camera and a virtual one. [`cameraTransform`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/cameraTransform) The transform of the currently active camera. ### Finding entities at a point in the view [`entity(at:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/entity(at:)) Finds the entity in the AR scene closest to the specified point. [`entities(at:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/entities(at:)) Finds the collection of entities at the specified point in the scene. [`hitTest(_:query:mask:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/hitTest(_:query:mask:)) Searches for objects corresponding to a point in the view based on a query and a collision mask. [`hitTest(_:types:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/hitTest(_:types:)) Searches for objects corresponding to a point in the view based on a set of result types. [`makeRaycastQuery(from:allowing:alignment:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/makeRaycastQuery(from:allowing:alignment:)) Creates a ray-cast query originating from a point in the view, centered on the camera’s field of view. [`raycast(from:allowing:alignment:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/raycast(from:allowing:alignment:)) Performs a ray cast, where a ray is cast into the scene from the center of the camera through a point in the view, and the results are immediately returned. [`trackedRaycast(from:allowing:alignment:updateHandler:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/trackedRaycast(from:allowing:alignment:updateHandler:)) Performs a tracked ray cast, where a ray is cast into the scene from the center of the camera through a point in the view. ### Adding gesture recognizers to entities [`installGestures(_:for:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/installGestures(_:for:)) Installs standard gestures onto the given entity, configured to be recognized simultaneously. [`gestureRecognizer(_:shouldRecognizeSimultaneouslyWith:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/gestureRecognizer(_:shouldRecognizeSimultaneouslyWith:)) ### Mapping between coordinate spaces [`project(_:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/project(_:)) Projects a point from the 3D world coordinate system of the scene to the 2D pixel coordinate system of the view. [`unproject(_:ontoPlane:relativeToCamera:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/unproject(_:ontoPlane:relativeToCamera:)) Unproject a 2D point from the view onto a plane in 3D world coordinates. [`unproject(_:ontoPlane:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/unproject(_:ontoPlane:)) Maps a 2D point from the view’s coordinate system onto the given plane in 3D space. [`unproject(_:viewport:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/unproject(_:viewport:)) Maps a 2D point from the pixel coordinate system of a viewport into a 3D coordinate space. The point lies on this view’s near clipping plane. [`ray(through:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/ray(through:)) Determines the position and direction of a ray through the given point in the 2D space of the view. ### Handling touch input [`touchesBegan(_:with:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/touchesBegan(_:with:)) Tells the view that one or more new touches occurred. [`touchesMoved(_:with:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/touchesMoved(_:with:)) Tells the view when one or more touches associated with an event changed. [`touchesEnded(_:with:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/touchesEnded(_:with:)) Tells the view when one or more fingers are raised from the view. [`touchesCancelled(_:with:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/touchesCancelled(_:with:)) Tells the view when a system event (such as a system alert) cancels a touch sequence. ### Handling keyboard input [`acceptsFirstResponder`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/acceptsFirstResponder) A Boolean value that indicates whether the view accepts first responder status. [`keyDown(with:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/keyDown(with:)) Informs the view that the user has pressed a key. [`keyUp(with:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/keyUp(with:)) Informs the view that the user has released a key. ### Handling mouse input [`mouseDown(with:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/mouseDown(with:)) Informs the view that the user has pressed the left mouse button. [`mouseDragged(with:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/mouseDragged(with:)) Informs the view that the user has moved the mouse with the left button pressed. [`mouseUp(with:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/mouseUp(with:)) Informs the view that the user has released the left mouse button. [`mouseMoved(with:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/mouseMoved(with:)) Informs the view that the mouse has moved. [`rightMouseDown(with:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/rightMouseDown(with:)) Informs the view that the user has pressed the right mouse button. [`rightMouseDragged(with:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/rightMouseDragged(with:)) Informs the view that the user has moved the mouse with the right button pressed. [`rightMouseUp(with:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/rightMouseUp(with:)) Informs the view that the user has released the right mouse button. [`otherMouseDown(with:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/otherMouseDown(with:)) Informs the view that the user has pressed a mouse button other than the left or right one. [`otherMouseDragged(with:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/otherMouseDragged(with:)) Informs the view that the user has moved the mouse with a button other than the left or right button pressed. [`otherMouseUp(with:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/otherMouseUp(with:)) Informs the view that the user has released a mouse button other than the left or right button. [`scrollWheel(with:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/scrollWheel(with:)) Informs the view that the mouse’s scroll wheel has moved. ### Managing the view [`frame`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/frame) The frame rectangle, which describes the view’s location and size in the coordinate system of the view’s superview. [`contentScaleFactor`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/contentScaleFactor) The scale factor of the content in the view. [`didMoveToSuperview()`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/didMoveToSuperview()) Tells the view that its superview changed. [`didMoveToWindow()`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/didMoveToWindow()) Tells the view that its window property is set to a new value. [`layoutSubviews()`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/layoutSubviews()) Lays out subviews. [`layout()`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/layout()) [`layerClass`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/layerClass) The class used to create the layer for view instances. [`makeBackingLayer()`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/makeBackingLayer()) Creates the view’s backing layer. [`viewDidChangeBackingProperties()`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/viewDidChangeBackingProperties()) Tells the view when its backing store properties change. [`viewDidMoveToSuperview()`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/viewDidMoveToSuperview()) Tells the view that it has a new superview or that the view’s superview has been removed. ### Taking a snapshot [`snapshot(saveToHDR:completion:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/snapshot(saveToHDR:completion:)-66jzu) Takes a screenshot. [`snapshot(saveToHDR:completion:)`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/snapshot(saveToHDR:completion:)-91ifk) Takes a screenshot. [`ARView.Image`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/Image) ### Debugging the session [Improving the Performance of a RealityKit App](/documentation/RealityKit/improving-the-performance-of-a-realitykit-app) Measure CPU and GPU utilization to find ways to improve your app’s performance. [`debugOptions`](/documentation/RealityKit/ARView/debugOptions-swift.property) The current debugging options. --- Copyright © 2026 Apple Inc. All rights reserved. | [Terms of Use](https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/terms/site.html) | [Privacy Policy](https://www.apple.com/privacy/privacy-policy)