liquid-glass

Liquid Glass

iOS 26 introduces Liquid Glass as the primary surface material. Apply it to key UI surfaces.

WHERE TO APPLY .glassEffect():

• List row backgrounds and card surfaces
• Floating action buttons and toolbar items
• Empty state containers (ContentUnavailableView wrappers)
• Tab bars and bottom toolbars (custom ones)
• Segmented controls and chip groups
• Modal sheet headers

WHERE NOT TO APPLY:

• Text editing surfaces (TextEditor, TextField containers) — keep opaque for readability
• Full-screen backgrounds — use solid AppTheme.Colors.background
• Every single element — use glass on 2-4 key surfaces per screen maximum
• Deeply nested views — glass on parent is enough

MODIFIER ORDER (CRITICAL):

// CORRECT — glass AFTER layout modifiers
Text("Label")
    .font(AppTheme.Fonts.headline)
    .padding()
    .glassEffect(.regular, in: .rect(cornerRadius: 12))

// WRONG — glass before padding
Text("Label")
    .glassEffect()
    .padding()

INTERACTIVITY:

• .glassEffect(.regular.interactive()) ONLY on tappable elements (Button, NavigationLink, tappable rows)
• .glassEffect(.regular) on static/display-only surfaces
• Never use .interactive() on labels, headers, or decorative elements

GROUPING:

• Wrap adjacent glass elements in GlassEffectContainer
• Match GlassEffectContainer(spacing:) to the actual layout spacing

GlassEffectContainer(spacing: 12) {
    HStack(spacing: 12) {
        ActionButton(icon: "pencil")
            .glassEffect(.regular.interactive(), in: .circle)
        ActionButton(icon: "trash")
            .glassEffect(.regular.interactive(), in: .circle)
    }
}

PROMINENCE:

• .regular — default for most surfaces
• .prominent — high-emphasis elements (selected states, primary actions)
• Use .prominent sparingly — one per screen section maximum

TINTING:

• Tint with accent color for branded surfaces: .glassEffect(.regular.tint(AppTheme.Colors.accent))
• Keep tint subtle — use the color directly, not at full opacity

LIST ROWS WITH GLASS:

List(items) { item in
    ItemRow(item: item)
        .listRowBackground(
            Rectangle()
                .glassEffect(.regular.interactive(), in: .rect(cornerRadius: 10))
                .padding(.horizontal, 4)
        )
}
.scrollContentBackground(.hidden)

BUTTON STYLES:

• Use .buttonStyle(.glass) for standard glass buttons
• Use .buttonStyle(.glassProminent) for primary/emphasized actions

Button("Save") { save() }
    .buttonStyle(.glassProminent)