Design

Grab best practices

Updated: Mar 13, 2026

Best practices

Affordances
Since physical haptics are limited, use distinct audio cues and visual highlights to indicate when a target is successfully targeted and engaged.
Visual proprioception
Utilize hand grab poses and mirrored hand data (ISDK) to ensure the virtual hand aligns perfectly with the object's geometry. This maintains the illusion of physical contact and prevents visual clipping.
Dynamic hand posing
Implement hand grab poses that adjust the virtual hand's shape based on an object's specific size and "virtual weight" to improve immersion.
Dynamic ergonomics
Design with "gesture switching" in mind. Users should be able to initiate a grab with a pinch and transition into a palm grab without the system dropping the interactable.
Diverse user testing
Test all grab implementations with various hand sizes and shapes to ensure the experience is inclusive and functional for all users.

Dos and don’ts

Below is a list of recommended practices when using grab in your immersive experience:
DO Use hand pose for grab to make it look and feel better. Use ISDK's mirrored HGI option to replicate from one hand to the other.
DON'T Assume that all fingers need to be curled at the same time to hold onto a virtual object.
DO Consider implementing different grab types and hand poses based on the object's size, shape, and "virtual weight".
DON'T Assume that users will always use the same hand or fingers to interact with objects.
DO Use visual and audio cues to indicate which object is currently targeted for distance grabbing.
DON'T Rely solely on distance grab for all interactions. Consider combining it with direct grab for a more versatile user experience.
DO Implement magnetism to make targeting simpler and more satisfying.
DO Test your implementation with various hand sizes and shapes to ensure inclusivity.
DO Use visual and audio feedback to make up for lack of haptics.

Next steps

Designing experiences

  • Grab: Review the usage and anatomy of grab interactions.
  • Input mappings: Understand how one-point and two-point manipulation work.
  • Comfort: Learn about ergonomic considerations for immersive experiences.

Developing experiences

Meta Spatial SDK

Unity

Unreal

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