diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index e634750..783608e 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -62,7 +62,7 @@ every native target Go ships.
 | Action       | `Button`, `ToggleButton`, `CheckButton`, `RadioButton` + `Group`   |
 | Input        | `Entry`, `TextView` + `Selection` + IME preview, `SpinButton`, `Scale`, `RangeSlider` |
 | Selection    | `ListBox`, `TreeView`, `DropDown`                                  |
-| Layout       | `HBox`, `VBox`, `Grid`, `Frame`, `Stack`, `Paned`, `Expander`      |
+| Layout       | `HBox`, `VBox`, `Grid`, `Frame`, `Stack`, `Overlay`, `Paned`, `Expander` |
 | Tabs         | `Notebook`                                                         |
 | Scroll       | `ScrollView`                                                       |
 | Feedback     | `ProgressBar`, `LevelBar`, `Spinner`, `Image`, `Tooltip`, `Notification` |
@@ -173,9 +173,11 @@ model, not the widget catalogue:
   wraps a `Menu` as a right-click popup — `Popup(x, y)` shows it at
   the cursor, it auto-sizes to its items, clamps itself inside the
   surface, and dismisses on outside-click.
-- **Overlay layout container** — z-ordered stacking above a
-  primary child, so Popover (v0.8) / Toast (v0.8) / Notification /
-  Tooltip stack correctly without hosts arranging screen positions.
+- ~~**Overlay layout container**~~ — **done (v0.18)**: `Overlay`
+  stacks z-ordered `Layers` above a primary `Content` child, so
+  Popover / Toast / Notification / Tooltip / ContextMenu float
+  without hosts arranging z-order. Events route top-down; `Modal`
+  makes a miss swallow (backdrop) instead of falling through.
 - **A11y bridge** — `Role` + `Label` fields on widgets already;
   wire an `A11yPublisher` interface hosts can plug (WAI-ARIA
   wrapping on wasm, TTY-cell metadata on tui, ...).
diff --git a/overlay.go b/overlay.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2e9ac72
--- /dev/null
+++ b/overlay.go
@@ -0,0 +1,92 @@
+// Copyright (c) 2026 the go-widgets/toolkit authors. All rights reserved.
+// Use of this source code is governed by a BSD-3-Clause license that can be
+// found in the LICENSE file at the root of this repository.
+
+package toolkit
+
+import "github.com/go-widgets/painter"
+
+// Overlay is a z-ordered stacking container: a primary Content child that fills
+// the bounds, plus a stack of Layers painted on top of it in order (the last
+// Layer is topmost). It is the piece the widget model was missing so transient
+// widgets -- Popover, Toast, Notification, Tooltip, ContextMenu -- can float
+// above the main UI without the host arranging screen positions or z-order.
+//
+// Unlike Stack (which shows exactly one page at a time), an Overlay draws every
+// layer, and events route top-down: the topmost Layer whose HitTest covers the
+// point handles the event; if none do, the event falls through to Content --
+// unless Modal is set, in which case a miss while any Layer is up is swallowed
+// (a modal backdrop). Layers self-position via their own Bounds; only Content
+// is resized to fill the Overlay.
+type Overlay struct {
+	Base
+	Content Widget
+	Layers  []Widget
+	Modal   bool
+}
+
+// NewOverlay builds an Overlay around the given primary child (which may be nil
+// and set later).
+func NewOverlay(content Widget) *Overlay { return &Overlay{Content: content} }
+
+// Push adds w as the new topmost layer.
+func (o *Overlay) Push(w Widget) { o.Layers = append(o.Layers, w) }
+
+// Pop removes and returns the topmost layer, or nil when there are none.
+func (o *Overlay) Pop() Widget {
+	if len(o.Layers) == 0 {
+		return nil
+	}
+	top := o.Layers[len(o.Layers)-1]
+	o.Layers = o.Layers[:len(o.Layers)-1]
+	return top
+}
+
+// Top returns the topmost layer without removing it, or nil when there are none.
+func (o *Overlay) Top() Widget {
+	if len(o.Layers) == 0 {
+		return nil
+	}
+	return o.Layers[len(o.Layers)-1]
+}
+
+// Clear removes every layer, leaving just the Content.
+func (o *Overlay) Clear() { o.Layers = nil }
+
+// SetBounds resizes Content to fill the Overlay; layers keep their own bounds
+// (they self-position at a point).
+func (o *Overlay) SetBounds(r Rect) {
+	o.Base.SetBounds(r)
+	if o.Content != nil {
+		o.Content.SetBounds(r)
+	}
+}
+
+// Draw paints Content first, then each layer bottom-to-top.
+func (o *Overlay) Draw(p painter.Painter, theme *Theme) {
+	if o.Content != nil {
+		o.Content.Draw(p, theme)
+	}
+	for _, l := range o.Layers {
+		l.Draw(p, theme)
+	}
+}
+
+// OnEvent routes to the topmost layer whose HitTest covers the point; failing
+// that, to Content -- or, when Modal and a layer is present, nowhere (the
+// backdrop swallows the click). Coordinates are passed through unchanged (an
+// Overlay is a surface-frame container, like Paned).
+func (o *Overlay) OnEvent(ev Event) {
+	for i := len(o.Layers) - 1; i >= 0; i-- {
+		if o.Layers[i].HitTest(ev.X, ev.Y) {
+			o.Layers[i].OnEvent(ev)
+			return
+		}
+	}
+	if o.Modal && len(o.Layers) > 0 {
+		return
+	}
+	if o.Content != nil {
+		o.Content.OnEvent(ev)
+	}
+}
diff --git a/overlay_test.go b/overlay_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..23c5a38
--- /dev/null
+++ b/overlay_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,120 @@
+// Copyright (c) 2026 the go-widgets/toolkit authors. All rights reserved.
+// Use of this source code is governed by a BSD-3-Clause license that can be
+// found in the LICENSE file at the root of this repository.
+
+package toolkit
+
+import "testing"
+
+func TestOverlayPushPopTop(t *testing.T) {
+	o := NewOverlay(&recordingWidget{})
+	if o.Top() != nil || o.Pop() != nil {
+		t.Fatal("empty overlay Top/Pop should be nil")
+	}
+	a, b := &recordingWidget{}, &recordingWidget{}
+	o.Push(a)
+	o.Push(b)
+	if o.Top() != b {
+		t.Fatal("Top should be the last pushed layer")
+	}
+	if o.Pop() != b || o.Top() != a {
+		t.Fatal("Pop should remove+return the top, exposing the one below")
+	}
+	o.Clear()
+	if len(o.Layers) != 0 || o.Top() != nil {
+		t.Fatal("Clear should remove all layers")
+	}
+}
+
+func TestOverlaySetBoundsFillsContentOnly(t *testing.T) {
+	content := &recordingWidget{}
+	layer := &recordingWidget{}
+	layer.SetBounds(Rect{X: 5, Y: 5, W: 10, H: 10}) // self-positioned
+	o := NewOverlay(content)
+	o.Push(layer)
+	o.SetBounds(Rect{X: 0, Y: 0, W: 100, H: 80})
+	if content.Bounds() != (Rect{X: 0, Y: 0, W: 100, H: 80}) {
+		t.Errorf("Content not filled: %+v", content.Bounds())
+	}
+	if layer.Bounds() != (Rect{X: 5, Y: 5, W: 10, H: 10}) {
+		t.Errorf("layer bounds should be untouched: %+v", layer.Bounds())
+	}
+}
+
+func TestOverlayDrawsContentThenLayers(t *testing.T) {
+	content := &recordingWidget{}
+	l1, l2 := &recordingWidget{}, &recordingWidget{}
+	o := NewOverlay(content)
+	o.Push(l1)
+	o.Push(l2)
+	o.Draw(newP(makeSurface(10, 10), 10), DefaultLight())
+	if content.draws != 1 || l1.draws != 1 || l2.draws != 1 {
+		t.Errorf("draw counts: content=%d l1=%d l2=%d, want 1 each",
+			content.draws, l1.draws, l2.draws)
+	}
+}
+
+func TestOverlayNilContentDrawNoPanic(t *testing.T) {
+	o := NewOverlay(nil)
+	o.SetBounds(Rect{X: 0, Y: 0, W: 10, H: 10}) // Content nil branch
+	o.Draw(newP(makeSurface(10, 10), 10), DefaultLight())
+	o.OnEvent(Event{Kind: EventClick, X: 1, Y: 1}) // Content nil, no layers
+}
+
+func TestOverlayEventTopLayerCaptures(t *testing.T) {
+	content := &recordingWidget{}
+	bottom := &recordingWidget{}
+	top := &recordingWidget{}
+	// Both layers cover (10,10); top is pushed last so it wins there.
+	bottom.SetBounds(Rect{X: 0, Y: 0, W: 40, H: 40})
+	top.SetBounds(Rect{X: 0, Y: 0, W: 20, H: 20})
+	o := NewOverlay(content)
+	o.Push(bottom)
+	o.Push(top)
+
+	// Point inside both → topmost captures.
+	o.OnEvent(Event{Kind: EventClick, X: 10, Y: 10})
+	if len(top.events) != 1 || len(bottom.events) != 0 || len(content.events) != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("top should capture: top=%d bottom=%d content=%d",
+			len(top.events), len(bottom.events), len(content.events))
+	}
+	// Point inside bottom only (30,30 is outside top's 20x20) → bottom captures.
+	o.OnEvent(Event{Kind: EventClick, X: 30, Y: 30})
+	if len(bottom.events) != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("bottom should capture the miss-of-top: %d", len(bottom.events))
+	}
+}
+
+func TestOverlayEventFallsThroughToContent(t *testing.T) {
+	content := &recordingWidget{}
+	layer := &recordingWidget{}
+	layer.SetBounds(Rect{X: 0, Y: 0, W: 10, H: 10})
+	o := NewOverlay(content)
+	o.Push(layer)
+	// Point outside every layer → non-modal overlay routes to Content.
+	o.OnEvent(Event{Kind: EventClick, X: 50, Y: 50})
+	if len(content.events) != 1 || len(layer.events) != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("miss should reach content: content=%d layer=%d",
+			len(content.events), len(layer.events))
+	}
+}
+
+func TestOverlayModalSwallowsMiss(t *testing.T) {
+	content := &recordingWidget{}
+	layer := &recordingWidget{}
+	layer.SetBounds(Rect{X: 0, Y: 0, W: 10, H: 10})
+	o := NewOverlay(content)
+	o.Modal = true
+	o.Push(layer)
+	// Miss while a layer is up → swallowed, Content untouched.
+	o.OnEvent(Event{Kind: EventClick, X: 50, Y: 50})
+	if len(content.events) != 0 {
+		t.Fatalf("modal backdrop should swallow the miss, content got %d", len(content.events))
+	}
+	// With no layers, even Modal falls through to Content.
+	o.Clear()
+	o.OnEvent(Event{Kind: EventClick, X: 50, Y: 50})
+	if len(content.events) != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("modal w/o layers should reach content: %d", len(content.events))
+	}
+}