Skip to main content
ubuntuask.com

Back to all posts

How to Set the Type on Enum In Swift?

Published on
5 min read
How to Set the Type on Enum In Swift? image

Best Swift Programming Books to Buy in October 2025

1 iOS 18 Programming for Beginners: Learn iOS development with Swift 6, Xcode 16, and iOS 18 - your path to App Store success

iOS 18 Programming for Beginners: Learn iOS development with Swift 6, Xcode 16, and iOS 18 - your path to App Store success

BUY & SAVE
$26.70 $44.99
Save 41%
iOS 18 Programming for Beginners: Learn iOS development with Swift 6, Xcode 16, and iOS 18 - your path to App Store success
2 Modern Swift Programming: From Fundamentals to Building Your First Apple Apps

Modern Swift Programming: From Fundamentals to Building Your First Apple Apps

BUY & SAVE
$24.99
Modern Swift Programming: From Fundamentals to Building Your First Apple Apps
3 Mastering Swift 6: Modern programming techniques for high-performance apps in Swift 6.2

Mastering Swift 6: Modern programming techniques for high-performance apps in Swift 6.2

BUY & SAVE
$44.99 $49.99
Save 10%
Mastering Swift 6: Modern programming techniques for high-performance apps in Swift 6.2
4 Swift Programming: The Big Nerd Ranch Guide (Big Nerd Ranch Guides)

Swift Programming: The Big Nerd Ranch Guide (Big Nerd Ranch Guides)

BUY & SAVE
$44.90
Swift Programming: The Big Nerd Ranch Guide (Big Nerd Ranch Guides)
5 Swift Cookbook: Proven recipes for developing robust iOS applications with Swift 5.9

Swift Cookbook: Proven recipes for developing robust iOS applications with Swift 5.9

BUY & SAVE
$39.99
Swift Cookbook: Proven recipes for developing robust iOS applications with Swift 5.9
6 Mastering iOS 18 Development: Take your iOS development experience to the next level with iOS, Xcode, Swift, and SwiftUI

Mastering iOS 18 Development: Take your iOS development experience to the next level with iOS, Xcode, Swift, and SwiftUI

BUY & SAVE
$35.90 $41.99
Save 15%
Mastering iOS 18 Development: Take your iOS development experience to the next level with iOS, Xcode, Swift, and SwiftUI
7 Swift in Depth

Swift in Depth

  • MASTER SWIFT WITH STEP-BY-STEP GUIDES AND REAL-WORLD EXAMPLES.
  • UNLOCK TIPS FROM INDUSTRY EXPERTS TO BOOST YOUR CODING SKILLS!
  • PERFECT FOR BEGINNERS AND PROS-START YOUR SWIFT JOURNEY TODAY!
BUY & SAVE
$49.99
Swift in Depth
8 Head First Swift: A Learner's Guide to Programming with Swift

Head First Swift: A Learner's Guide to Programming with Swift

BUY & SAVE
$38.93 $79.99
Save 51%
Head First Swift: A Learner's Guide to Programming with Swift
9 Swift Programming: The Big Nerd Ranch Guide (Big Nerd Ranch Guides)

Swift Programming: The Big Nerd Ranch Guide (Big Nerd Ranch Guides)

BUY & SAVE
$16.67 $39.99
Save 58%
Swift Programming: The Big Nerd Ranch Guide (Big Nerd Ranch Guides)
+
ONE MORE?

In Swift, to set the type on an enum, you can use the enum keyword followed by the name of the enum and specify the type inside angle brackets after the name. For example, you can create an enum with a specific type like this:

enum MyEnum { case one case two case three }

In this example, we have created an enum called MyEnum with a type of Int. You can then use the cases defined in the enum with the specified type.Enums can have different types, including Int, String, and other enums, as needed for your specific use case.

How to use indirect cases in enum in Swift?

Indirect cases in enums in Swift are used when you want to create recursive data structures. To use indirect cases in enums, you need to use the indirect keyword before the case declaration.

Here is an example of how to define an enum with indirect cases in Swift:

indirect enum Tree { case leaf case node(value: Int, left: Tree, right: Tree) }

let leaf = Tree.leaf let tree = Tree.node(value: 10, left: leaf, right: tree)

In this example, the Tree enum has two cases - leaf and node. The node case is defined as having an Int value and two child Tree nodes. By marking the enum as indirect, we are allowed to have recursive references to the enum type within the enum itself.

You can create instances of the Tree enum using the leaf and node cases, and create complex tree structures with arbitrary depth using recursive references.

let leaf1 = Tree.leaf let leaf2 = Tree.leaf let tree = Tree.node(value: 10, left: leaf1, right: Tree.node(value: 20, left: leaf2, right: Tree.leaf))

By using indirect cases in enums, you can create powerful and flexible data structures in Swift.

What is enum with properties in Swift?

In Swift, an enum with associated values is a way to define a set of related values that each have their own properties. This allows you to add additional information or data to each case of the enum.

For example, you could have an enum called User with two cases: guest and loggedIn. The loggedIn case could have associated values such as a username, email, and membership level. This allows you to access and use these properties for each specific case of the enum.

Here's an example of how you might define and use an enum with properties in Swift:

enum User { case guest case loggedIn(username: String, email: String, membershipLevel: String) }

let currentUser = User.loggedIn(username: "johndoe", email: "johndoe@example.com", membershipLevel: "gold")

switch currentUser { case .guest: print("Welcome, guest!") case .loggedIn(let username, let email, let membershipLevel): print("Welcome, \(username)! Your email is \(email) and your membership level is \(membershipLevel).") }

Enums with properties can be a powerful tool in Swift for modeling complex data structures and representing different states or cases in your code.

How to access enum values in Swift?

To access enum values in Swift, you can use dot syntax to access specific cases of the enum.

For example, if you have an enum named Direction with cases north, south, east, and west, you can access these values like this:

enum Direction { case north case south case east case west }

let myDirection = Direction.east print(myDirection) // Output: east

You can also use a switch statement to access enum values:

switch myDirection { case .north: print("Heading North") case .south: print("Heading South") case .east: print("Heading East") case .west: print("Heading West") }

This will print "Heading East" because myDirection is set to Direction.east.

What is enum with associated data in Swift?

In Swift, an enum with associated data is a powerful feature that allows you to attach additional information to each case of an enum. This additional information, known as associated values, can be different types for each case and can provide extra context or data for that particular case.

For example, you can create an enum called Result with two cases: success and failure, each with associated data of different types.

enum Result { case success(Int) case failure(String) }

You can then create instances of the Result enum with associated values:

let successResult = Result.success(10) let failureResult = Result.failure("Error occurred")

This allows you to store and pass around more information with each enum case, making your code more expressive and type-safe.

How to add methods to enum in Swift?

In Swift, you can add methods to an enum by using an extension. Here's an example of how you can add a method to an enum:

enum Planet { case mercury case venus case earth case mars case jupiter case saturn case uranus case neptune

func description() -> String {
    switch self {
    case .mercury:
        return "The smallest planet in the solar system"
    case .venus:
        return "The hottest planet in the solar system"
    case .earth:
        return "The only planet known to support life"
    case .mars:
        return "Named after the Roman god of war"
    case .jupiter:
        return "The largest planet in the solar system"
    case .saturn:
        return "Famous for its rings"
    case .uranus:
        return "The only planet that rotates on its side"
    case .neptune:
        return "Named after the Roman god of the sea"
    }
}

}

extension Planet { func isGasGiant() -> Bool { switch self { case .jupiter, .saturn, .uranus, .neptune: return true default: return false } } }

let planet = Planet.jupiter print(planet.description()) print(planet.isGasGiant()) // Output: true

In the above example, we have defined an enum Planet with cases representing different planets in the solar system. We have added a method description() to the enum that returns a description of each planet. We have also added a method isGasGiant() using an extension that determines whether a planet is a gas giant or not.

You can then create an instance of the enum, call these methods on the instance, and get the desired output.