Thanks goes to Fredrik Olsson's article and the helpful commenters that shared their own tweaks to this quick and simple solution.

Simply select the app 'Target' and add the following text to a 'Run Script' within your 'Build Phases' tab.

# Auto Increment Version Script
buildNumber=$(/usr/libexec/PlistBuddy -c "Print CFBundleVersion" "${PROJECT_DIR}/${INFOPLIST_FILE}")
buildNumber=$(($buildNumber + 1))
/usr/libexec/PlistBuddy -c "Set :CFBundleVersion $buildNumber" "${PROJECT_DIR}/${INFOPLIST_FILE}"





After which, whenever you perform a Build operation, the "Build" number will automatically be incremented.





Optionally, if you have multiple 'Targets' and want to keep their 'Build' numbers in-sync, you can simply just modify the script to update both .plist files during a Build operation.

# Auto Increment Version Script
buildNumber=$(/usr/libexec/PlistBuddy -c "Print CFBundleVersion" "${PROJECT_DIR}/${INFOPLIST_FILE}")
buildNumber=$(($buildNumber + 1))
/usr/libexec/PlistBuddy -c "Set :CFBundleVersion $buildNumber" "${PROJECT_DIR}/ChooseBot/ChooseBot-Info.plist"
/usr/libexec/PlistBuddy -c "Set :CFBundleVersion $buildNumber" "${PROJECT_DIR}/ChooseBot/ChooseBotLite-Info.plist"

Make sure you then add 'Run Script' within both of your Target 'Build Phases' tab.


Whether you choose to display this 'Build' number in your app is up to you, but it helps track the app a little better.

“ The customer is always right “

Well, .. no, not really.

While developers do need to fully understand the customer’s expectation, the customer's don’t always realize the “right” way to execute it.  That’s the developer’s domain in designing the app properly.

Developing custom software for clients is much more than just writing code.

It requires a level of ownership and responsibility to execute a polished product with an accurate UX experience that doesn’t resemble a VB app from 1997.

Just because the client wants a text field in the middle of the screen, doesn’t mean it belongs there.

Developers who care about such design details usually cost a little more, but the work done is then also of a higher caliber.  Because human-to-human-to-machine translation is not trivial and requires patience.

And in the end, it’s more than just custom software.  It’s a relationship.