Streamline Work and Personal Apple Developer IDs on macOS: Tips and Tricks

Are you struggling to manage separate work and personal Apple Developer IDs on a single Mac? You’re not alone! Many developers either opt for using one account per machine or create multiple user accounts, but these methods aren’t always ideal. I, too, faced this challenge, as I needed a seamless way to handle all my accounts from one Mac without the hassle of constantly logging in and out of different accounts. After experimenting with various approaches, I finally discovered the perfect solution that works for me, and I’m excited to share it with you!

My initial thought was to explore the possibility of loading my work account onto a virtual machine. Unfortunately, this approach didn’t work, as I have an M1 chip. While you can use Parallels to boot up macOS in a virtual machine, logging in to your Apple account on a VM isn’t possible with an M1 chip. Others have encountered the same issue, as discussed in this thread about why you can’t log in to Apple ID using Parallels on a Mac with an M series chip. Essentially, the VM route is unfeasible for developers who need to log in using their Apple ID to access the App Store and download Xcode. So, don’t purchase Parallels if that’s your goal.

Since working with a VM wasn’t an option, I turned to a technique I frequently use in Linux. As macOS is essentially Unix under the hood, I figured it should work. My plan was to create a new group, add my personal user to that group, and then grant access by giving the group permissions to the necessary directories on my work account. The result was seamless: I could now open an Xcode project from my work user account while logged in to my personal account. To see how I achieved this, check out these steps: Sharing Files and Folders Between User Accounts on a Mac: How to Share Xcode Projects and Other Resources Between Your Work and Personal Accounts.

Previously, I had to switch users if I wanted to check something on my personal account. Now, I can simply open my work Xcode projects from my personal account, eliminating the need to constantly switch between work and personal accounts. The only time I need to log in to my work account is when I have to submit to TestFlight, as my keys and certificates for work are intentionally stored separately on my work account.

You might be wondering if Xcode would conflict when switching from one user to another. During my tests, I didn’t encounter any issues with Xcode while transitioning between accounts. As long as you close Xcode on your personal user account before opening the same project on your work user account, there should be no reason for conflicts.