PSA: iPadOS 26 removes Split View and Slide Over multitasking features

iPadOS 26 introduces major new windowing features designed to upgrade the iPad’s multitasking experience. But with those new features, two longstanding multitasking features have been removed: Split View and Slide Over are no longer supported in iPadOS 26.

Split View and Slide Over are gone, but Stage Manager lives on with new iPadOS 26 windowing

Apple has had no shortage of iPadOS multitasking takes over the years.

Most of those systems have co-existed within iPadOS, even as new features were added.

But that’s changed with the latest software update.

iPadOS 26 drops Split View and Slide Over entirely in favor of the new windowing solution.

And in a bit of a surprise, Stage Manager gets to live on—at least for now.

For those unfamiliar with current iPad multitasking features, Split View let you put two apps side-by-side in either a 50-50 arrangement, or a 66-33 setup.

Slide Over, meanwhile, served as a separate stack of apps you could pull in from the side of the iPad screen. It floated on top of the other apps you were using, and could be easily dismissed and invoked as needed.

But to make way for the powerful new windowing features in iPadOS 26, these features are no longer available.

You can sort of replicate their functionality with the new system, but everything works very differently than before. And Slide Over’s utility, in particular, is hard to replicate in iPadOS 26.

Apple just shipped the first iPadOS 26 beta, so it’s always possible multitasking revisions will be made before the final version launches in the fall. We’ll keep you posted if anything changes.

For all the latest from WWDC, check out our dedicated WWDC 2025 news hub.

What do you think of the iPad getting a new multitasking system in iPadOS 26? Are you surprised by Split View and Slide Over being removed? Let us know in the comments.

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