Fields & selection

Dropdown

An accessible controlled listbox for choosing one option in compact space.

DropdownDropdownPropsDropdownOption

Component workbench

Configure the production component, inspect it at responsive widths, copy synchronized JSX, and share the exact state from one workspace.

Sort by

Generated example

This JSX stays synchronized with the controls and uses only public package APIs.

tsx

'use client';

import { useState } from 'react';
import { Dropdown } from '@ai-created/ui';

const options = [
  { value: 'recent', label: 'Most recent' },
  { value: 'name', label: 'Name' },
  { value: 'status', label: 'Status' },
];

export function Example() {
  const [value, setValue] = useState("recent");

  return (
    <Dropdown
      options={options}
      value={value}
      onChange={setValue}
      label={"Sort by"}
    />
  );
}

Import

tsx

import { Dropdown, type DropdownOption } from '@ai-created/ui';

Client boundary

Add 'use client' to the file that owns this interactive state.

Install from a reviewed release

Replace the version placeholder with the release tag your product has reviewed.

shell

npm install --install-links "git+https://github.com/TheMarco/ai-created-ui.git#vX.Y.Z"

Load semantic tokens

css

@import '@ai-created/ui/styles/tokens.css';

@tailwind base;
@tailwind components;
@tailwind utilities;

Extend Tailwind

module.exports = {
  presets: [require('@ai-created/ui/tailwind-preset')],
  content: [
    './src/**/*.{js,ts,jsx,tsx,mdx}',
    './node_modules/@ai-created/ui/src/**/*.{js,ts,jsx,tsx}',
  ],
};

Anatomy

Named regions define what belongs to the component, what remains optional, and where semantic responsibility lives.

Listbox root

Required

Headless UI state and semantic owner.

Label

Required

Persistent visible listbox name.

Trigger

Required

Current selection or placeholder and disclosure icon.

button

Options panel

Required

Anchored, scrollable list of values.

Option

Required

Selectable row with optional check marker and disabled state.

Construction and authoring

The Figma-equivalent asset model, auto-layout, resizing, properties, slots, content bounds, localization, and governance contract.

Asset kind

component

Design library name

Components/Forms/Dropdown

Maturity

stable

Last reviewed

2026-08-29

Canvas applicability

Publish closed and open variants with nested option instances and selected state.

Auto layout

Direction: vertical
Gap: 8px label gap; 4px trigger to menu
Padding: 0px
Alignment: Stretch
Wrap: Menu options do not wrap by default

Resizing

Width: fill
Height: hug
Minimum width: 200px
Maximum width: Parent controlled
Minimum height: 44px closed
Maximum height: Menu maximum 240px plus trigger
Overflow: visible

Menu width matches the trigger and scrolls after its maximum height.

Exposed design properties

Property	Type	Default	Code mapping	Options or notes
LabelRequired	text	Select option	label	No additional constraint
Selected valueRequired	variant	None	value	No additional constraint
Placeholder	text	Select an option	placeholder	No additional constraint
Disabled	boolean	false	disabled	No additional constraint
Open preview	boolean	false	Internal Headless UI state; no public prop	No additional constraint
OptionsRequired	slot	None	options	No additional constraint

Nested assets and slots

Listbox label

primitive / required

Accessible field label.

ListboxLabel

Trigger

subcomponent / required

Current value and chevron button.

ListboxButton

Options panel

subcomponent / required

Anchored, scrollable menu.

ListboxOptions

Option

subcomponent / required

Repeatable selected, active, or disabled row.

DropdownOption data item

Content limits

Options

Recommended two to fifteen options

Overflow: Use search or autocomplete for larger datasets.

A long unfiltered list is inefficient.

Option label

One line, recommended maximum 40 characters

Overflow: Truncate visually only when the full value is otherwise available.

Menu scanning depends on concise parallel labels.

Localization and RTL

Translatable: Label, Placeholder, Option labels

Text and chevron align to logical sides.
Menu anchors to logical start.
Test longest option.
Test a translated placeholder.
Test keyboard navigation in right-to-left mode.

Responsive behavior

Trigger fills its form column; menu matches trigger width.

No internal breakpoint

Keep the menu inside the viewport.
Use a full-screen selection pattern only in a product-level mobile adaptation.

Authoring limits

Figma open state does not validate focus movement, collision handling, or scrolling.
Options use stable untranslated values and localized labels.

Accountable owner

Design systems form foundations owner

Canonical source: src/components/Dropdown.tsx

Selection behavior changes require Headless UI parity and keyboard testing.
A breaking property, token, or behavior change requires design and engineering approval, a migration note, and a major release.
The design asset, implementation, documentation, accessibility contract, and regression coverage must ship in the same change.

Read the system construction standard

Visual specification

These measurements and semantic tokens define the supported visual contract. Local overrides should preserve the same hierarchy and interaction cues.

Label-to-trigger gap

8px

Trigger padding

16px left / 40px right / 12px vertical

Option padding

40px left / 16px right / 12px vertical

Radius

6px

Panel maximum height

240px

Panel offset

4px

Icons

16 × 16px

Rules

Keep option labels on one line when possible; rows truncate overflow.
The panel width follows the trigger.
Use the placeholder only before a meaningful value is selected.

Token dependencies

--color-surface2

Trigger and active option background.

--color-surface

Options panel.

--color-control-border / --color-control-border-strong

Trigger resting and hover boundaries.

--color-border

Options panel border.

--color-focus

Trigger focus outline.

--color-accent

Selected check marker.

--shadow-elevation-medium / --layer-dropdown

Options elevation and stacking.

States and behavior

A component is not complete until its passive, interactive, disabled, and exceptional states remain understandable in both themes.

closed

Trigger: Listbox is idle.
Visual response: Label and trigger show the current value or placeholder.
Behavior: Activation opens the options panel.

open

Trigger: Trigger is activated.
Visual response: Anchored options panel appears below the trigger.
Behavior: Focus and keyboard navigation move through options.
Accessibility: Headless UI exposes expanded and listbox relationships.

selected

Trigger: Option value matches value.
Visual response: Primary text, medium weight, and accent check.
Behavior: Choosing another option calls onChange and closes.

disabled

Trigger: Group or option is disabled.
Visual response: 50% opacity and not-allowed cursor.
Behavior: Disabled trigger cannot open; disabled option cannot select.

Accessibility contract

Semantics, accessible naming, keyboard behavior, focus and announcements are implementation requirements, not optional documentation.

Semantics: Headless UI Listbox with labelled button, options, and managed focus.
Accessible name: Required visible label names the listbox.

Use stable unique option values.
Provide a selected value that exists in options or intentionally show the placeholder.
Disabled options must not be the only way to explain unavailable choices.
Do not replace the listbox with a native select when rich behavior is unnecessary without considering platform benefits.

Keyboard behavior

Enter / Space / Arrow Down: Opens the listbox and enters option navigation.
Arrow Up / Arrow Down: Moves the active option.
Enter / Space: Selects the active option.
Escape: Closes without changing selection.
Home / End: Moves to the first / last enabled option.
Typeahead: Moves to an option matching typed characters.

Implementation

Use the public package API and preserve the controlled-state, native-attribute, and ref contracts described below.

tsx

import { Dropdown, type DropdownOption } from '@ai-created/ui';

Client Component required

Generic string values preserve domain types.
The trigger button ref is forwarded.
Headless UI owns option roles, focus, and dismissal.
An Enter handler normalizes trigger opening behavior.

tsx

<Dropdown options={options} value={sort} onChange={setSort} label="Sort by" />

Public API

These props and helpers are compatibility contracts. Changes require migration guidance and release notes.

Prop	Type	Default	Contract
options	DropdownOption<T>[]	required	Options with value, label, and optional disabled.
value	T	required	Controlled selected value.
onChange	(value: T) => void	required	Called on selection.
label	string	required	Listbox label.
placeholder	string	Select an option	Fallback text.
disabled	boolean	false	Disables the listbox.

Usage guidance

These rules keep the component recognizable across products without preventing deliberate composition.

Do

Use for a moderate set of short, known options.
Sort or group options in a predictable domain order.

Do not

Do not use for two or three choices that should stay visible.
Do not use for large datasets that require search or virtualization.

Testing contract

The component should be verified as rendered UI, an interaction model, an accessibility surface, and a theme-aware visual artifact.

Unit

Resolves selected label and placeholder and forwards trigger ref.
Calls onChange with the selected enabled value.

Interaction

Open, arrow, select, escape, outside dismissal, typeahead, and disabled flows work.

Accessibility

Label, expanded state, active descendant/option semantics, and focus restoration are valid.

Visual

Capture closed/open, placeholder, selected, active, disabled option/trigger, overflow, themes, and top alignment beside a Field with an equal-height label.

Related specifications

radio-group field