When to use it
Overlays like bottom sheets feel natural to push away (Wobbrock et al., 2009). A grabber signals it (Norman, 1999; Material Design, n.d.). Photos shrink as you drag.
Thresholds and conflicts
Snap back under ~25–30% height unless flung. Gestures are less accurate on the move (Bragdon et al., 2011). Start dismissal only when inner lists are at top, and avoid clashing with predictive back (Android Developers, n.d.) and gesture navigation.
Preventing accidents
Block dismissal with unsaved input and show a confirmation dialog (Apple, n.d.). Provide a visible close button per WCAG 2.2 (W3C, 2023) 2.5.1/2.5.7.
FAQ
- How far should users drag?
- About a quarter of the height or a fast fling.
- Do I still need a close button?
- Yes, for users who can't or don't know the gesture.
Sources reviewed: 2026-10-27
References
- Apple. (n.d.). Sheets. Human Interface Guidelines. Swipe-down sheet dismissal.
- Material Design. (n.d.). Bottom sheets. Drag handle and dismissal.
- Android Developers. (n.d.). Add support for the predictive back gesture. Predictive back previews.
- Wobbrock, J. O., Morris, M. R., & Wilson, A. D. (2009). User-defined gestures for surface computing. In Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1083–1092). ACM. User-defined gestures.
- Bragdon, A., Nelson, E., Li, Y., & Hinckley, K. (2011). Experimental analysis of touch-screen gesture designs in mobile environments. In Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 403–412). ACM. Gesture accuracy on the move.
- Norman, D. A. (1999). Affordance, conventions, and design. Interactions, 6(3), 38–43. Visible affordance.
- World Wide Web Consortium. (2023). Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2. Criteria 2.5.1 and 2.5.7.