Liquid Glass in iOS 26 brings dramatic change to the look of the iPhone user interface, so it’s no surprise that some people hate it. If it’s just not for you, the option to turn off Liquid Glass was added in iOS 26.1. And it’s easy.
The same setting is available in macOS Tahoe 26.1 and iPadOS 26.1, so you can turn off Liquid Glass on all your devices. Here’s how:
Liquid Glass: beautiful but controversial
Image: Apple
Liquid Glass is a translucent and fluid new interface. Many elements of the UI go semi-transparent, while text remains readable. Clever effects make it seem like users are looking through glass at objects shown on the screen behind the Dock, Control Center and pop-up windows.
While Liquid Glass has plenty of fans, it’s a dramatic change, and one that enhances to the appearance of iOS 26 and macOS Tahoe without improving the functionality. And those without perfect vision might struggle with it. There’s less contrast between text in pop-up windows and the background.
For those who don’t like the look, or find the new system hard to use, it’s easy to turn off Liquid Glass. Here I explain how to do so in iOS 26.1, iPadOS 26.1 and macOS Tahoe 26.1.
How to turn off Liquid Glass
Screenshot: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
With the latest OS updates, Apple offer a simple switch to turn off Liquid Glass.
On your iPhone or iPad, open the Settings app, then scroll down so you can tap on Display & Brightness. Now tap on Liquid Glass.
That opens a screen that lets you choose from Clear or Tinted. Choose the second option to nerf Liquid Glass. As Apple says, “Clear is more transparent, revealing the content beneath. Tinted increases opacity and adds more contrast.”
Full disclosure: making this change won’t walk your iPhone back to the look of iOS 18. Backgrounds in pop-up windows are much less clear, but they aren’t completely opaque.
Screenshot: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac
On your Mac, the process to turn off Liquid Glass is nearly identical. Open System Settings, then click on Appearance. You’ll see the option to choose between Clear or Tinted.
If you dumped Liquid Glass just because you don’t like the look, consider revisiting this decision in a few months. It really is beautiful. It only takes a few seconds to toggle it back on — try it again later and see if you change your mind.
Other ways you can undo iOS 26
Liquid Glass isn’t the only controversial change in iOS 26 that you can walk back. Apple redesigned the Phone application for making calls. If you’re not a fan, read our guide on how to bring back the old version of the Phone app.
And the toolbar in the Safari web browser shrank. You can get a larger version by going to Settings > Apps > Safari. Then, in the Tabs section, switch from Compact to Bottom or Top.
Ed Hardy has been writing full-time about tech for 25 years, and using it for much longer than that. His intro to Apple was a Macintosh Classic II (which he still has), but now he uses a 13-inch iPad Pro as his primary computer. He’s written for NotebookReview, TabletPCReview, and Brighthand, as well as other sites.
