Stop fighting loading dialogs in .NET MAUI: a native loader in one line

Plugin.Maui.LoadingHud is a tiny native loading overlay for .NET MAUI. Lottie, image or spinner, configured once and overridable per screen.

Every app needs a loading indicator. It sounds like the simplest part of a project.

Then you build one in .NET MAUI, and the problems start.

The problem

Most MAUI loaders are built on pages, popups or modal navigation. That works for a demo, but in a real app it causes trouble:

• 😵 Showing the loader fires OnAppearing / OnDisappearing on your pages
• 🔒 Calling Show() inside another Show() can leave the loader stuck on screen
• 🪟 Two loaders can overlap
• 🔁 You repeat the same colors, text and animation on every screen

I hit all of these in a production app, so I stopped patching and built a loader that doesn't go through MAUI navigation at all.

The solution: Plugin.Maui.LoadingHud ✨

It's a native overlay (an Android Dialog and an iOS UIWindow). Your pages never know it's there, so no lifecycle events fire.

using (LoadingHud.Show("Loading...")) await api.GetDataAsync(); 

When the using block ends, the loader closes, even if your code throws.

Set it up once

Add your defaults in MauiProgram.cs. Every option is optional.

builder.UseLoadingHud(o => { o.Text = "Please wait..."; // default text everywhere o.Lottie = "loader.json"; // Resources/Raw o.Image = "logo.png"; // Resources/Images o.IndicatorColor = Colors.White; o.BackgroundColor = Color.FromArgb("#80000000"); o.OverlayColor = Color.FromArgb("#66000000"); o.TextColor = Colors.White; o.IndicatorSize = 40; o.LottieSize = 100; o.ImageSize = 60; o.Spacing = 8; // gap between loader and text }); 

Set nothing and you get a clean white spinner.

Change it for one screen

using (LoadingHud.Show("Uploading...", lottie: "upload.json")) { ... } using (LoadingHud.Show(image: "logo.png")) { ... } using (LoadingHud.Show("")) { ... } // no text this time 

The signature is simple:

IDisposable Show(string? text = null, string? lottie = null, string? image = null) 

How it decides what to show

Text works the same way: the text you pass wins, otherwise the default from MauiProgram. If a Lottie or image file can't be found, it quietly falls back to the spinner instead of crashing.

How it works under the hood

• Native overlay: Android uses a Dialog and iOS uses a UIWindow above your app. MAUI navigation is never involved.
• Reference counting: each Show() adds one, each Dispose() removes one, and the loader closes when the count reaches zero. Nested calls just work.
• Hide() as a safety net: it closes everything at once, and tokens from before it are ignored.
• Memory: native views are disposed on hide. On iOS only the last Lottie stays cached, and Android uses Lottie's own cache.
• Threading: call Show() / Hide() from any thread. The UI work is marshalled to the main thread.

Quick example

private async void Save_Clicked(object sender, EventArgs e) { using (LoadingHud.Show("Saving...")) { await SaveAsync(); using (LoadingHud.Show("Syncing...")) // nested: no clash await SyncAsync(); } } 

Get it

📦 NuGet: https://www.nuget.org/packages/Plugin.Maui.LoadingHud
💻 GitHub: https://github.com/PrathamsGithub/Plugin.Maui.LoadingHud

dotnet add package Plugin.Maui.LoadingHud 

Android and iOS are supported. Other targets compile but show nothing.

Feedback welcome

Found a bug on a device I didn't test, or want another option? Open an issue or send a PR on GitHub. If it saves you time, a ⭐ helps others find it. 🙌