How to disable liquid glass in iOS 26?

jentrepreneur wrote:

I just tried to submit feedback re Liquid Glass, but the terms button is not working. What the H E double hockey sticks is going on??

Here is what I was trying to say:

I am 48 yrs old, and I just got prescribed glasses and contacts for the first time. My nearsightedness is the one thing I can rely on without glasses. Liquid Glass has ruined that for me. Everything is blurry as if I didn't have my glasses on. Please release an OS update that allows the user to make Liquid Glass optional. It is truly mean to make anyone older than 45 feel like they can’t see when their eye sight is already becoming an issue. In short, Liquid Glass is a completely ageist / disability UNfriendly feature that completely ignores the needs or comfort of what I can only assume is the majority of users. Especially parents; we pay for all the devices in our household. Why would you force a feature that is only appropriate for a 20-yr old? It is literally giving me a headache, and it’s been on for less than 24 hours.

Just to be clear, this is a user to user only forum, which Apple neither participates nor reads for user feedback. I don't know what link you tried to use to send feedback, but this link surely works --> Feedback - iPhone - Apple

I'm in my 70s. I'm nearsighted and astigmatic and I wear glasses. Liquid Glass has done NOTHING to cause me issues. If it is causing you issues now that you've gotten glasses, I'd recommend you visit your ophthalmologist, as it would seem your prescription may not be good.

Assuming anyone over 45 is having issues with Liquid Glass is a bad assumption as is the assumption that the vast majority of users aren't happy with Liquid Glass. I don't think you can speak for the millions upon millions upon millions of people who are now on iOS 26.

Since you responded to the opening post in this thread, perhaps you didn't read any of the other posts in the thread? I wrote this for people who may be less than thrilled with Liquid Glass --> Liquid Glass - Love It Or Hate It - It's … - Apple Community

Read it all the way through and try the various setting changes I spoke about and chances are you can find a way to manage to live.

I was able to get rid of the glass on the homepage time by going to settings>wallpaper> then select customize > the tap on the clock and it gives an option for glass or solid - hope this helps others - I literally just upgraded without knowing about this new glass interface

Mee369 wrote:

Here is the simplest answer… You Can’t. But if you have IOS 18 backup(s), you can open Time Machine on Mac and select an iOS 18 backup, with iPhone in recovery mode.

That will not restore iOS 18 to the phone. Backups do not contain the system software.

Lawrence Finch wrote:

lobsterghost1 wrote:

Did you check your facts?

Facts? AI bots never check facts. They just make them up.

I'm not sure the post was written well enough to have been AI generated. But we both know it was 100% wrong!

anandamanav wrote:

It would be a great if Apple/iOS could provide a way to opt-out from it. Because this liquid glass design is not nice, looks subpar compare to my old iPhone 14 pro. I see iPhone 17 is going backwards in its look & feel.

That's just not going to happen. Liquid Glass is woven into iOS 26 and there will never be an opt-out of what is hard coded into the OS. Read this --> Liquid Glass - Love It Or Hate It - It's … - Apple Community

mcringor wrote:

Please remove liquid glass. Its too bubbly, to much round corners. The straight forward browser navigation and access is gone. Its horrible and looks like theme ios of windows 7 10 years ago.

No. No one here on this user to user only forum works for Apple. We can't remove anything. And you should't be expecting Apple to remove Liquid Glass either Read the thread. Or at least read this --> Liquid Glass - Love It Or Hate It - It's … - Apple Community

Bot69 wrote:

I just got the update. I’m very displeased. If anyone from Apple reads this: Liquid Glass is my final frustration. My next new phone is in 9 or 10 months. It won’t be an iPhone unless i can turn off Liquid Glass. I bought this device. And you changed it in an awful way.

Had you read much of this 22-page thread, you would know that no one from Apple is reading here. You can, however, let them know your thoughts here:

Product Feedback - Apple

I would note that, while the hardware is yours, the system software is not. The licensing terms you agreed to essentially say that Apple can change it whenever they want.

BaileyAndrusiw wrote:

The new iOS 26.1 update is absolutely infuriating. I have a hard time adjusting to change and not being able to switch the display back to how it looked before the update is completely inconsiderate. Please create a way to change it back to the original display for me and everyone I’ve talk to today who also despises this update.

in particular the apps opening and closing, I have turned off the motion and yet it does not change it back, it makes me motion sick.

No one here has the ability to do anything. No one here works for Apple or had anything to do with iOS 26. This is a user to user only forum.

Go through this ALL the way and chances are you can make some setting changes, which you can be happier with --> Liquid Glass - Love It Or Hate It - It's … - Apple Community

Dysfunctionalfarm wrote:

I don’t know but it makes me feel sick like if it doesn’t go away I’ll be switching to android if this is their new thing it makes me so nauseous

Android has adopted many of the motion options which iOS 26 now includes, so look hard before you leap. And this is a user to user only forum, so as users, it doesn't really matter to anyone here what phone you buy.

If, however, you'd like to make adjustments which may help you, I wrote this for people to see what options are available --> Liquid Glass - Love It Or Hate It - It's … - Apple Community

johnmac7 wrote:

It's not possible to read the time on my lock screen due to the type being semi transparent. Reducing transparency has not impact on text, only on the background. The whole Liquid Glass thing is awful looking; it looks like something is wrong with the display, the app icons look like what happens when printing is out of registration. There NEEDS to be a way to turn it OFF!! Seriously, Apple, what were you thinking?

You aren't writing Apple. Asking what they were thinking is pointless here on this user to user only forum.

This will help you with the Clock on the Lock Screen and keep an eye out for the next update (coming any day now), which will offer even more options for the Clock on the Lock Screen --> Liquid Glass - Love It Or Hate It - It's … - Apple Community

Catzeye00 wrote:

Seeing the background move distortedly messes with my motion sickness, I either get dizzy or slightly nauseous. When I select the tinted option it does not look like anything changes. Please give us the option to turn it off, I don’t want to feel sick every time I use my phone.

Read this ALL the way through --> Liquid Glass - Love It Or Hate It - It's … - Apple Community

I suspect you're having an issue with Animations, which can be toned down considerably by opening Settings > Accessibility > Motion

ronniefromma wrote:

Someone just gave me a great tip. There’s a new liquid glass setting. Go to display & brightness. Then liquid glass. Change the setting to tinted. That’s the best solution I’ve seen yet.

Yup, you probably read it here in this very thread, where it has been mentioned several times.

Adambagley wrote:

I echo the sentiment here, it is a very un appealing and any efficient design it has created plenty of issues for me personally.

Apple’s iOS 26 “Liquid Glass” redesign is a bad decision not because it looks different, but because it cuts directly against what Apple does best.

Apple’s core promise has always been effortless clarity. You pick up an iPhone and everything is immediately readable, calm, and obvious. Liquid Glass—by design—adds translucency, refraction, motion, and visual noise to core interface elements. That’s spectacle layered on top of information, and it makes the OS harder to read, not easier.

This is especially dangerous for accessibility. Translucent UI over dynamic backgrounds is notoriously bad for contrast, low-vision users, and people sensitive to motion. The fact that Apple has already had to tone it down and add controls to reduce the effect proves this isn’t a polish issue—it’s a fundamental design conflict.

It also introduces unnecessary performance and perception risk. Effects-heavy interfaces make users worry about battery life and older devices, even if Apple optimizes them. Apple upgrades work because users trust that updates improve stability, not just visuals. This redesign weakens that trust.

Then there’s the ecosystem cost. When Apple changes its visual language this dramatically, developers feel pressure to redesign their apps just to keep up—absorbing time and expense with no guarantee users actually want the look.

Most importantly, Liquid Glass sends the wrong signal. Apple wins by being practical, restrained, and human-centered. A flashy, polarizing UI suggests Apple is prioritizing visual novelty over usability at exactly the moment users want reliability and substance.

Apple shouldn’t need an OS you have to “dial back.” If users want to turn it off, it shouldn’t be the future of iOS.

You're sharing this with only other users. Perhaps cathartic to do so, but you're not sharing anything with Apple on this user to user only forum. Users, by the way, none of whom had anything to do with iOS 26 or Liquid Glass.

I wrote this, which explains why you will likely never get a turn off option with Liquid Glass. So yes, you need to make adjustments which better meet your needs, but get rid of Liquid Glass completely is pretty much guaranteed to never happen --> Liquid Glass - Love It Or Hate It - It's … - Apple Community

Tell Apple what you think --> Feedback - iPhone - Apple

Perhaps users can get a preview of iOS updates? They did. Apple opened Beta Testing for iOS 26 in June, before rolling it out to the public in September. It was widely reported on in the press. In blogs. In YouTube and just about everywhere tech oriented. I don't beta test myself, but I was more than well aware of what iOS 26 was all about long before it was updated on my iPhone.

As to your issue with seeing the time, I'd recommend choosing a wallpaper with a dark background. This is really no different than it was in iOS 18. The time on your home screen has always been white.

And you of course do have several options in terms of adjusting Liquid Glass. This has been posted many times throughout this thread. Read it ALL the way through and try the options --> Liquid Glass - Love It Or Hate It - It's … - Apple Community

rogemcdoge wrote:

This issue needs to be fixed, asap. All this advice about changing all these settings just to get it to look halfway decent again is not a solution.

This is user to user only forum. We can't fix anything. And in my opinion, nothing is broken. If you don't like Liquid Glass, you can make settings adjustments as detailed in this link --> Liquid Glass - Love It Or Hate It - It's … - Apple Community Those are the only options you have available to you.

If this is not acceptable to you, tell Apple what in your opinion needs to be fixed --> Feedback - iPhone - Apple