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/playing-haptics. 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.

Playing haptics

In an iPadOS, macOS, tvOS, or visionOS app or game, game controllers can provide haptic feedback (for developer guidance, see Playing Haptics on Game Controllers).
Apple Pencil Pro and some trackpads can provide haptic feedback when connected to certain iPad models. (For details on Apple Pencil features and compatibility, see Apple Pencil.)

Best practices

Use system-provided haptic patterns according to their documented meanings.

Use haptics consistently throughout your app or game.

Prefer using haptics to complement other feedback in your app or game.

Avoid overusing haptics.

In most apps, prefer playing short haptics that complement discrete events.

Make haptics optional.

Be aware that playing haptics might impact other user experiences.

Custom haptics

Transient events are brief and compact, often feeling like taps or impulses. The experience of tapping the Flashlight button on the Home Screen is an example of a transient event.
Continuous events feel like sustained vibrations, such as the experience of the lasers effect in a message.

Platform considerations

iOS

Use standard UI components — like toggles, sliders, and pickers — that play Apple-designed system haptics by default.
When it makes sense, use a feedback generator to play one of several predefined haptic patterns in the categories of notification, impact, and selection (for developer guidance, see UIFeedbackGenerator).

Notification

Success.

Warning.

Error.

Impact

Light.

Medium.

Heavy.

Rigid.

Soft.

Notification
Up
Down
Success
Failure
Retry
Start
Stop
Click

Notification.

Up.

Down.

Success.

Failure.

Retry.

Start.

Stop.

Click.

Playing haptics

Playing haptics

Best practices

Custom haptics

Platform considerations

iOS

Notification

Impact

Selection

macOS

watchOS

Resources

Developer documentation

Videos

Change log

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