Basic Enums in Swift
From the Swift cheat sheet · Enums · verified Jul 2026
Basic Enums
Simple and raw value enumerations
swift
// Simple enum
enum Direction {
case north, south, east, west
}
// Using enums
var heading = Direction.north
heading = .south // Type inference
// Switch with enum
switch heading {
case .north:
print("Going north")
case .south:
print("Going south")
case .east, .west:
print("Going east or west")
}
// Raw values
enum Planet: Int {
case mercury = 1, venus, earth, mars
}
let earth = Planet.earth
print(earth.rawValue) // 3💡 Enums define a common type for related values
⚡ CaseIterable provides automatic allCases array
📌 Raw values must be literals and unique
🟢 Enums can have computed properties and methods