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/panels. 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.

Panels

Best practices

Use a panel to give people quick access to important controls or information related to the content they’re working with.

Consider using a panel to present inspector functionality.

Prefer simple adjustment controls in a panel.

Write a brief title that describes the panel’s purpose.

Show and hide panels appropriately.

Avoid including panels in the Window menu’s documents list.

In general, avoid making a panel’s minimize button available.

Refer to panels by title in your interface and in help documentation.

HUD-style panels

Prefer standard panels.

In a media-oriented app that presents movies, photos, or slides
When a standard panel would obscure essential content
When you don’t need to include controls — with the exception of the disclosure triangle, most system-provided controls don’t match a HUD’s appearance.

Maintain one panel style when your app switches modes.

Use color sparingly in HUDs.

Keep HUDs small.

Panels

Panels

Best practices

HUD-style panels

Platform considerations

Resources

Developer documentation

Get HIG guidance in your AI

Panels

Panels

Best practices

HUD-style panels

Platform considerations

Resources

Related

Developer documentation

Get HIG guidance in your AI