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Background

Get set up with the Helium SDK for iOS. Reach out over your Helium slack channel or email [email protected] for any questions.

Installation

Helium requires a minimum deployment target of iOS 15 and Xcode 14+. (Latest Xcode is recommended.)
We recommend using Swift Package Manager (SPM), but if your project primarily uses Cocoapods it might make sense to install the Helium Cocoapod instead.
  • Swift Package Manager (SPM)
  • Cocoapod
  1. In Xcode, navigate to your project’s Package Dependencies: Spm Add Pn
  2. Click the + button and search for the Helium package URL:
    https://github.com/cloudcaptainai/helium-swift.git
    
    For Dependency Rule we recommend the default Up to Next Major Version to make sure you get non-breaking bug fixes. View the list of releases here.
  3. Click Add Package.
  4. In the dialog that appears, make sure to add the Helium product to your app’s main target: Spm Target Pn
  5. (Optional) If you are using RevenueCat to manage purchases, we recommended you also add HeliumRevenueCat to your target so that you can use our RevenueCatDelegate referenced in the Purchase Handling section of this guide. Otherwise leave as None for the HeliumRevenueCat row.
The HeliumRevenueCat target includes purchases-ios-spm as a dependency, not purchases-ios and you may encounter build issues if are using purchases-ios with SPM. (We recommend just switching to purchases-ios-spm).
  1. Select Add Package in the dialog and Helium should now be ready for import.

Initialize Helium

Initialize the Helium SDK as early as possible in your app’s lifecycle. Choose the appropriate location based on your app’s architecture:
  • SwiftUI
  • SceneDelegate
  • AppDelegate
@main
struct MyApp: App {
    init() {
        // Call Helium.shared.initialize here (see example below)
    }

    var body: some Scene {
        WindowGroup {
            ContentView()
        }
    }
}
Add necessary imports:
import Helium
And initialize Helium in the location referenced above:
// Create fallback configuration with a fallback bundle
// (recommended - see Fallbacks and Loading Budgets section)
let fallbackBundleURL = Bundle.main.url(forResource: "fallback-bundle", withExtension: "json")
let fallbackConfig = HeliumFallbackConfig.withFallbackBundle(fallbackBundleURL)

Helium.shared.initialize(
    apiKey: "<your-helium-api-key>",
    fallbackConfig: fallbackConfig,
    revenueCatAppUserId: Purchases.shared.appUserID // ONLY if using RevenueCat
)
Helium.shared.initialize
method
Helium’s initialization is ran on a background thread, so you don’t have to worry about it affecting your app’s launch time.
You can provide a custom user ID and custom user traits in the initialize method or by using Helium.shared.overrideUserId. Set the user ID and traits before or during initialize to ensure consistency in analytics events and for the best experimentation results.
Helium.shared.overrideUserId(
    newUserId: "<your-custom-user-id>",
    traits: HeliumUserTraits? = nil
);
In most cases there is no need to check download status. Helium will display a loading indication if a paywall is presented before download has completed.
You can check the status of the paywall configuration download using the Helium.shared.getDownloadStatus() method. This method returns a value of type HeliumFetchedConfigStatus, which is defined as follows:
public enum HeliumFetchedConfigStatus: String, Codable, Equatable {
    case notDownloadedYet
    case inProgress
    case downloadSuccess
    case downloadFailure
}
You can also simply check if paywalls have been successfully downloaded with Helium.shared.paywallsLoaded().

Presenting Paywalls

You must have a trigger and workflow configured in the dashboard in order to show a paywall.
Call Helium.shared.presentUpsell(trigger:) when you want to show the paywall. For example:
Button("Try Premium") {
    Helium.shared.presentUpsell(trigger: "post_onboarding")
}
Helium.shared.presentUpsell
method
Looking for alternative presentation methods? Check out the guide on Ways to Show a Paywall.

PaywallEventHandlers

When displaying a paywall you can pass in event handlers to listen for relevant Helium Events. You can chain a subset of handlers with builder syntax:
Helium.shared.presentUpsell(
    trigger: "post_onboarding",
    eventHandlers: PaywallEventHandlers()
        .onOpen { event in
            print("open via trigger \(event.triggerName)")
        }
        .onClose { event in
            print("close for trigger \(event.triggerName)")
        }
        .onDismissed { event in
            print("dismiss for trigger \(event.triggerName)")
        }
        .onPurchaseSucceeded { event in
            print("purchase succeeded for trigger \(event.triggerName)")
        }
        .onOpenFailed {
             print("open failed for trigger \(event.triggerName)")
        }
        .onCustomPaywallAction { event in
            print("Custom action: \(event.actionName) with params: \(event.params)")
        }
        .onAnyEvent { event in
            // A handler for all paywall-related events.
            // Note that if you have other handlers (i.e. onOpen) set up,
            // both that handler AND this one will fire during paywall open.
        }
)
Usage Suggestions:
  • Use onDismiss for post-paywall navigation when the paywall is dismissed but a user’s entitlement hasn’t changed
  • Use onPurchaseSucceeded for your post purchase flow (e.g., a premium onboarding navigation)
  • Use onClose to handle a paywall close, regardless of reason
You should now be able to see Helium paywalls in your app! Well done! 🎉

Purchase Handling

By default, Helium will handle purchases for you! This section is for those who want to delegate purchases to RevenueCat or implement custom purchase logic.
Use (or subclass) one of our pre-built HeliumPaywallDelegate implementations or create a custom delegate. Pass the delegate in to your Helium.shared.initialize call.
  • StoreKitDelegate
  • RevenueCatDelegate
  • Custom Delegate
The StoreKitDelegate (default delegate) handles purchases using native StoreKit 2:
import Helium

let delegate = StoreKitDelegate()

Listen for Helium Events

Helium Events are emitted by Helium for various paywall actions, purchase completions, and more. Options to listen for these events include:

1. onPaywallEvent of HeliumPaywallDelegate

Subclass one of the provided HeliumPaywallDelegate implementations (see Purchase Handling section above) and override onPaywallEvent:
class MyStoreKitDelegate: StoreKitDelegate {
    override func onPaywallEvent(_ event: HeliumEvent) {
        switch event {
        case let openEvent as PaywallOpenEvent:
            // handle open event here
            break
        case let closeEvent as PaywallCloseEvent:
            break
        case let dismissEvent as PaywallDismissedEvent:
            break
        case let purchaseEvent as PurchaseSucceededEvent:
            break
        default:
            break
        }
    }
}
Make sure to pass your delegate in to Helium.shared.initialize!

2. Add a HeliumEventListener

/// Implement this where you want to handle events
public protocol HeliumEventListener : AnyObject {
    func onHeliumEvent(event: HeliumEvent)
}

/// Add a listener for all Helium events. Listeners are stored weakly, so if you create a listener inline it may not be retained.
public func addHeliumEventListener(_ listener: HeliumEventListener)

/// Remove a specific Helium event listener.
public func removeHeliumEventListener(_ listener: HeliumEventListener)

3. Use PaywallEventHandlers for paywall-specific events

See the section titled PaywallEventHandlers on this page.

Checking Subscription Status & Entitlements

The Helium SDK provides several ways to check user entitlements and subscription status.
hasAnyEntitlement() Checks if the user has purchased any subscription or non-consumable product.hasAnyActiveSubscription(includeNonRenewing: Bool = true) Checks if the user has any active subscription. Set includeNonRenewing to false to check only auto-renewing subscriptions.hasEntitlementForPaywall(trigger: String, considerAssociatedSubscriptions: Bool = false) Checks if the user has entitlements for any product in a specific paywall. Returns nil if paywall configuration hasn’t been downloaded yet.hasActiveEntitlementFor(productId: String) Checks if the user has entitlement to a specific product.hasActiveSubscriptionFor(productId: String) Checks if the user has an active subscription for a specific product.hasActiveSubscriptionFor(subscriptionGroupID: String) Checks if the user has an active subscription in a specific subscription group.purchasedProductIds() Retrieves a list of all product IDs the user currently has access to.activeSubscriptions() Returns detailed information about all active auto-renewing subscriptions.subscriptionStatusFor(productId: String) Gets detailed subscription status for a specific product, including state information like subscribed, expired, or in grace period.subscriptionStatusFor(subscriptionGroupID: String) Gets detailed subscription status for a specific subscription group.

Example Usage

Check entitlements before showing paywalls to avoid showing a paywall to a user who should not see it.
Helium.shared.presentUpsell(trigger: "my_paywall", dontShowIfAlreadyEntitled: true)

Fallbacks and Loading Budgets

If a paywall has not completed downloading when you attempt to present it, a loading state can show. By default, Helium will show this loading state as needed (a shimmer view for up to 7 seconds). You can configure, turn off, or set trigger-specific loading budgets. If the budget expires before the paywall is ready, a fallback paywall will show if available otherwise the loading state will hide and a PaywallOpenFailed event will be dispatched. The iOS sdk has 3 options for fallbacks:
  1. Fallback bundles
  2. Default fallback view
  3. Fallback view per trigger
All of this is configured via the HeliumFallbackConfig object passed in to initialize. Here are some examples:
// Just provide a fallback bundle
let fallbackBundleURL = Bundle.main.url(
    forResource: "fallback-bundle-xxxx-xx-xx",
    withExtension: "json"
)
let fallbackConfig = HeliumFallbackConfig.withFallbackBundle(fallbackBundleURL)

// Provide fallback view and configure loading budgets
let fallbackConfig = HeliumFallbackConfig(
    fallbackView: YourFallbackView(),
    // Global loading budget (in seconds)
    loadingBudget: 5.0,
    // Per-trigger loading budgets
    perTriggerLoadingConfig: [
        "onboarding": TriggerLoadingConfig(loadingBudget: 4),
        "quick_upgrade": TriggerLoadingConfig(useLoadingState: false),
    ]
)

Helium.shared.initialize(
    apiKey: "your-api-key",
    fallbackConfig: fallbackConfig
)

Advanced

Retrieve basic information about the paywall for a specific trigger with Helium.shared.getPaywallInfo(trigger: String) which returns:
public struct PaywallInfo {
    public let paywallTemplateName: String
    // shouldShow only false if the paywall should not be shown due to targeting or workflow configuration (Helium handles this for you in presentUpsell)
    public let shouldShow: Bool
}
This method can be used if you want to be certain that a paywall is ready for display before displaying.
Reset Helium entirely so you can call initialize again. Only for advanced use cases.
Helium.resetHelium()