How to Adjust Apple Liquid Glass in iOS 26

Two months ago, Apple released iOS 26 for the iPhone. The new operating system includes several productivity And other improvementsbut the main feature is a new design language called liquid glass. The flat, minimalist look of iOS that lasted for more than a decade is gone, replaced by a seamless interface of toolbars and buttons that mimic the way light bends and distorts as it passes through glass.

Those who like the new look of iOS often praise Liquid Glass as refreshing and unique, saying it gives the iPhone’s software a fluid feel that other touch interfaces lack. Others argue that Liquid Glass’s transparent elements make the device harder to use, because the content behind iOS 26’s buttons and toolbars often obscures the symbols or text that label interface elements.

If you belong to the latter group, there is good news. Apple is offering more and more options to tone down the more controversial aspects of Liquid Glass’s design. Here they are:

Option #1: Activate Tint

This week, Apple released its first major update for iOS 26: iOS 26.1. This the update fixed many bugs while adding new features; it expanded Apple Intelligence and AirPods Live Translation features to new countries, added new swipe controls to the Music app, and overhauled the alarm clock interface so you don’t accidentally hit “snooze” and miss your meeting.

But as Fast business previously reported, The best new feature in iOS 26.1 is a toggle that allows users to tone down the design of Liquid Glass. It does this by allowing users to choose between two different Liquid Glass interfaces.

The “Clear” interface is liquid glass by default, with maximum transparency of interface elements.

The “Tinted” interface option reduces this transparency by default to give Liquid Glass elements a more frosty appearance. This can greatly improve the readability of button and toolbar labels by increasing their contrast.

Enabling Liquid Glass tint is simple, provided you have iOS 26.1 installed on your iPhone:

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Tap Display & Brightness.
3. Tap Liquid Glass.
4. Tap on the “Tinted” option.

As you can see in the screenshots above, the “tinted” Liquid Glass option brings a frosted look (right) to the default transparency (left).

Option #2: Increase Contrast

If you’re still using iOS 26.0 or just want to further eliminate the default appearance of Liquid Glass on your iPhone running iOS 26.1, there are three other ways you can dim Liquid Glass.

The first is to enable the “Increase Contrast” accessibility option on your iPhone. This feature is designed for users with vision problems, but anyone can enable it, and many have found that it makes Liquid Glass more palatable.

As Apple notes, enabling this setting will “increase the color contrast between the app’s foreground and background colors.” Here’s how to activate it:

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Tap Accessibility.
3. Tap Display & Text Size.
4. Toggle the “Increase Contrast” switch to ON (green).

As you can see in the screenshots above, enabling the “Increase Contrast” option (right) adds a slight outline around the interface borders and adds gray smoke to transparent elements, making text and buttons easier to see than they are in the default Liquid Glass design (left).

advertisement

Option #3: Reduce Transparency

A third way to dim Liquid Glass is to enable another accessibility option on your iPhone called “Reduce Transparency.”

This option dims liquid glass even more than the “Increase Contrast” option, significantly reducing its transparency. As Apple notes, this option helps “improve contrast by reducing transparency and blurring on certain backgrounds to increase readability.”

To enable the setting:

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Tap Accessibility.
3. Tap Display & Text Size.
4. Toggle the “Reduce Transparency” switch to ON (green).

As you can see in the screenshot above, enabling the “Reduce Transparency” option (right) virtually prevents any background content from bleeding through the buttons and toolbar items.

Option #4: Outline Buttons for Easier Visibility

One final way to mitigate Liquid Glass is to force iOS 26.1 to show borders around buttons and other UI elements. This is done via the “Show Borders” accessibility option.

This option forces outlines to appear around the “prominent UI,” according to Apple’s iOS 26.1 notes.

To enable the setting:

1. Open the Settings app.
2. Tap Accessibility.
3. Tap Display & Text Size.
4. Toggle the “Show Borders” switch to ON (green).

As you can see in the screenshot above, enabling this option displays a thin outline around buttons and other UI elements, helping them stand out more on your screen.

Liquid glass won’t disappear

The new look of iOS 26 isn’t temporary and shouldn’t be. While there have been some vocal detractors of the new design, a large majority of iPhone users seem to like the refreshed look. After Apple spent years developing this new design, there is no going back to the old one.

But Apple’s addition of a new “tint” option for Liquid Glass via a dedicated control in the iOS 26.1 Settings app shows that the company is listening to feedback from all of its users and isn’t shy about giving individuals more control over how Liquid Glass looks. So while you may not be able to disable Liquid Glass, you now have at least three ways to mitigate it.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Michael Grothaus is a novelist and author. His latest novel, Beautiful, bright peoplehas been translated into several languages.

FAST BUSINESS