How Apple Might Be Implementing This#

From observing system apps and experimenting with SwiftUI, the effect likely relies on a combination of:

• Custom top headers inserted via safeAreaInset(edge: .top)
• Scroll detection using ScrollGeometry
• Separate visibility logic for different toolbar elements
• Animated opacity / offset transitions

SwiftUI already provides pieces that could support this architecture:

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.onScrollGeometryChange(...)
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.safeAreaInset(...)
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.toolbar(...)

But these are low-level building blocks, not a dedicated modifier.

For example, if you wanted to recreate the behavior in a robust way, you could do something like this.

A Proper Implementation Approach#

The most flexible way is to track the scroll position and adjust the header visibility.

A simplified version might look like this:

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struct CollapsingHeaderView: View {
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    @State private var headerHidden = false
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    var body: some View {
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        ScrollView {
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            VStack {
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                ForEach(0..<50) { i in
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                    Text("Row \(i)")
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                        .frame(maxWidth: .infinity)
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                        .padding()
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                }
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            }
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        }
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        .onScrollGeometryChange(for: CGFloat.self) { geometry in
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            geometry.contentOffset.y
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        } action: { _, offset in
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            headerHidden = offset > 40
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        }
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        .safeAreaInset(edge: .top) {
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            header
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                .opacity(headerHidden ? 0 : 1)
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                .animation(.easeInOut, value: headerHidden)
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        }
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    }
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    private var header: some View {
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        HStack {
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            Text("Library")
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                .font(.largeTitle.bold())
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            Spacer()
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            Image(systemName: "person.crop.circle")
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        }
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        .padding()
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        .background(.ultraThinMaterial)
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    }
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}

This approach has a few advantages:

• Works with ScrollView, List, or LazyVStack
• Allows fully custom header layouts
• Gives precise control over when the header hides
• Supports animations and complex transitions

It also reflects how many developers believe Apple internally structures similar UI patterns.

However, this approach comes with a downside: you now own the scroll logic.

That means managing:

• scroll thresholds
• scroll direction
• toolbar layout
• edge cases with refreshable
• nested navigation stacks

For some apps this is perfectly fine, but it may feel heavy for simple layouts.

A Surprisingly Simple Trick#

While experimenting with SwiftUI navigation bars, I discovered a much simpler trick.

If you add an empty principal toolbar title, the collapsed navigation title becomes invisible.

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.toolbar {
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    ToolbarItem(placement: .principal) {
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        Text("")
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    }
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}

Used together with a large navigation title:

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.navigationTitle("Library")
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.navigationBarTitleDisplayMode(.large)

the visual behavior becomes:

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Large Title
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   ↓ scroll
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(empty)

In other words, the collapsed title still exists — it just renders nothing.

Example:

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NavigationStack {
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    List(items) { item in
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        Text(item.title)
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    }
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    .navigationTitle("Library")
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    .navigationBarTitleDisplayMode(.large)
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    .toolbar {
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        ToolbarItem(placement: .principal) {
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            Text("")
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        }
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    }
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}

This produces a surprisingly convincing effect that resembles the Apple Music collapsing header.

Why This Works#

SwiftUI navigation bars internally transition between two states:

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Large Navigation Title
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        ↓
3
Compact Navigation Title

By replacing the compact title with an empty view, the collapsed state effectively becomes invisible.

So instead of seeing:

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Large Title
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   ↓
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Small Title

you get:

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Large Title
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   ↓
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(blank space)

The navigation bar itself still exists, but visually it looks like the header disappeared.

Limitations#

This trick works because of how SwiftUI currently renders navigation titles, but it has a few caveats:

• The navigation bar is still present.
• Toolbar items may still occupy layout space.
• It relies on current SwiftUI behavior and could change in future versions.

In other words, this is a visual shortcut, not a full re-implementation of the Apple Music UI.

Will Apple Provide an Official API?#

Possibly.

Apple often ships new UI patterns in system apps first and exposes them publicly later.

Examples include:

• .searchable
• large navigation titles
• tab bar minimization behavior (as shown in Apple Music)

So it would not be surprising if a future SwiftUI release introduced something like:

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.navigationBarCollapseBehavior(.onScroll)

or

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.toolbarScrollVisibility(.hidden)

Until then, developers can either:

1. Implement a custom collapsing header with scroll detection
2. Use the small toolbar trick above for a lightweight approximation

Both approaches can achieve a very similar user experience.