The “Liquid Glass” design language, introduced with iOS 26, represents a significant shift from the previous “flat” design aesthetic toward a style described as “digital realism”. This philosophy treats user interface elements as if they are made of a semi-transparent digital material that mimics the physical properties of glass.
Digital Realism and Materiality
The core concept of Liquid Glass is the simulation of a physical material within a digital space. Unlike previous iterations of iOS, this design does not rely on static graphics but rather on a dynamic material that interacts with its environment.
- Translucency and Light: The material is designed to allow light and color to pass through it, ensuring the focus remains on the content rather than the interface elements themselves.
- Multi-Layered Composition: App icons are no longer rendered as simple flat images. Instead, they are constructed as multi-layered glass compositions, which provides a sense of depth and tangibility.
- Real-Time Interaction: The interface utilizes the device’s sensors to determine its position in physical space. As a user tilts the iPhone or scrolls through content, the “glass” elements reflect light and create optical distortions in real-time, enhancing the illusion of depth.
Geometric Contrast and Rounding
Liquid Glass introduces a distinct approach to the geometry of UI elements, creating a deliberate visual contrast between the system’s navigation and its content.
- Heavy Rounding: Internal interface elements have moved away from rounded squares to fully rounded shapes. Navigation panels now resemble “capsules,” solitary buttons in the Control Center are perfectly round, and notifications appear as elongated “pills”.
- Visual Contrast: Despite the heavy rounding of system controls, app icons on the Home Screen retain their traditional rounded-square shape. This design choice creates a visual distinction between the static grid of the home screen and the fluid, “flowing” interface within the system.
Dynamic and Floating Interfaces
The design language prioritizes fluidity and context-aware controls over static navigation bars.
- Floating Menus: Navigation control panels are treated as separate functional layers that “float” above the content. Instead of fixed toolbars, menus dynamically adjust and transform based on user tasks.
- Disappearing Navigation: The interface is designed to be unobtrusive. Navigation elements often disappear when the user is consuming content and reappear only when interaction is required, such as the tab bar in Safari collapsing into a compact line during scrolling.
Customization and Readability Modes
Following user feedback regarding legibility, Apple refined the Liquid Glass design in iOS 26.1 to offer more flexibility in how the effect is rendered.
- Transparent Mode: This maintains the original “glassy-matte” look with background distortions and lighting effects,.
- Solid (Monotone) Mode: This option adds a light backing to interface elements to increase contrast and readability without losing the dynamic feel of the interface.
- Icon Customization: Users can apply a “Transparent” option to their Home Screen icons, giving them a specific glass-like appearance that matches the system aesthetics.
Integration Across Apps
The Liquid Glass aesthetic extends to core system applications, unifying the visual experience.
- Photos: Navigation elements in the Photos app utilize the Liquid Glass transparency and rounded corners, allowing the interface to fade into the background so photographs remain the center of attention.
- FaceTime: Contacts are presented as interactive cards with animated backgrounds, and control buttons are redesigned to fit the new fluid aesthetic.
- CarPlay: The design language has also been ported to CarPlay, bringing the same glass-like textures and visual depth to the vehicle’s display.