Apple Design Navigation

Apple Navigation and Search

Apply the skill

Map destinations and content hierarchy before selecting a container. Distinguish a top-level destination from a command, a local filter, and a detail view. Select the reference for the proposed container and inspect the target platform section.

Track selection, per-destination navigation state, search scope, and the return path. Define how the structure adapts when a window narrows or a sidebar disappears. Preserve context during these transitions rather than returning people to the root.

In a review, trace representative tasks and flag ambiguous location, inaccessible destinations, inconsistent Back behavior, and disappearing navigation. For current iPad tabs, iOS search placement, and toolbar groupings, consult the live source before relying on older layout conventions.

Topic references

Select the topic that matches the design decision; do not load this entire list by default.

• [Tab bars](references/tab-bars.md)
• [Sidebars](references/sidebars.md)
• [Split views](references/split-views.md)
• [Toolbars](references/toolbars.md)
• [Search fields](references/search-fields.md)
• [Searching](references/searching.md)
• [Tab views](references/tab-views.md)
• [Page controls](references/page-controls.md)
• [Path controls](references/path-controls.md)
• [Column views](references/column-views.md)
• [Outline views](references/outline-views.md)

Source use

These references are original operational summaries of Apple’s public HIG, checked on 2026-09-08. They are guidance for design decisions, not a reproduced manual or a guarantee of App Store acceptance.

Read only the topic references relevant to the current task. Each links to the full official page. Consult that page for exact specifications, platform exceptions, assets, and version-sensitive behavior; use current official developer documentation for APIs and availability. If live documentation is unavailable, state the snapshot date and identify assumptions instead of inventing current requirements.

The user’s product goals, selected framework, and authorized scope remain controlling. Distinguish a source recommendation from a hard platform requirement and from your own proposed implementation.

Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

• Author: CarlosZiegler
• Source: CarlosZiegler/apple-hig-skills
• License: MIT

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.