 <p>If you are using AppCompatActivity then you can directly do the following in your main/parent activity.</p> <blockquote> <p><code>int FEATURE_ACTION_BAR_OVERLAY</code> : Flag for requesting an Action Bar that overlays window content.</p> </blockquote> <pre><code>@Override protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) { super.onCreate(savedInstanceState); supportRequestWindowFeature(Window.FEATURE_ACTION_BAR_OVERLAY); setContentView(yourview) } </code></pre> <p>And make sure you do not set any background for the action bar.<br> Using <code>supportRequestWindowFeature</code> is a convenience for calling <code>getWindow().requestFeature().</code></p>