Apple HIG: System Experiences

Apple HIG: System Experiences

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Key Principles

General

1. Glanceable, immediate value. System experiences bring your app's most important content to surfaces the user sees without launching your app. Design for seconds of attention.

2. Respect platform context. A Lock Screen widget has different constraints than a Home Screen widget. A complication is far smaller than a top shelf item.

Widgets

1. Show relevant information, not everything. Display the most useful subset, updated appropriately.

2. Support multiple sizes with distinct layouts. Each size should be a thoughtful design, not a scaled version of another.

3. Deep-link on tap. Take users to the relevant content, not the app's root screen.

Live Activities

1. Track events with a clear start and end. Deliveries, scores, timers, rides. Design for both Dynamic Island and Lock Screen.

2. Stay updated and timely. Stale data undermines trust. End promptly when the event concludes.

Notifications

1. Respect user attention. Only send notifications for information users genuinely care about. No promotional or low-value notifications.

2. Actionable and self-contained. Include enough context to understand and act without opening the app. Support notification actions. Use threading and grouping.

Complications

1. Focused data on the watch face. Design for the smallest useful representation. Support multiple families. Budget updates wisely.

Home Screen Quick Actions

1. 3-4 most common tasks. Short titles, optional subtitles, relevant SF Symbol icons.

Top Shelf

1. tvOS showcase. Feature content that entices: new episodes, featured items, recent content.

App Clips

1. Instant, focused functionality within a strict size budget. Load quickly without App Store download. Only what's needed for the immediate task, then offer full app install.

App Shortcuts

1. Surface key actions to Siri and Spotlight. Define shortcuts for frequent tasks. Use natural, conversational trigger phrases.

Reference Index

Output Format

1. System experience recommendation -- which surface best fits the use case.
2. Content strategy -- what to display, priority, what to omit.
3. Update frequency -- refresh rate including system budget constraints.
4. Size/​family variants -- which to support and how layout adapts.
5. Deep link behavior -- where tapping takes the user.

Questions to Ask

1. What information needs to surface outside the app?
2. Which platform?
3. How frequently does the data update?
4. What is the primary glanceable need?

Related Skills

• hig-components-status -- Progress indicators in widgets or Live Activities
• hig-inputs -- Interaction patterns for system experiences (Digital Crown for complications)
• hig-technologies -- Siri for App Shortcuts, HealthKit for complications, NFC for App Clips

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When to Use

This skill is applicable to execute the workflow or actions described in the overview.