Create Conversation - CometChat Docs

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 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

A UIKit-based iOS project.
CometChat UIKit for iOS v5 installed via CocoaPods or Swift Package Manager.
User authenticated with CometChat.login() before presenting this screen.
A UINavigationController embedded in your flow.
MessagesVC implemented to handle chat screens.

Components

Component	Role
`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

1. Presenting the Create Conversation Screen

Push CreateConversations to allow starting a chat.

import UIKit
import CometChatSDK

func showCreateConversation() {
    let createVC = CreateConversationVC()
    navigationController?.pushViewController(createVC, animated: true)
}

File reference:
HomeScreenViewController.swift Provides entry point to the create-conversation flow.

2. Setting Up the User Interface

Build the segmented control and page view controller.

override public func viewDidLoad() {
    super.viewDidLoad()
    buildUI()  // sets up segmentedControl, pageViewController, and searchController
    setupPageViewController()
    segmentedControl.addTarget(self, action: #selector(segmentChanged(_:)), for: .valueChanged)
    navigationItem.searchController = usersViewController.searchController
}

File reference:
CreateConversations.swift Initializes the UI elements and search integration. Toggle between user and group lists when the segment changes.

@objc public func segmentChanged(_ sender: UISegmentedControl) {
    let index = sender.selectedSegmentIndex
    let direction: UIPageViewController.NavigationDirection = index == 0 ? .reverse : .forward
    navigationItem.searchController = (index == 0)
        ? usersViewController.searchController
        : groupsViewController.searchController
    pageViewController.setViewControllers([pages[index]], direction: direction, animated: true)
}

File reference:
CreateConversations.swift Keeps the proper search bar and view in sync with the selected tab.

4. Handling Item Selection

Navigate to MessagesVC when a user or group is tapped.

// User tap
public lazy var usersViewController: CometChatUsers = {
    let vc = CometChatUsers()
    vc.set(onItemClick: { [weak self] user, _ in
        let chatVC = MessagesVC()
        chatVC.user = user
        self?.navigationController?.pushViewController(chatVC, animated: true)
    })
    vc.searchController.hidesNavigationBarDuringPresentation = false
    return vc
}()

// Group tap
public lazy var groupsViewController: CometChatGroups = {
    let vc = CometChatGroups()
    vc.set(onItemClick: { [weak self] group, _ in
        let chatVC = MessagesVC()
        chatVC.group = group
        self?.navigationController?.pushViewController(chatVC, animated: true)
    })
    vc.searchController.hidesNavigationBarDuringPresentation = false
    return vc
}()

File reference:
CreateConversations.swift Routes the user to the appropriate chat screen.

5. Managing Page View Transitions

Implement data source and delegate for smooth swiping.

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]
    }
}

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

File reference:
CreateConversations.swift Synchronizes the segmented control with page swipes.

Customization Options

Segment Styling: Use CometChatTheme to customize tint and font.
Labels: Localize or rebrand “USERS” / “GROUPS” labels.
Search: Adjust searchController.placeholder and styling.

Filtering & Edge Cases

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

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:)`

Full Sample App

Explore the complete create-conversation flow: GitHub → SampleApp

UIKit Source Code

Browse the source for CreateConversationVC: GitHub → CreateConversationVC.swift

​Overview

​Prerequisites

​Components

​Integration Steps

​1. Presenting the Create Conversation Screen

​2. Setting Up the User Interface

​3. Configuring Segmented Control Navigation

​4. Handling Item Selection

​5. Managing Page View Transitions

​Customization Options

​Filtering & Edge Cases

​Error Handling

​Feature Matrix