Eureka vs NVActivityIndicatorView
Which should you use? A side-by-side look at what each one does, who it suits, what it costs, how hard it is to set up, and where each falls short.
Open source · MIT
A Swift library for building iOS settings-style forms with less boilerplate.
Open source · MIT
A Swift library of 32 ready-made loading spinner animations for iOS apps.
The short answer
Choose Eureka if you need…
- iOS developers building form-heavy screens in Swift
- Teams migrating an XLForm-based Objective-C or Swift app to Swift
- Developers who want built-in row types for text, dates, phone numbers and similar inputs
- Apps that need row validation and show/hide logic for fields
Choose NVActivityIndicatorView if you need…
- iOS developers who want a ready-made loading indicator with many styles
- Developers using Swift in UIKit-based apps
- Teams that already use CocoaPods, Carthage, or Swift Package Manager
Side-by-side
| Eureka | NVActivityIndicatorView | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Library | Library |
| Price | Free and open source | Free and open source |
| Licence | MIT | MIT |
| GitHub stars | 11.8k | 10.7k |
| Setup difficulty | Intermediate | Beginner |
| How you get it | Install with a package manager | Install with a package manager |
| Main language | Swift | Swift |
| Last code update | 2 years ago | 8 months ago |
What each one is
Eureka
Eureka is a Swift library for iOS that helps developers build forms, such as settings or data-entry screens, on top of UITableView. Instead of wiring up each table cell by hand, you describe sections and rows in code using short operators or a result-builder syntax. It is a Swift re-creation of the older XLForm library.
NVActivityIndicatorView
NVActivityIndicatorView is an open-source Swift library that provides a set of loading animations, such as pulsing balls, spinning squares and a pacman-style loader, that iOS developers can drop into an app while content is loading. You can add it in Interface Builder by changing a view's class, or create it in code and choose one of the 32 animation types. It is aimed at developers who want attractive loading indicators without building them from scratch.
Best for
Eureka
- iOS developers building form-heavy screens in Swift
- Teams migrating an XLForm-based Objective-C or Swift app to Swift
- Developers who want built-in row types for text, dates, phone numbers and similar inputs
- Apps that need row validation and show/hide logic for fields
NVActivityIndicatorView
- iOS developers who want a ready-made loading indicator with many styles
- Developers using Swift in UIKit-based apps
- Teams that already use CocoaPods, Carthage, or Swift Package Manager
Strengths
Eureka
- Concise syntax for defining sections and rows, including operators and result builders
- Includes a catalog of built-in row types and supports custom rows
- Documented with an example project and a blog post, under the MIT license
NVActivityIndicatorView
- Offers 32 named animation types in one library
- Supports CocoaPods, Carthage, and Swift Package Manager installation
- Released under the permissive MIT license
Not ideal for
Eureka
- Developers working on SwiftUI-only projects, since the README describes a UITableView-based approach
- Non-iOS platforms, since the README lists iOS as the platform
- Teams needing a library with recent maintenance, since the last push shown is 2024-09-12 and the latest release is 5.5.0
NVActivityIndicatorView
- Developers building with SwiftUI, since the README points to a separate project, LoaderUI, for SwiftUI support
- Projects that need a loading indicator for Android or the web, since this is iOS-only
- Teams that want a fully custom animation and do not need a prebuilt set
Trade-offs
Eureka
- Requires Xcode 11+ and Swift 5.0+, and the README shows no newer requirements
- Metadata shows no binary release, so you install it from source or a package manager
- The README is truncated, so details on some features and row types are not confirmed here
NVActivityIndicatorView
- The README is focused on iOS UIKit and points to a separate project for SwiftUI
- The README does not state a minimum iOS version or Swift version
- Latest release 5.2.0 has no binaries, and the README notes that 5.0.0 included breaking changes
Getting started
Eureka
Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/xmartlabs/EurekaNVActivityIndicatorView
CocoaPods: add to Podfile
pod 'NVActivityIndicatorView'Carthage: add to Cartfile
github "ninjaprox/NVActivityIndicatorView"Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Eureka and NVActivityIndicatorView?
Eureka: A Swift library for building iOS settings-style forms with less boilerplate. NVActivityIndicatorView: A Swift library of 32 ready-made loading spinner animations for iOS apps. Eureka suits ios developers building form-heavy screens in swift, while NVActivityIndicatorView suits ios developers who want a ready-made loading indicator with many styles.
Are Eureka and NVActivityIndicatorView free?
Eureka: Free and open source. NVActivityIndicatorView: Free and open source.
Which is easier to set up, Eureka or NVActivityIndicatorView?
NVActivityIndicatorView is easier to get started with (rated beginner); Eureka is rated intermediate and usually needs more setup.
Is Eureka or NVActivityIndicatorView more popular?
Eureka has more GitHub stars (11.8k) than NVActivityIndicatorView (10.7k). Popularity isn't the same as fit — check which one matches your use case above.
What are other alternatives to Eureka and NVActivityIndicatorView?
Other options people compare them with include SwifterSwift, SVProgressHUD, FSCalendar, SwiftyJSON, SkeletonView.
Keep comparing
Built from our catalogue entries for both products: open-source details come from each project's README (AI-assisted, refreshed weekly) and GitHub data; AI-tool details are editorial. Spotted something wrong? Let us know from either product's page.