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Menu Button

An accessible dropdown menu for the common dropdown menu button design pattern.

Please note that the buttons on this page are styled by this website. They are just buttons, so they will appear the same as any other button in your app.

function Example() {  return (    <Menu>      <MenuButton>        Actions <span aria-hidden>▾</span>      </MenuButton>      <MenuList>        <MenuItem onSelect={() => alert("Download")}>Download</MenuItem>        <MenuItem onSelect={() => alert("Copy")}>Create a Copy</MenuItem>        <MenuItem onSelect={() => alert("Mark as Draft")}>          Mark as Draft        </MenuItem>        <MenuItem onSelect={() => alert("Delete")}>Delete</MenuItem>        <MenuLink as="a" href="https://reacttraining.com/workshops/">          Attend a Workshop        </MenuLink>      </MenuList>    </Menu>  );}

Installation

From the command line in your project directory, run npm install @reach/menu-button or yarn add @reach/menu-button. Then import the components and styles that you need:

npm install @reach/menu-button# oryarn add @reach/menu-button
import {  Menu,  MenuList,  MenuButton,  MenuItem,  MenuItems,  MenuPopover,  MenuLink,} from "@reach/menu-button";import "@reach/menu-button/styles.css";

Component API

The wrapper component for the other components. No DOM element is rendered.

PropTypeRequired
childrennodefalse

children: React.ReactNode | ((props: { isExpanded: boolean }) => React.ReactNode)

Requires two children: a MenuButton and a MenuList.

function Example() {  return (    <Menu>      <MenuButton>Actions</MenuButton>      <MenuList>        <MenuItem>Download</MenuItem>        <MenuLink to="view">View</MenuLink>      </MenuList>    </Menu>  );}

Alternatively, you can provide a render callback. This is helpful if you need to access the internal state of the Menu.

function Example() {  return (    <Menu>      {({ isExpanded }) => (        <React.Fragment>          <MenuButton>            {isExpanded ? "Close" : "Open"} <span aria-hidden="true">▾</span>          </MenuButton>          <MenuList>            <MenuItem>Download</MenuItem>            <MenuItem>Create a Copy</MenuItem>          </MenuList>        </React.Fragment>      )}    </Menu>  );}

Wraps a DOM button that toggles the opening and closing of the dropdown menu. Must be rendered inside of a <Menu>.

<Menu>  <MenuButton>Profile</MenuButton>  {/* ... */}</Menu>

Please see the styling guide.

A <MenuButton> wraps a normal <button> and no styles are applied to it, so any global button styles you have will be applied.

button {  /* your normal button styles will be applied */}

You can use the [data-reach-menu-button] selector to style only the dropdown buttons:

[data-reach-menu-button] {  color: blue;}

If you'd like to target when the menu is open use aria-expanded:

[data-reach-menu-button][aria-expanded="true"] {  background: #000;  color: white;}
PropTypeRequired
button props
childrennodefalse
onMouseDownpreventableEventFuncfalse
onKeyDownpreventableEventFuncfalse

Any props not listed above will be spread onto the underlying button element. You can treat it like any other button in your app for styling.

<Menu>  <MenuButton    className="button-primary"    style={{ boxShadow: "2px 2px 2px hsla(0, 0%, 0%, 0.25)" }}  >    Actions <span aria-hidden>▾</span>  </MenuButton>  <MenuList>    <MenuItem onSelect={() => {}}>Do nothing</MenuItem>  </MenuList></Menu>

as?: keyof JSX.IntrinsicElements | React.ComponentType

A string representing an HTML element or a React component that will tell the MenuButton what underlying element to render. Defaults to button.

NOTE: Many semantic elements, such as button elements, have meaning to assistive devices and browsers that provide context for the user and, in many cases, provide or restrict interactive behaviors. Use caution when overriding our defaults and make sure that the element you choose to render provides the same experience for all users.

children: React.ReactNode

Accepts any renderable content.

<MenuButton>  Actions{" "}  <span aria-hidden>    <Gear />  </span></MenuButton>

Wraps a DOM element that renders the menu items. Must be rendered inside of a <Menu>.

<Menu>  {/* ... */}  <MenuList>    <MenuItem onSelect={() => {}}>Download</MenuItem>  </MenuList></Menu>
[data-reach-menu-list] {  padding: 20px 10px;}
PropTypeRequired
div props
childrennodefalse
portalbooleanfalse

All props are spread to the underlying element. Here we apply a className the element.

function Example() {  return (    <Menu>      <MenuButton>        Actions <span aria-hidden>▾</span>      </MenuButton>      <MenuList className="slide-down">        <MenuItem onSelect={() => {}}>Start Video</MenuItem>        <MenuItem onSelect={() => {}}>Start Screenshare</MenuItem>        <MenuItem onSelect={() => {}}>Send a Message</MenuItem>      </MenuList>    </Menu>  );}

The stylesheet contains these rules to create the animation.

@keyframes slide-down {  0% {    opacity: 0;    transform: translateY(-10px);  }  100% {    opacity: 1;    transform: translateY(0);  }}
.slide-down[data-reach-menu-list],.slide-down[data-reach-menu-items] {  border-radius: 5px;  animation: slide-down 0.2s ease;}

children: React.ReactNode

Can contain only MenuItem or a MenuLink

<MenuList>  <MenuItem />  <MenuLink /></MenuList>

portal?: boolean

Whether or not the popover should be rendered inside a portal. Defaults to true.

A low-level wrapper for the popover that appears when a menu button is open. You can compose it with MenuItems for more control over the nested components and their rendered DOM nodes, or if you need to nest arbitrary components between the outer wrapper and your list.

<Menu>  {/* ... */}  <MenuPopover>    <div className="arbitrary-element">      <MenuItems>        <MenuItem onSelect={() => {}}>Download</MenuItem>      </MenuItems>    </div>  </MenuPopover></Menu>
[data-reach-menu-popover] {}
PropTypeRequired
childrennodetrue
portalbooleanfalse
positionfuncfalse

children: React.ReactNode

portal?: boolean

Whether or not the popover should be rendered inside a portal. Defaults to true.

position?: (targetRect?: DOMRect | null, popoverRect?: DOMRect | null) => React.CSSProperties

A function used to determine the position of the popover in relation to the menu button. By default, the menu button will attempt to position the popover below the button aligned with its left edge. If this positioning results in collisions with any side of the window, the popover will be anchored to a different side to avoid those collisions if possible.

The function accepts the DOMRect of the menu button element, and the DOMRect of the popover element as arguments, and returns a CSS properties object that is then applied to the popover as inline styles.

A low-level wrapper for menu items. Compose it with MenuPopover for more control over the nested components and their rendered DOM nodes, or if you need to nest arbitrary components between the outer wrapper and your list.

See MenuPopover for details.

[data-reach-menu-items] {}

Handles menu selection. Must be a direct child of a <MenuList>.

<MenuList>  <MenuItem onSelect={() => alert("download!")}>Download</MenuItem></MenuList>

Please see the styling guide.

[data-reach-menu-item] {  padding: 20px 10px;}

To change the styles of a highlighted menu item, use this pseudo-pseudo selector:

[data-reach-menu-item][data-selected] {  background: red;}

The following example has this css applied:

.red-highlight[data-reach-menu-item][data-selected] {  background: red;}
function Example() {  return (    <Menu>      <MenuButton>        Actions <span aria-hidden>▾</span>      </MenuButton>      <MenuList>        <MenuItem className="red-highlight" onSelect={() => {}}>          Start Video        </MenuItem>        <MenuItem className="red-highlight" onSelect={() => {}}>          Start Screenshare        </MenuItem>      </MenuList>    </Menu>  );}
PropTypeRequired
element props
asstring | Componentfalse
childrennodefalse
disabledbooleanfalse
onSelectfunctrue

All props are spread to the underlying element.

In this example the onFocus prop is passed down to the element.

function Example(props) {  const [focusCount, setFocusCount] = React.useState(0);  return (    <Menu>      <MenuButton>Actions</MenuButton>      <MenuList>        <MenuItem          onFocus={() => {            setFocusCount((prevFocusCount) => prevFocusCount + 1);          }}          onSelect={() => {}}        >          Focused {focusCount} Times        </MenuItem>        <MenuItem onSelect={() => {}}>Start Screenshare</MenuItem>        <MenuItem onSelect={() => {}}>Send a Message</MenuItem>      </MenuList>    </Menu>  );}

as?: keyof JSX.IntrinsicElements | React.ComponentType

A string representing an HTML element or a React component that will tell the MenuItem what underlying element to render. Defaults to div.

You can pass another element or use this prop to render a styled component.

const StyledItem = styled.div`  &[data-selected] {    background: palevioletred;  }`;
function Example() {  return (    <Menu>      <MenuButton id="example-button">        Actions <span aria-hidden="true">▾</span>      </MenuButton>      <MenuList>        <MenuItem as={StyledItem} onSelect={action("Download")}>          Download        </MenuItem>        <MenuItem as={StyledItem} onSelect={action("Copy")}>          Create a Copy        </MenuItem>        <MenuItem as={StyledItem} onSelect={action("Mark as Draft")}>          Mark as Draft        </MenuItem>        <MenuItem as={StyledItem} onSelect={action("Delete")}>          Delete        </MenuItem>      </MenuList>    </Menu>  );}

children: React.ReactNode

You can put any type of content inside of a <MenuItem>.

function Example(props) {  return (    <Menu>      <MenuButton>        Your Cats <span aria-hidden>▾</span>      </MenuButton>      <MenuList className="kittys">        <MenuItem onSelect={() => {}}>          <img            src="https://placekitten.com/100/100"            alt="Fluffybuns the destroyer"          />          <span>Fluffybuns the Destroyer</span>        </MenuItem>        <MenuItem onSelect={() => {}}>          <img src="https://placekitten.com/120/120" alt="Simon the pensive" />          <span>Simon the pensive</span>        </MenuItem>      </MenuList>    </Menu>  );}

disabled?: boolean

Whether or not the item is disabled from selection and navigation.

onSelect(): void

Callback that fires when a MenuItem is selected.

Handles linking to a different page in the menu. By default it renders <a>, but also accepts any other kind of Link as long as the Link uses the React.forwardRef API.

Must be a direct child of a <MenuList>.

import { Link } from "@reach/router";<MenuList>  <MenuLink as={Link} to="somewhere/else">    Somewhere w/ Reach Router  </MenuLink>  <MenuLink href="https://reactjs.org">Official React Site</MenuLink>  <MenuLink as={GatsbyLink} to="/somewhere/with/gatsby">    Some Gatsby Page  </MenuLink></MenuList>;

Please see the styling guide.

[data-reach-menu-item] {  padding: 20px 10px;}

To change the styles of a highlighted menu item, use this pseudo-pseudo selector:

[data-reach-menu-item][data-selected] {  background: red;}
PropTypeRequired
element props
asstring | Componentfalse
childrennodefalse
disabledbooleanfalse
onSelectfuncfalse

All props are spread to the underlying element

// the `to` prop is spread onto the Reach Router Link<MenuLink as={Link} to="somewhere/else">  Somewhere</MenuLink>
// the `href` prop is spread onto the underlying `a`<MenuLink href="https://reactjs.org">Official React Site</MenuLink>

as?: keyof JSX.IntrinsicElements | React.ComponentType

A string representing an HTML element or a React component that will tell the MenuLink what underlying element to render. Defaults to a.

While MenuLink should always render an HTML anchor tag, this is useful to pass a styled component or if you are using a router and need to use its Link component.

import { Link } from "react-router";<Menu>  <MenuButton>Products</MenuButton>  <MenuList>    <MenuLink as={Link} to="/settings">      Settings    </MenuLink>    <MenuLink href="https://reacttraining.com/workshops">Workshops</MenuLink>    <MenuLink href="https://reacttraining.com/courses">Online Courses</MenuLink>  </MenuList></Menu>;

Additionally, if other routers' Link component uses the React.forwardRef API, you can pass them in as well. If they don’t it won't work because we will not be able to manage focus on the element the component renders.

import { Link } from "gatsby";<MenuLink as={GatsbyLink} to="/somewhere" />;

children: React.ReactNode

You can render any kind of content inside of a MenuLink.

<MenuLink>  <ProfileImage userId="4" />  <UserName>Ryan Florence</UserName></MenuLink>

disabled?: boolean

Whether or not the link is disabled from selection and navigation.

onSelect?(): void

Callback that fires when a MenuLink is selected.

useMenuButtonContext

function useMenuButtonContext(): { isExpanded: boolean }

A hook that exposes data for a given Menu component to its descendants.

Notes

Unmounting the Menu after an action

If one of your menu items causes the <Menu> itself to unmount, it is your job to move focus to the changed content. One exception to this is if you're using MenuLink and Reach Router. In this case, the router will handle focus for you.

Note the callbacks given to setState in the following demo app where focus is managed between screens. If you don't do this you'll drop keyboard and screen reader users off at the top of the document. It'll then be hard for them to know what changed and how to find it. Moving focus helps them stay where you want them the very same way visual design does.

function Example(props) {  const screen1FocusRef = React.useRef();  const screen2ButtonFocusRef = React.useRef();  React.useEffect(() => {    requestAnimationFrame(() => {      if (screen === 1) {        screen1FocusRef.current.focus();      }      if (screen === 2) {        screen2ButtonFocusRef.current.focus();      }    });  }, [screen]);
  const [screen, setScreen] = React.useState(1);  if (screen === 1) {    return (      <div ref={screen1FocusRef} tabIndex="-1">        <h4>Screen One</h4>        <Menu>          <MenuButton>Actions</MenuButton>          <MenuList>            <MenuItem onSelect={() => setScreen(2)}>Go to screen 2</MenuItem>            <MenuItem onSelect={() => {}}>Do nothing</MenuItem>          </MenuList>        </Menu>        <Menu />      </div>    );  }  if (screen === 2) {    return (      <div>        <h4>Screen 2</h4>        <button ref={screen2ButtonFocusRef} onClick={() => setScreen(1)}>          Back to screen 1        </button>      </div>    );  }  return null;}

Icons

If you add an icon to indicate to users the button is a dropdown menu, use aria-hidden on the icon. Screen readers will already announce to the user that the element is a dropdown menu; adding a label to your icon would be redundant.

<MenuButton>  Actions <span aria-hidden>▾</span></MenuButton>

However, if you have no text and only an icon, please make sure your icon has a screen reader friendly label:

// we'd rather it said "Actions" than// "downward pointing triangle"<MenuButton>  <span aria-label="Actions">▾</span></MenuButton>
// add screen reader only text for svgsimport VisuallyHidden from "@reach/visually-hidden"<MenuButton>  <VisuallyHidden>Actions</VisuallyHidden>  <svg aria-hidden>    <polygon points="0,0 20,0 10,10 " />  </svg></MenuButton>
// and your images an alt attribute<MenuButton>  <img src="gear.png" alt="gear"/></MenuButton>
// Or just label the button and hide everything<MenuButton aria-label="Actions">  <span aria-hidden>    <TripleDots/>  </span></MenuButton>

Events

You may want to pass your own click handler to a MenuButton, MenuItem or MenuLink that, in some cases, intercepts and prevents the default behavior from ocurring. You may think to do this by passing a handler to the onClick prop:

<Menu>  <MenuButton>Actions</MenuButton>  <MenuList>    <MenuItem      onClick={(event) => {        if (!userLoggedIn) {          event.preventDefault();          openDialog();        }      }}      onSelect={() => alert("Download")}    >      Download    </MenuItem>  </MenuList></Menu>

This won't work because we actually do not call the onClick handler to activate Menu or select MenuItem or MenuLink components. This is because a user may mouse down on a menu button, drag over a menu item and then select it by releasing the mouse trigger. A user may also start clicking one item, then drag to another item before mouseup to change their selectiion.

As such, events for each component look more like this:

  • MenuButton: Activates Menu in onMouseDown or onKeyDown (Enter or Spacebar keys)
  • MenuItem: Selects itself in onMouseUp or onKeyDown (Enter or Spacebar keys)
  • MenuLink: Selects itself in onMouseUp or onKeyDown (Enter or Spacebar keys).
    • For MenuLink, the click event is fired after the selection events. So if you only need to intercept the event that triggers the anchor link, you can still use onClick, but the rest of the event handlers called in MenuLink will still be which means the Menu will close and your onSelect handler will be triggered.

Keyboard Accessibility

KeyAction
EnterOpen/close while focused on the MenuButton; Selects an item when navigating.
SpacebarOpen/close while focused on the MenuButton; Selects an item when navigating.
ArrowUpHighlight previous item
ArrowDownHighlight next item
HomeHighlight first item
EndHighlight last item
EscapeClose menu
TabNo effect
Type charactersHighlights matching item