How should I design an iPad app using Apple's HIG?

Apple's HIG recommends using sidebars instead of bottom tab bars on iPadOS, supporting split views for multitasking, and adding pointer interactions. Apple HIG Skills provides instant, AI-ready guidance on all iPadOS conventions.

What are Apple's guidelines for adding Apple Pay?

Apple's HIG specifies exact payment button placement, flow design, error states, and UX patterns required for App Store approval. Apple HIG Skills gives your AI agent access to the full Apple Pay design guidelines.

How do I make my Apple app accessible?

Apple's HIG requires support for VoiceOver, Dynamic Type, sufficient color contrast ratios, and motor accessibility features like Switch Control. Apple HIG Skills covers all accessibility foundations and requirements.

How do I design for visionOS and Apple Vision Pro?

Apple's HIG for visionOS covers ornaments, volumes, immersive spaces, eye tracking, and spatial interaction patterns. Apple HIG Skills includes dedicated visionOS platform guidance and spatial layout references.

What are Apple's dark mode design guidelines?

Apple's HIG specifies using system semantic colors, material backgrounds, elevated surfaces, and vibrancy for dark mode. Apps should test in both modes and avoid hard-coded color values. Apple HIG Skills covers the full dark mode specification.

How should I design notifications for iOS apps?

Apple's HIG covers notification grouping, Live Activities, action buttons, and respecting user attention. Apple HIG Skills provides guidelines for the full notification system including widgets and complications.

Source: Apple Inc. Canonical content at https://developer.apple.com/design/human-interface-guidelines/notifications. 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.

Notifications

Anatomy

A banner or view on a Lock Screen, Home Screen, Home View, or desktop
A badge on an app icon
An item in Notification Center

Best practices

Provide concise, informative notifications.

Avoid sending multiple notifications for the same thing, even if someone hasn’t responded.

Avoid sending a notification that tells people to perform specific tasks within your app.

Use an alert — not a notification — to display an error message.

Handle notifications gracefully when your app is in the foreground.

Avoid including sensitive, personal, or confidential information in a notification.

Content

Create a short title if it provides context for the notification content.

Write succinct, easy-to-read notification content.

Provide generically descriptive text to display when notification previews aren’t available.

Avoid including your app name or icon.

Consider providing a sound to supplement your notifications.

Notification actions

Provide beneficial actions that make sense in the context of your notification.

Avoid providing an action that merely opens your app.

Prefer nondestructive actions.

Provide a simple, recognizable interface icon for each notification action.

Badging

Use a badge only to show people how many unread notifications they have.

Make sure badging isn’t the only method you use to communicate essential information.

Keep badges up to date.

Avoid creating a custom image or component that mimics the appearance or behavior of a badge.

Platform considerations

watchOS

Short looks

Avoid using a short look as the only way to communicate important information.

Keep privacy in mind.

Long looks

Consider using a rich, custom long-look notification to let people get the information they need without launching your app.

At the minimum, provide a static interface; prefer providing a dynamic interface too.

Choose a background appearance for the sash.

Choose a background color for the content area.

Provide up to four custom actions below the content area.

Notifications

Notifications

Anatomy

Best practices

Content

Notification actions

Badging

Platform considerations

watchOS

Short looks

Long looks

Double tap

Resources

Developer documentation

Videos

Change log

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