ios-gestures-and-haptics
iOS gestures & haptics — system gestures, feedback generators, and Core Haptics
Source: Apple HIG Gestures + Playing haptics, developer.apple.com Core Haptics / UIFeedbackGenerator / SwiftUI gesture + .sensoryFeedback docs, and WWDC 2026 (What's new in SwiftUI, Build powerful drag and drop in SwiftUI, session 271) + the WWDC26 SwiftUI guide, cross-checked across two research passes (June 2026). Currency: iOS 26 = shipping baseline; iOS 27 (WWDC 2026) = current cycle — iOS 27 broadens drag-to-reorder and swipe actions to any container (§3); haptics are unchanged from iOS 17. Apple says: honor standard gestures, reserve haptics for meaningful moments, and always pair a haptic with a visible change.
1. Standard system gestures — learn them, don't fight them
People expect these to mean the same thing in every app. Never repurpose or block them — overriding the back-swipe or pull-to-refresh is the fastest way to feel broken.
| Gesture | Standard meaning |
|---|---|
| Tap | Activate a control / select an item |
| Double-tap | Zoom in & center (or zoom out if zoomed) |
| Long-press (touch & hold) | Reveal contextual actions / edit mode / preview |
| Swipe (1 finger) | Scroll; reveal a row's delete/actions; dismiss |
| Edge-swipe from left | Back — pop the navigation stack |
| Pan / drag | Move an element or reorder (iOS 27: .reorderable() brings drag-to-reorder to any container — see §3) |
| Pinch | Zoom (out = in, in = out) |
| Rotate (two-finger) | Rotate content |
| Flick | Fast scroll / pan |
| Two/multi-finger | System & accessibility (scroll, select, VoiceOver) — leave alone |