Create Conversation

Enable users to start new 1:1 or group chats

Enable users to start new 1:1 or group chats in your iOS app using CometChat’s UIKit for iOS by integrating the CreateConversationVC screen.

Overview

The CreateConversation component enables users to:

• Browse CometChat users and groups via native list components
• Search within users and groups
• Toggle between “Users” and “Groups” tabs using a segmented control
• Swipe between lists with a UIPageViewController
• Navigate to MessagesVC upon selecting a user or group

Prerequisites

Before implementing this feature, ensure you have:

• Completed Getting Started setup
• CometChat UIKit v5+ installed via CocoaPods or Swift Package Manager
• User authenticated with CometChatUIKit.login() before presenting this screen
• A UINavigationController embedded in your flow
• MessagesVC implemented to handle chat screens

Components

Component	Description
UISegmentedControl	Switches between “Users” and “Groups” tabs
UIPageViewController	Enables swipe navigation between list views
CometChatUsers	Displays the list of CometChat users
CometChatGroups	Displays the list of CometChat groups
MessagesVC	Chat interface, launched upon item selection
searchController	Provides search for both users and groups
CometChatTheme	Applies theming (colors, fonts) for UI consistency
CometChatTypography	Defines text styles for segment labels

Integration Steps

Step 1: Present the Create Conversation Screen

Push CreateConversations to allow starting a chat:

import UIKit
import CometChatSDK

class HomeViewController: UIViewController {
    
    func showCreateConversation() {
        // Initialize the create conversation view controller
        let createVC = CreateConversationVC()
        
        // Push onto navigation stack
        navigationController?.pushViewController(createVC, animated: true)
    }
}

This provides the entry point to the create-conversation flow.

File reference: HomeScreenViewController.swift

Step 2: Set Up the User Interface

Build the segmented control and page view controller:

import UIKit
import CometChatUIKitSwift

class CreateConversationVC: UIViewController {
    
    private var segmentedControl: UISegmentedControl!
    private var pageViewController: UIPageViewController!
    private var usersViewController: CometChatUsers!
    private var groupsViewController: CometChatGroups!
    
    override public func viewDidLoad() {
        super.viewDidLoad()
        
        // Set up segmented control, page view controller, and search
        buildUI()
        setupPageViewController()
        
        // Add target for segment changes
        segmentedControl.addTarget(
            self,
            action: #selector(segmentChanged(_:)),
            for: .valueChanged
        )
        
        // Set initial search controller
        navigationItem.searchController = usersViewController.searchController
    }
    
    private func buildUI() {
        // Configure segmented control and page view
    }
    
    private func setupPageViewController() {
        // Initialize page view controller with users and groups
    }
}

This initializes the UI elements and search integration.

File reference: CreateConversations.swift

Step 3: Configure Segmented Control Navigation

Toggle between user and group lists when the segment changes:

@objc public func segmentChanged(_ sender: UISegmentedControl) {
    let index = sender.selectedSegmentIndex
    
    // Determine navigation direction
    let direction: UIPageViewController.NavigationDirection = index == 0 ? .reverse : .forward
    
    // Update search controller based on selected tab
    navigationItem.searchController = (index == 0)
        ? usersViewController.searchController
        : groupsViewController.searchController
    
    // Navigate to the selected page
    pageViewController.setViewControllers(
        [pages[index]],
        direction: direction,
        animated: true
    )
}

This keeps the proper search bar and view in sync with the selected tab.

File reference: CreateConversations.swift

Step 4: Handle Item Selection

Navigate to MessagesVC when a user or group is tapped:

// Users list with tap handler
public lazy var usersViewController: CometChatUsers = {
    let vc = CometChatUsers()
    
    // Handle user selection
    vc.set(onItemClick: { [weak self] user, _ in
        let chatVC = MessagesVC()
        chatVC.user = user
        self?.navigationController?.pushViewController(chatVC, animated: true)
    })
    
    // Keep navigation bar visible during search
    vc.searchController.hidesNavigationBarDuringPresentation = false
    
    return vc
}()

// Groups list with tap handler
public lazy var groupsViewController: CometChatGroups = {
    let vc = CometChatGroups()
    
    // Handle group selection
    vc.set(onItemClick: { [weak self] group, _ in
        let chatVC = MessagesVC()
        chatVC.group = group
        self?.navigationController?.pushViewController(chatVC, animated: true)
    })
    
    // Keep navigation bar visible during search
    vc.searchController.hidesNavigationBarDuringPresentation = false
    
    return vc
}()

This routes the user to the appropriate chat screen.

File reference: CreateConversations.swift

Step 5: Manage Page View Transitions

Implement data source and delegate for smooth swiping:

// MARK: - UIPageViewControllerDataSource
extension CreateConversationVC: UIPageViewControllerDataSource {
    
    public func pageViewController(
        _ pvc: UIPageViewController,
        viewControllerBefore vc: UIViewController
    ) -> UIViewController? {
        guard let idx = pages.firstIndex(of: vc), idx > 0 else { return nil }
        return pages[idx - 1]
    }
    
    public func pageViewController(
        _ pvc: UIPageViewController,
        viewControllerAfter vc: UIViewController
    ) -> UIViewController? {
        guard let idx = pages.firstIndex(of: vc), idx < pages.count - 1 else { return nil }
        return pages[idx + 1]
    }
}

// MARK: - UIPageViewControllerDelegate
extension CreateConversationVC: UIPageViewControllerDelegate {
    
    public func pageViewController(
        _ pvc: UIPageViewController,
        didFinishAnimating finished: Bool,
        previousViewControllers: [UIViewController],
        transitionCompleted completed: Bool
    ) {
        // Sync segmented control with current page
        if completed,
           let current = pvc.viewControllers?.first,
           let idx = pages.firstIndex(of: current) {
            segmentedControl.selectedSegmentIndex = idx
        }
    }
}

This synchronizes the segmented control with page swipes.

File reference: CreateConversations.swift

Customization Options

Segment Styling

Use CometChatTheme to customize tint and font:

segmentedControl.selectedSegmentTintColor = CometChatTheme.palette.primary
segmentedControl.setTitleTextAttributes([
    .font: CometChatTypography.body,
    .foregroundColor: UIColor.white
], for: .selected)

Labels

Localize or rebrand “USERS” / “GROUPS” labels:

segmentedControl.setTitle("Contacts", forSegmentAt: 0)
segmentedControl.setTitle("Teams", forSegmentAt: 1)

Search

Adjust searchController.placeholder and styling:

usersViewController.searchController.searchBar.placeholder = "Search contacts..."
groupsViewController.searchController.searchBar.placeholder = "Search teams..."

Edge Cases

Scenario	Handling
Live search	Built-in in CometChatUsers and CometChatGroups
Empty states	Components display default “no results” views
Segment disabled	Hide tabs if only one list is relevant

Error Handling

Error Type	Solution
Load errors	Use setErrorView() on list components
Navigation failures	Present an alert if push fails
Blocked users	Intercept in onItemClick to prevent navigation

Feature Matrix

Feature	Implementation
Show create screen	showCreateConversation()
Tabbed lists	UISegmentedControl + UIPageViewController
Display users	CometChatUsers()
Display groups	CometChatGroups()
Search functionality	searchController
Navigate to chat	MessagesVC(user:) / MessagesVC(group:)

Related Components

• Users - Display user list
• Groups - Display group list
• Conversations - Display conversation list

Sample App

Explore the complete create-conversation flow

UIKit Source

Browse the source for CreateConversationVC