macOS Monterey and iPadOS 15.1 Release Candidates Limit Safari Color Tab Bar Option to Compact View

With the macOS Monterey and iPadOS 15 release candidates that were seeded to developers today, Apple has eliminated the option to use the Color Tab Bar with the separate tab design in Safari.

macbook pro tab bar blending safari 15

A tab bar with color in Safari 15

If you want to have a color tab bar that blends in with the background color of a website, you need to toggle on the Compact Tab Bar, which is the tab bar design that Apple introduced with macOS Monterey and iPadOS 15 updates. "Show Color in Compact Tab Bar" is an option that can be enabled in both iPadOS 15.1 and macOS Monterey.

On the iPad, the option is available in the Safari section of the Settings app. Scroll down to the bottom to find it and toggle it on, and then the color tab interface will show up when the ‌iPad‌ is using the Compact Tab Bar.

On the Mac, the Show Color in Compact Tab Bar option can be toggled on in the Safari preferences under Advanced and then Accessibility.

Apple today updated macOS Monterey to change the tabs back to the original tab design, essentially undoing many of the design changes that were introduced in Safari with the initial release of the Monterey beta. As of now, the standard Big Sur design is the default, and the Compact Tab Bar is an optional change that can be toggled on.

It is not surprising that Apple has made this change as the color tab bar interface was designed for the new look in Monterey and not the older Big Sur design that Apple has now reverted to.

Tag: Safari
Related Forum: macOS Monterey

Popular Stories

airpods translate

AirPods Live Translation Blocked for EU Users With EU Apple Accounts

Thursday September 11, 2025 4:01 am PDT by
Apple's new Live Translation feature for AirPods will be off-limits to millions of European users when it arrives next week, with strict EU regulations likely holding back its rollout. Apple says on its feature availability webpage that "Apple Intelligence: Live Translation with AirPods" won't be available if both the user is physically in the EU and their Apple Account region is in the EU....
iPhone 17 Pro Colors

iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro Models Are eSIM-Only in These Countries

Tuesday September 9, 2025 12:23 pm PDT by
Apple continues to phase out the physical SIM card tray on iPhones, with the latest models relying solely on eSIM technology in more countries. The new iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max support eSIMs only in these countries and regions, according to Apple: Bahrain Canada Guam Japan Kuwait Mexico Oman Qatar Saudi Arabia United Arab Emirates Un...
iPhone 17 Pro Colors

Didn't Pre-Order a New iPhone Yet? Here's How Long the Wait is Now

Friday September 12, 2025 6:11 am PDT by
iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, and iPhone Air pre-orders began at 5 a.m. Pacific Time in the U.S. and many other countries today. If you have yet to place a pre-order, you might face a longer wait now, depending on your desired configuration. As of shortly after 6 a.m. Pacific Time today, nearly all iPhone 17 Pro Max configurations on Apple's online store in the U.S. are facing ...
iPhone 17 Pro Colors

iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro: Release Date and Pre-Orders

Wednesday September 10, 2025 12:30 am PDT by
Apple held its annual iPhone event on Tuesday, September 9, to unveil the iPhone 17, ultra-thin iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max. All of the new iPhone models will be available to pre-order starting Friday, September 12 at 5 a.m. Pacific Time / 8 a.m. Eastern Time in the U.S. and dozens of other countries, according to Apple. The release date for the devices is one week...
iPhone 17 Pro Cosmic Orange

Skipping the iPhone 17 Pro? Here's What's Rumored for iPhone 18 Pro

Wednesday September 10, 2025 8:33 am PDT by
While the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are still a year away, there are already a few rumors about the devices that offer an early look ahead. If you are skipping the iPhone 17 Pro and want to know about what to expect from the iPhone 18 Pro models, we have recapped a few of the key rumors below. Under-Screen Face ID In April 2023, display industry analyst Ross Young shared a...
apple n1 chip

Apple's New N1 Chip in iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone Air Has a Wi-Fi 7 Limitation

Saturday September 13, 2025 10:01 am PDT by
The latest iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, and iPhone Air models are equipped with Apple's all-new N1 chip for Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, and Thread connectivity. However, the chip has a Wi-Fi 7 bandwidth limitation. According to FCC documents reviewed by MacRumors, the N1 chip in all of the new iPhone models supports up to 160 MHz channel bandwidth for Wi-Fi 7, short of the...
iPhone 17 Pro Colors

Apple Announces iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max With New Design, Larger Battery, and More

Tuesday September 9, 2025 10:59 am PDT by
Apple today introduced the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max. Both devices feature a new aluminum unibody design, with the Ceramic Shield now protecting both the front and back sides. Apple says the front side is now Ceramic Shield 2, which offers 3x better scratch resistance, while the rear Ceramic Shield is advertised as 4x more resistant to cracks compared to the back glass on previous...
iphone 17 pro dark blue

The Camera Plateau: What's New With the iPhone 17 Pro Cameras

Wednesday September 10, 2025 3:53 pm PDT by
With the iPhone 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max, Apple introduced a new design for the rear of the device. Instead of a camera bump, we now have a camera plateau that spans almost the entire back of the iPhone. The camera plateau houses an upgraded camera system that includes a revamped Telephoto lens. All three of the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max cameras are 48 megapixels, and there are five zoom...

Top Rated Comments

DHagan4755 Avatar
51 months ago
Apple is listening. Thank god.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
calstanford Avatar
51 months ago
Honestly, Apple software development teams are run by clueless people. It's sad to see.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ErikGrim Avatar
51 months ago

Honestly, Apple software development teams are run by clueless people. It's sad to see.
They really thought they had an improved design with the compact view. And it does make sense to free up real estate on smaller screens. It was when they tried to unspool it and backtrack into a traditional tab design it fell apart – especially since they lost faith in the compact design as the default. This is the best of both worlds - a functional design as default with the compact design for people who prefer it (and there's quite a few).
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Nicole1980 Avatar
51 months ago
This whole safari thing feels like APPLE is so damned determined to ”innovate” that they’re making changes in the long shot hopes it will be viewed as another groundbreaking change ... when in fact, it’s just a stupid change for changes sake.
Please Apple, innovations will come, and you’ll recognize them when you see them. But for gods sake quit trying to FORCE IT and just do dumb ****.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
randomthoughts Avatar
51 months ago
Finally discovered who’s been leading the Safari UX team…



Attachment Image
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
kiensoy Avatar
51 months ago
It’s been fun to follow all this Safari fiasco.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)