# Right to left

Source: https://developer.apple.com/design/human-interface-guidelines/right-to-left
Skill: hig-foundations
Snapshot: 2025-02-02

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<!-- hig-doctor:attribution -->
> **Source**: Apple Inc. Canonical content at https://developer.apple.com/design/human-interface-guidelines/right-to-left.
> This file is a structured index of that content, snapshot 2025-02-02.
> Apple HIG text and imagery are © Apple Inc.; this repository provides organization and cross-referencing for AI agent consumption only.

# Right to left

## Text alignment

**Adjust text alignment to match the interface direction, if the system doesn’t do so automatically.**

**Align a paragraph based on its language, not on the current context.**

**Use a consistent alignment for all text items in a list.**

## Numbers and characters

**Don’t reverse the order of numerals in a specific number.**

**Reverse the order of numerals that show progress or a counting direction; never flip the numerals themselves.**

## Controls

**Flip controls that show progress from one value to another.**

**Flip controls that help people navigate or access items in a fixed order.**

**Preserve the direction of a control that refers to an actual direction or points to an onscreen area.**

**Visually balance adjacent Latin and RTL scripts when necessary.**

## Images

**Avoid flipping images like photographs, illustrations, and general artwork.**

**Reverse the positions of images when their order is meaningful.**

## Interface icons

**Flip interface icons that represent text or reading direction.**

**Consider creating a localized version of an interface icon that displays text.**

**Flip an interface icon that shows forward or backward motion.**

**Don’t flip logos or universal signs and marks.**

**In general, avoid flipping interface icons that depict real-world objects.**

**Before merely flipping a complex custom interface icon, consider its individual components and the overall visual balance.**

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For the complete guidance, including worked examples and illustrations, see the canonical page: https://developer.apple.com/design/human-interface-guidelines/right-to-left