Apple Liquid Glass for SwiftUI

Comprehensive guide to implementing Liquid Glass design patterns introduced at WWDC 2025 for iOS 26+.

Minimum Deployment Target: iOS 26.0+ / macOS 26.0+ / watchOS 26.0+ / tvOS 26.0+ / visionOS 26.0+

1. Liquid Glass Overview

Liquid Glass is the defining visual language of iOS 26, introduced at WWDC 2025. It is a translucent material system that reflects, refracts, and dynamically responds to the content beneath it. Glass lives exclusively in the navigation layer -- the floating controls, toolbars, tab bars, and navigation bars that sit above your content.

Design Philosophy

• Content below, glass above. Your app's content (images, text, lists) is the foundation. Glass elements float on top as navigation controls.
• Real-time light bending (lensing). Glass refracts what is behind it, creating a sense of depth and physicality.
• Specular highlights. Simulated light reflections move across the glass surface in response to device motion and interaction.
• Adaptive shadows. Shadows beneath glass elements adapt to the background content and ambient lighting conditions.
• Interactive behaviors. Glass responds to touch with scaling, bouncing, shimmering, and illumination effects.