Apple HIG: Menus and Buttons

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Key Principles

1. Menus should be contextual and predictable. Standard items in standard locations. Follow platform conventions for ordering and grouping.

2. Use standard button styles. System-defined styles communicate affordance and maintain visual consistency. Prefer them over custom designs.

3. Toolbars for frequent actions. Most commonly used commands in the toolbar. Rarely used actions belong in menus.

4. Menu bar is the primary command interface on macOS. Every command reachable from the menu bar. Toolbars and context menus supplement, not replace.

5. Context menus for secondary actions. Right-click or long-press, relevant to the item under the pointer. Never put a command only in a context menu.

6. Pop-up buttons for mutually exclusive choices. Select exactly one option from a set.

7. Pull-down buttons for action lists. No current selection; they offer a set of commands.

8. Action buttons consolidate related actions behind a single icon in toolbars or title bars.

9. Disclosure controls for progressive disclosure. Show or hide additional content.

10. Dock menus: short and focused on the most useful actions when the app is running.

Reference Index

Output Format

1. Component recommendation -- which menu or button type and why.
2. Visual hierarchy -- placement, sizing, grouping within the interface.
3. Platform-specific behavior across iOS, iPadOS, macOS, visionOS.
4. Keyboard shortcuts (macOS) -- standard and custom shortcuts for menu items and toolbar actions.

Questions to Ask

1. Which platforms?
2. Primary or secondary action?
3. How many actions need to be available?
4. macOS menu bar app?

Related Skills

• hig-components-search -- Search fields, page controls alongside toolbars and menus
• hig-components-controls -- Toggles, pickers, segmented controls complementing buttons
• hig-components-dialogs -- Alerts, sheets, popovers triggered by menu items or buttons
• hig-inputs -- Keyboard shortcuts and pointer interactions with menus and toolbars

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When to Use

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