Dropdown menu
A menu of actions opened from a button.
In Dense data
See it live
Start Storybook to see it live:
npm run storybookWhen to use it
In Dense data: Row actions.
- Use it when: More actions than fit, or actions people use now and then.
- Not when: Choosing a value for a field (select), or the one main action (a button).
Instead:
- Select: Choosing a value.
- Context menu: The same menu on right-click.
How Dense data uses it
A menu or dialog
Use elevation.overlay and a dimmed page for dialogs
Not A border only
Floating things need a shadow so they read as on top.
An action on one row or item
Use Icon button, ghost, compact
Not Button secondary in every row
Rows repeat dozens of times; a quiet icon keeps the table readable.
Words
- Lead with the object, then the state: "Alert 2041 contained."
- Use numbers, not words for numbers.
- One verb per button. No "please", no exclamation marks.
- Use: Investigate, Filter, Assign, Escalated, Resolved. Avoid: Oops, Awesome, Please, Simply.
The labels components use, from the voice tokens:
content.action.commit: Savecontent.action.cancel: Cancelcontent.action.destroy: Deletecontent.action.retry: Retrycontent.action.empty-action: Change filters
See Voice and tone for the whole voice.
Accessibility and keyboard
| Keyboard | What happens | Not |
|---|---|---|
| undefined | Arrows move; Enter runs; Escape closes and returns focus. | undefined |
Test before you ship:
- The trigger says it opens a menu and whether it is open. undefined
Use it in code
npx open-ds add dropdown-menu
The component reads only component keys and semantic tokens, so it follows the brand and mode on <html>.
Tokens it reads
Dropdown menu reads 17 tokens of its own, each an alias of a semantic token. Each row is one part: its own token, the semantic it aliases, and the value it ends at. Change a semantic and every component that reads it follows; override one of Dropdown menu's tokens to change Dropdown menu alone.
Changes with theme
Dense data decides what changes when you switch theme. Here a switch changes colors only, so the marked rows differ between light and dark; everything else holds steady.
| Part | Its token and the semantic it aliases | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Shared | ||
| Overlay background Changes with theme | component.overlay.backgroundcolor.surface.raisedvar(--overlay-background) | Lightslate.light.0:#FFFFFFDarkslate.dark.100:#262D38 |
| Overlay radius | component.overlay.radiusradius.containervar(--overlay-radius) | radius.4:0.25rem |
| Overlay shadow Changes with theme | component.overlay.shadowelevation.overlayvar(--overlay-shadow) | Lightshadow.overlay:0px 8px 24px 0px #0D111729Darkshadow.overlay-dark:0px 8px 24px 0px #00000080 |
| Overlay item height | component.overlay.item-heightsize.control.defaultvar(--overlay-item-height) | size.32:2rem |
| Content | ||
| Padding | component.dropdown-menu.content.paddingcomponent-spacing-map.x1var(--dropdown-menu-content-padding) | space.4:0.25rem |
| Text Changes with theme | component.dropdown-menu.content.labelcolor.text.primaryvar(--dropdown-menu-content-label) | Lightslate.light.900:#161B23Darkslate.dark.900:#F7F8FA |
| Border width | component.dropdown-menu.content.border-widthborder-width.defaultvar(--dropdown-menu-content-border-width) | border-width.1:1px |
| Border Changes with theme | component.dropdown-menu.content.bordercolor.border.defaultvar(--dropdown-menu-content-border) | Lightslate.light.200:#DDE2EADarkslate.dark.100:#262D38 |
| Item | ||
| Gap | component.dropdown-menu.item.gapspace.gap.defaultvar(--dropdown-menu-item-gap) | space.8:0.5rem |
| Padding, left and right | component.dropdown-menu.item.padding-xspace.inset.cell-xvar(--dropdown-menu-item-padding-x) | space.12:0.75rem |
| Corner | component.dropdown-menu.item.radiusradius.badgevar(--dropdown-menu-item-radius) | radius.0:0rem |
| Text size | component.dropdown-menu.item.font-sizetype.body.font-sizevar(--dropdown-menu-item-font-size) | font.size.14:0.875rem |
| Sunken Changes with theme on focus | component.dropdown-menu.item.sunkencolor.surface.sunkenvar(--dropdown-menu-item-sunken) | Lightslate.light.100:#EEF1F5Darkslate.dark.100:#262D38 |
| Disabled when disabled | component.dropdown-menu.item.disabledopacity.disabledvar(--dropdown-menu-item-disabled) | opacity.40:0.4 |
| Icon | component.dropdown-menu.item.iconsize.iconvar(--dropdown-menu-item-icon) | size.16:1rem |
| Dropdown menu | ||
| Text Changes with theme | component.dropdown-menu.labelcolor.status.dangervar(--dropdown-menu-label) | Lightred.light.600:#C42B2BDarkred.dark.600:#F28B8B |
| Fill Changes with theme | component.dropdown-menu.backgroundcolor.border.defaultvar(--dropdown-menu-background) | Lightslate.light.200:#DDE2EADarkslate.dark.100:#262D38 |