---
title: "Create an Interactive Social Media App with .NET MAUI: Tabs, Feeds, and Quick Posts"
published_at: "2025-11-20T15:38:00+00:00"
modified_at: "2025-11-21T09:28:03+00:00"
url: "https://www.syncfusion.com/blogs/post/dotnet-maui-social-media-app"
excerpt: "Learn how to create a modern .NET MAUI social media app with Tab View navigation and a center button for quick post actions. Build an interactive feed, profile page, and more."
taxonomy_category:
  - ".NET MAUI"
  - ".NET MAUI List View"
  - "Cross-Platform UI"
  - "Social Media App"
  - "TabView"
taxonomy_post_tag:
  - ".NET MAUI"
  - ".NET MAUI List View"
  - "Cross-platform development"
  - "Mobile UI"
  - "Social Media App"
  - "Tab View"
---

# Create an Interactive Social Media App with .NET MAUI: Tabs, Feeds, and Quick Posts

[Naveenkumar Sanjeevirayan](https://www.syncfusion.com/blogs/author/naveenkumar-sanjeevirayan)

![Image](https://www.syncfusion.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Social-Media-App-Create-an-Interactive-Social-Media-App-with-.NET-MAUI-Tabs-Feeds-and-Quick-Posts.jpg)


**TL;DR:** Building a .NET MAUI social media app? Use Tab View for intuitive navigation and add a center button for quick post creation. Implement dynamic feeds, messages, and profile pages with a responsive UI.

Want to build a modern, mobile-friendly social media app? In this tutorial, we’ll show you how to build a feature-rich application using [.NET MAUI Tab View](https://www.syncfusion.com/maui-controls/maui-tab-view)
 and [ListView](https://www.syncfusion.com/maui-controls/maui-listview)
 controls. You’ll learn how to design intuitive navigation, implement a center button for quick actions, and create interactive feeds, all with Syncfusion’s .NET MAUI controls.

## Why a center button?

The center button enhances usability by providing quick access to key actions, such as creating a new post. This design pattern is widely adopted across various app types for its convenience. Common use cases include:

- **Social Media**: Upload photos, share videos, or start a live stream.
- **Messaging**: Initiate a new conversation instantly.
- **E-Commerce**: Quickly add products or create listings.
- **Finance**: Log transactions or add budget entries with ease.

## Key features

To make your .NET MAUI social media app engaging and easy to navigate, we’ll include the following core features:

- **Home Tab**: A personalized feed displaying posts tailored to the user.
- **Messages Tab**: Recent conversations with integrated search functionality.
- **Explore Tab**: A grid layout showcasing trending content for discovery.
- **Profile Tab**: User details along with their posts and activity.
- **Center Button**: A quick-access shortcut for creating new posts.

## Step-by-step implementation

### Step 1: Install Syncfusion .NET MAUI Tab View

Begin by adding the Tab View control to your project using the official [documentation](https://help.syncfusion.com/maui-toolkit/tabview/getting-started)
. This control enables a tabbed interface with customizable tabs and an optional center button for quick actions, ensuring smooth navigation throughout your app.

### Step 2: Define data models and ViewModel

Next, set up your data structure for efficient management. Create model classes such as a **Post Model** to represent social media posts with user details, images, and engagement metrics, and a ** Message Model** to handle chat data, including sender information and unread message counts. Then, implement a ** ViewModel**, ** SocialMediaViewModel**, that maintains collections of posts and messages. This ViewModel acts as the data context for your views and supports real-time UI updates using **`INotifyPropertyChanged`**.

**Note:** For complete implementation details, refer to the [GitHub](https://github.com/SyncfusionExamples/Designing-User-Friendly-Social-Media-App-using-.NET-MAUI-TabView/tree/master/SocialMediaAppMaui)
 repository.

### Step 3: Design tab layout

Now, create tabs for Home, Messages, Explore, and Profile to structure your app’s navigation. Use font icons for a lightweight and visually appealing interface.

To highlight the active tab, apply **VisualStateManager** styling in **`SfTabItem`**. This approach allows you to define distinct visual states for selected and unselected tabs:

- **Default tabs** display black text for the normal state.
- **Selected tabs** use a highlight color (**#6750a4**) for better visibility.

Define this style once in **`ContentPage.Resources`** so it automatically applies to all tab items, ensuring consistency across the app. Additionally, bind each tab icon’s color to the tab’s `TextColor` so the icon dynamically reflects the selection state.

```
<tabView:SfTabView>
    <!--Home Tab-->
        <tabView:SfTabItem x:Name="homeTab" ImageSize="30">
            <tabView:SfTabItem.ImageSource>
                <FontImageSource Glyph="" FontFamily="MauiSampleFontIcon"
                                 Color="{Binding Source={x:Reference homeTab},Path=TextColor}"       />
            </tabView:SfTabItem.ImageSource>
        </tabView:SfTabItem>

    <!-- Repeat same structure for other tabs -->

</tabView:SfTabView>
```

### Step 4: Enable center button

Enhance usability by adding a **center button** to your Tab View for quick post creation. This interactive element is positioned at the center of the tab bar and can be fully customized using ** CenterButtonSettings**.

With these settings, you can configure:

- `ImageSource` and`ImageSize` for the button icon.
- **DisplayMode** for positioning.
- Optional **custom content**, such as glyphs or icons.

In this example, a font icon `Glyph="&#xe71b;"` from a custom font family is used to represent the center button, ensuring a clean and lightweight design.

```
<tabView:SfTabView IsCenterButtonEnabled="True" >
    <!--Center Button-->
    <tabView:SfTabView.CenterButtonSettings>
        <tabView:CenterButtonSettings DisplayMode="Image"  ImageSize="35">
            <tabView:CenterButtonSettings.ImageSource>
                <FontImageSource Glyph="" Color="Black" FontFamily="MauiSampleFontIcon" Size="20"/>
            </tabView:CenterButtonSettings.ImageSource>
        </tabView:CenterButtonSettings>
    </tabView:SfTabView.CenterButtonSettings>

</tabView:SfTabView>
```

### Step 5: Bind data with ViewModel

Next, to keep your UI responsive and fully data-driven, implement a ViewModel that uses **`INotifyPropertyChanged`** for real-time updates.

Start by creating a **`SocialMediaViewModel`** that manages collections such as ** Posts, Messages**, ** ExplorePosts**, and ** UserPosts**. After that, bind this ViewModel to your `ContentPage` so all tabs share the same data context:

**XML**

```
<ContentPage.BindingContext>
    <local:SocialMediaViewModel />
</ContentPage.BindingContext>
```

This ensures smooth data flow across tabs and supports dynamic updates without manual refresh.

### Step 6: Display dynamic content

Let’s bring your tabs to life by displaying dynamic content tailored to each section of your .NET MAUI social media app. The key to efficient rendering is **Syncfusion’s ListView**, a high-performance and highly customizable list control for .NET MAUI. Before proceeding, make sure you have installed and configured ListView by following the official [documentation](https://help.syncfusion.com/maui/listview/getting-started)
.

#### Home tab

Start with the Home tab, which displays a vertically scrolling feed of posts including user details, images, and captions. Use **ListView** for virtualization and templating to maintain smooth performance even with large datasets.

```
<tabView:SfTabView EnableSwiping="True" IsCenterButtonEnabled="True" IndicatorStrokeThickness="0" TabBarPlacement="Bottom" >
 
    <!—Center button settings-->

    <!--Home Tab-->
    <tabView:SfTabItem x:Name="homeTab" ImageSize="30">
. . .
        <listView:SfListView ItemsSource="{Binding Posts}" SelectionMode="None"
                                 AutoFitMode="Height" >
        <listView:SfListView.ItemTemplate>
            <DataTemplate>
                <VerticalStackLayout Padding="10">
                    <HorizontalStackLayout>
                        <Image Source="{Binding ProfileImage}" WidthRequest="40" HeightRequest="40" Aspect="AspectFill"/>
                        <Label Text="{Binding UserName}" FontSize="16" VerticalOptions="Center" Padding="5"/>
                    </HorizontalStackLayout>
                    <Image Source="{Binding PostImage}" WidthRequest="300" HeightRequest="200" Aspect="AspectFill"/>
                    <Label Text="{Binding Caption}" FontSize="14" Padding="5"/>
                </VerticalStackLayout>
            </DataTemplate>
        </listView:SfListView.ItemTemplate>
    </listView:SfListView>
</tabView:SfTabItem>
</tabView:SfTabView>
```

![Home tab](https://www.syncfusion.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Home-tab.png)

Home tab

#### Messages tab

Next, display recent conversations and unread notifications. Add a **SearchBar** for filtering chats by sender name and use ** SfBadgeView** to show unread counts. Filtering can be implemented using Syncfusion’s ListView and a simple text-change event that updates the data source.

![Messages tab](https://www.syncfusion.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Messages-tab.png)

Messages tab

#### Explore tab

Showcase trending content in a Pinterest-style grid using **ListView** with ** GridLayout**. Include a SearchBar for filtering posts by username or image name.

![Explore tab](https://www.syncfusion.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Explore-tab.png)

Explore tab

#### Profile tab

Finally, create a responsive profile view with user details and posts in a two-column grid layout. Include an **Edit Profile** button for image updates. Use a ** ScrollView** with ** VerticalStackLayout** for responsiveness. Profile data is managed via a ** UserProfile** model and bound through [SocialMediaViewModel](https://github.com/SyncfusionExamples/Designing-User-Friendly-Social-Media-App-using-.NET-MAUI-TabView/blob/master/SocialMediaAppMaui/ViewModel/SocialMediaViewModel.cs)
.

```
<!--Profile Tab-->
<tabView:SfTabItem x:Name="profileTab" ImageSize="30">
    <ScrollView>
        <VerticalStackLayout Padding="10" Spacing="10">
            <Border HeightRequest="100" WidthRequest="100">
                <Border.StrokeShape>
                    <RoundRectangle CornerRadius="50" />
                </Border.StrokeShape>
                <Image x:Name="profileImage" Source="{Binding Profile.ProfileImage}" Aspect="AspectFill" HorizontalOptions="Center"/>
            </Border>
            <Label Text="{Binding Profile.Name}" FontSize="20" FontAttributes="Bold" HorizontalOptions="Center"/>
            <Label Text="{Binding Profile.Bio}" FontSize="14" HorizontalOptions="Center" TextColor="Gray"/>
            <HorizontalStackLayout HorizontalOptions="Center">
                <Label Text="{Binding Profile.Followers, StringFormat='{0} Followers'}" FontSize="14" Padding="5"/>
                <Label Text="{Binding Profile.Following, StringFormat='{0} Following'}" FontSize="14" Padding="5"/>
            </HorizontalStackLayout>
            <buttons:SfButton Text="Edit Profile" Clicked="OnEditProfileClicked" BackgroundColor="Blue" TextColor="White" HorizontalOptions="Center"/>
            <Label Text="User Posts" FontSize="18" FontAttributes="Bold"/>

            <!--User post with ListView-->

        </VerticalStackLayout>
    </ScrollView>
</tabView:SfTabItem>
```

**Edit profile logic**

```
private async void OnEditProfileClicked(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
    // Create and navigate to the image selection page
    var imageSelectionPage = new ProfileImageSelectionPage(OnImageSelected);
    await Navigation.PushAsync(imageSelectionPage);
}

// Callback method to receive selected image
private void OnImageSelected(string selectedImage)
{
    if (!string.IsNullOrEmpty(selectedImage))
    {
        profileImage.Source = selectedImage;
    }
}
```

![Profile tab](https://www.syncfusion.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Profile-tab.png)

Profile tab

**Note:** You can find the full implementation of these tabs in the [GitHub](https://github.com/SyncfusionExamples/Designing-User-Friendly-Social-Media-App-using-.NET-MAUI-TabView/blob/master/SocialMediaAppMaui/Helper/Converter.cs)
 repository.

### Step 7: Enhancing user experience

To make your app more engaging, start by adding **interactive post actions,** such as **Likes**, ** Comments**, and ** Shares**, in the ** Home tab**. Implement these using font icons and converters for dynamic behavior:

- **LikesToIconConverter** switches between filled and outline icons.
- **LikesToColorConverter** changes the icon color based on the like status.

```
<ContentPage.Resources>
    <ResourceDictionary>
        <local:LikesToIconConverter x:Key="likesToIconConverter"/>
        <local:LikesToColorConverter x:Key="likesToColorConverter"/>
    </ResourceDictionary>
</ContentPage.Resources>

<!--Home Tab-->
<tabView:SfTabItem x:Name="homeTab" ImageSize="30">
    . . .
    <listView:SfListView ItemsSource="{Binding Posts}" SelectionMode="None"
                                 AutoFitMode="Height">
        <listView:SfListView.ItemTemplate>
            <DataTemplate>
                <VerticalStackLayout Padding="10">
                    <HorizontalStackLayout>
                        <Image Source="{Binding ProfileImage}" WidthRequest="40" HeightRequest="40" Aspect="AspectFill"/>
                        <Label Text="{Binding UserName}" FontSize="16" VerticalOptions="Center" Padding="5"/>
                    </HorizontalStackLayout>
                    <Image Source="{Binding PostImage}" WidthRequest="300" HeightRequest="200" Aspect="AspectFill"/>
                    <Label Text="{Binding Caption}" FontSize="14" Padding="5"/>

                    <!-- Post Interactions -->
                    <HorizontalStackLayout Spacing="10">
                        <!-- Like Button -->
                        <HorizontalStackLayout>
                            <Label Text="{Binding IsLiked, Converter={StaticResource likesToIconConverter}}"
                                TextColor="{Binding IsLiked, Converter={StaticResource likesToColorConverter}}"
                                FontFamily="MauiSampleFontIcon" FontSize="24" VerticalOptions="Center">
                                <Label.GestureRecognizers>
                                    <TapGestureRecognizer Tapped="OnLikeTapped"/>
                                </Label.GestureRecognizers>
                            </Label>
                            <Label Text="{Binding Likes, Mode=TwoWay}" VerticalOptions="Center" FontSize="14" Padding="5"/>
                        </HorizontalStackLayout>

                        <!-- Repeat same structure for other interaction buttons – Comments and Shares -->
                                
                    </HorizontalStackLayout>
                </VerticalStackLayout>
            </DataTemplate>
        </listView:SfListView.ItemTemplate>
    </listView:SfListView>
</tabView:SfTabItem>
```

![Home tab with interactions](https://www.syncfusion.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Home-tab-with-interactions.png)

Home tab with interactions

### Step 8: Creating a new post

The **center button** in the tab view acts as a shortcut for users to create a new post. When tapped, it navigates to a dedicated post creation page where users can write a caption and upload an image. Add the CenterButtonTapped event to your Tab View:

```
<tabView:SfTabView CenterButtonTapped="OnCenterbuttonTapped">
    <!-- Tab items go here -->
</tabView:SfTabView>
 
```

Handle the tap event and navigate to the post creation page:

```
private async void OnCenterbuttonTapped(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
    if (BindingContext is SocialMediaViewModel socialMediaViewModel)
    {
        Navigation.PushAsync(new CreatePostPage(socialMediaViewModel));
    }
} 
```

The [CreatePostPage](https://github.com/SyncfusionExamples/Designing-User-Friendly-Social-Media-App-using-.NET-MAUI-TabView/blob/master/SocialMediaAppMaui/View/CreatePostPage.xaml)
 provides users with a simple and intuitive interface for sharing new content. It includes:

- A **caption editor** for writing thoughts or descriptions.
- An **image upload button** that opens a selection page.
- A **preview of the selected image**.
- A **publish button** to post the content.

Once the user selects an image and writes a caption, the post is added to both the general feed and the user’s profile. This page enhances user engagement by making content creation quick and accessible.

## Upload image

The **ImageSelectionPage** allows users to select an image from a predefined gallery. This page is used when creating or editing a post or profile. It displays images in a grid layout using ** Syncfusion’s SfListView**, and once an image is selected, it’s passed back to the calling page via a callback.

This modular design keeps the image selection process simple and reusable across different parts of the app.

![.NET MAUI social media app](https://www.syncfusion.com/blogs/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/NET-MAUI-social-media-app.gif)

.NET MAUI social media app

## GitHub references

For complete implementation details, check out the full guide on Designing a User-Friendly Social Media App using .NET MAUI TabView in our [GitHub](https://github.com/SyncfusionExamples/Designing-User-Friendly-Social-Media-App-using-.NET-MAUI-TabView)
 repository.


## Conclusion

Thanks for reading! In this blog, we explored how to build a feature-rich social media application using Syncfusion’s [.NET MAUI Tab View](https://www.syncfusion.com/maui-controls/maui-tab-view)
 and [ListView](https://www.syncfusion.com/maui-controls/maui-listview)
 controls. By leveraging a Tab View with a Center Button, we created a seamless navigation experience that allows users to switch between app sections and quickly access core actions, like creating a new post.

From designing interactive feeds and searchable message lists to building a customizable profile page and post creation flow, this tutorial demonstrates how .NET MAUI can be used to craft modern, mobile-friendly social apps. Give them a try and leave your feedback in the comments section below!

If you’re a Syncfusion user, you can download the setup from the [license and downloads](https://www.syncfusion.com/account/downloads)
 page. Otherwise, you can download a free [30-day trial](https://www.syncfusion.com/downloads/)
.

You can also contact us through our [support forum](https://www.syncfusion.com/forums)
, [support portal](https://support.syncfusion.com/)
, or [feedback portal](https://www.syncfusion.com/feedback/angular)
 for queries. We are always happy to assist you!

## Related Blogs



[Create a Beautiful Photo Gallery Using .NET MAUI Tab View and ListView](https://www.syncfusion.com/blogs/post/dotnet-maui-photo-gallery)



[The All-New .NET MAUI Tabbed View Control Is Here](https://www.syncfusion.com/blogs/post/the-all-new-net-maui-tab-view-control-is-here)



[Build a Stunning Book Library App with .NET MAUI ListView – Fast, Flexible & Cross-Platform](https://www.syncfusion.com/blogs/post/maui-listview-book-library-app)



[Create Engaging Feedback Forms in .NET MAUI Using ListView](https://www.syncfusion.com/blogs/post/dotnet-maui-listview-feedback-forms)