How to disable taps for a view using allowsHitTesting()

Paul Hudson @twostraws October 25th 2019

Fully updated for Xcode 11.1

SwiftUI lets us stop a view from receiving any kind of taps using the allowsHitTesting() modifier. If hit testing is disallowed for a view, any taps automatically continue through the view on to whatever is behind.

To demonstrate this, here’s a ZStack containing a translucent rectangle with a button underneath:

ZStack {
    Button("Tap Me") {
        print("Button was tapped")
    }
    .frame(width: 100, height: 100)
    .background(Color.white)

    Rectangle()
        .fill(Color.red.opacity(0.2))
        .frame(width: 300, height: 300)
        .clipShape(Circle())
        .allowsHitTesting(false)
}

Even though the rectangle is on top of the button, it has allowsHitTesting(false) – any taps on the rectangle won’t be trapped by the rectangle, but instead passed through to the button below.

This kind of effect is useful for when you want to highlight one view with another – the red circle above might be part of a tutorial saying “Tap here to get started”, and that wouldn’t work if the circle itself caught the tap.

How to disable taps for a view using allowsHitTesting()

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