# Argent vs. Codex iOS and Android plugins

You added OpenAI's Build iOS Apps and Test Android Apps plugins to Codex. It now runs and debugs your app on the iOS simulator and taps through it on an Android emulator. Then a screen comes back empty, and nobody knows if the request even succeeded.

Argent runs inside Codex too, with one set of tools for iOS and Android. It also reads your app's network requests on iOS, drives real phones and saves tests.

Based on OpenAI's Codex documentation, the openai/plugins repository and Argent's documentation, checked October 20, 2026.

## What OpenAI's plugins already do well

If you work in Codex, both plugins install from its plugin list at no cost, and a few of their skills have no Argent equivalent.

### SwiftUI craft, not only testing

Build iOS Apps has skills for SwiftUI patterns, view refactoring, Liquid Glass adoption and App Intents. They help Codex write the app, not just check it.

### Live previews inside Codex

Edit a view in a Swift package and the preview hot-reloads in a simulator mirrored in Codex's in-app browser.

### Nothing else to install

Both plugins come from Codex's own plugin list. For basic simulator and emulator checks on a native app, that can be a better fit than adding another tool.

## One toolkit or two plugins: Argent and Codex compared

OpenAI splits mobile work into two plugins: Build iOS Apps and Test Android Apps. Where they differ, the right column says which plugin does what.

| Feature | Argent | Codex iOS and Android plugins |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Coding agents | Codex, Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code, Gemini CLI and any agent that runs shell commands | Codex CLI and the ChatGPT desktop app. The IDE extension does not support plugins |
| Platforms | iOS, Android, Apple TV, Android TV, Fire TV, Electron and Chromium apps | iOS (Build iOS Apps) and Android (Test Android Apps) |
| Devices | iOS simulators, physical iPhones over USB, Android emulators and phones | The iOS Simulator and Android emulators. No physical iPhones |
| Driving the app | The same tools on iOS and Android: taps, swipes, pinches, typing and hardware buttons, aimed from the accessibility tree, with screenshots on demand | iOS: taps, typing and swipes through XcodeBuildMCP. Android: adb shell commands for taps, swipes, text and the UI tree |
| SwiftUI previews | Not included | Hot-reloads previews from Swift packages in a simulator mirrored in the Codex in-app browser |
| Debugging | The native view tree on the iOS simulator. No breakpoint debugger | iOS: simulator logs and LLDB breakpoints. Android: logcat |
| Network requests | Request URLs and status codes of your app on the iOS simulator, with no proxy or certificate. Not in Flutter apps yet | Not included in either plugin |
| Profiling | Xcode Instruments on iOS, read for the agent as a list of problems with suggested fixes. Perfetto on Android, with the UI freezes it found | iOS: ETTrace profiles and memgraph leak checks. Android: Simpleperf, Perfetto, frame stats and heap dumps |
| Repeatable tests | Recorded YAML flows with optional screenshot checks, replayed by the agent or in CI | Runs your existing XCTest tests on iOS. No recorded flows |

Sources: learn.chatgpt.com Codex use cases, the openai/plugins repository (build-ios-apps and test-android-apps), docs.swmansion.com/argent. Checked October 20, 2026.

## Built for AI agents

> My favourite thing is developing from my phone using Argent — I ask it to create a video after changes, view it from my phone, and keep iterating ;-)

— [Ivan Starkov](https://x.com/icelabaratory/status/2066619990195720265)

### Built by Software Mansion

We are Software Mansion: we help our clients build software across mobile, web, and beyond, from native iOS and Android to cross-platform apps, open-source projects, and developer tools.

[Read the blog](/blog/)

## What Argent adds to a Codex session

### One fix, checked on both phones

Codex's two plugins work differently on iOS and Android. Argent gives the agent the same tools on the iOS simulator and the Android emulator, so checking one fix stays one conversation.

### Is it the screen or the server?

An empty list can be a layout bug or a failed request. On the iOS simulator, Argent shows Codex each request's status code, so it checks the server before rewriting views.

### It only happens on a real phone

Build iOS Apps stops at the simulator. Argent also drives a physical iPhone over USB and Android phones over adb.

### A path that works, saved as a test

Ask Codex to record a flow that works, and Argent saves it as a test that Codex and your CI can rerun after every change.

## Codex mobile testing, answered

### Does Argent work with Codex?

Yes. Run `npx @swmansion/argent@latest init` and it detects your editors and registers Argent's MCP server and skills; Codex CLI is one of the supported agents.

### Should I keep the Codex plugins installed next to Argent?

Keep Build iOS Apps if you use its SwiftUI skills, live previews or LLDB breakpoints. Its tapping and screenshot tools overlap with Argent's, so tell Codex which one to use for testing. Test Android Apps covers the same ground as Argent on Android, so most people won't need both.

### What is the difference between Build iOS Apps and Test Android Apps?

They are separate OpenAI plugins. Build iOS Apps covers SwiftUI work and runs, debugs and profiles apps on the iOS Simulator through XcodeBuildMCP. Test Android Apps has two skills: one drives an Android emulator with adb, the other profiles the app. Argent covers both platforms with one set of tools.

### Can the Codex plugins test on a real phone?

Build iOS Apps works with the iOS Simulator only; its device tools are not enabled. Test Android Apps is written for emulators. Argent drives physical iPhones over USB, with a subset of its simulator tools, and Android phones connected over adb.

### Do the Codex plugins work with React Native?

They can build and tap through any app, but they cannot look inside the JavaScript side. Argent reads the component tree, console logs and runs code in the app, on iOS and Android.

### Why don't I see the plugins in the Codex IDE extension?

The IDE extension does not support plugins. Build iOS Apps and Test Android Apps run in Codex CLI and the ChatGPT desktop app. Argent is an MCP server, so it also works in VS Code, Cursor and other editors.

### How much does each one cost?

Both plugins are open source (MIT) and install from Codex's plugin list at no extra cost. Argent is free to use. If you want simulators off your laptop, Argent Cloud rents them by the Runner: $299 a month, six iOS simulators in parallel.

## Let Argent test the app.

Argent tests your app on iOS and Android with one set of tools, in Codex or any other agent. It also drives real phones, reads network requests and saves tests. Argent Cloud adds hosted iOS simulators.

- [Get started](/)
- [Read the docs](https://docs.swmansion.com/argent/docs/fundamentals/getting-started)

Features checked October 20, 2026, from learn.chatgpt.com, the openai/plugins repository, argent.swmansion.com and docs.swmansion.com/argent. Codex and ChatGPT are trademarks of OpenAI. React Native, Swift, SwiftUI, Expo, Android, and Flutter are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners. Use of these names does not imply endorsement.