@spectrum-web-components/action-group

Description

sp-action-group delivers a set of action buttons in horizontal or vertical orientation while ensuring the appropriate spacing between those buttons. The compact attribute merges these buttons so that they are visually joined to clarify their relationship to each other and their distance from other buttons/groups.

Usage

yarn add @spectrum-web-components/action-group

Import the side effectful registration of <sp-action-group> via:

import '@spectrum-web-components/action-group/sp-action-group.js';

When looking to leverage the ActionGroup base class as a type and/or for extension purposes, do so via:

import { ActionGroup } from '@spectrum-web-components/action-group';

Sizes

Extra Small

<sp-action-group size="xs">
    <sp-action-button>Extra Small 1</sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button>Extra Small 2</sp-action-button>
</sp-action-group>

Small

<sp-action-group size="s">
    <sp-action-button>Small 1</sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button>Small 2</sp-action-button>
</sp-action-group>

Medium

<sp-action-group size="m">
    <sp-action-button>Medium 1</sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button>Medium 2</sp-action-button>
</sp-action-group>

Large

<sp-action-group size="l">
    <sp-action-button>Large 1</sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button>Large 2</sp-action-button>
</sp-action-group>

Extra Large

<sp-action-group size="xl">
    <sp-action-button>Extra Large 1</sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button>Extra Large 2</sp-action-button>
</sp-action-group>

Selects

An <sp-action-group selects="single|multiple"> will manage a selected property that consists on an array of the <sp-action-button> children that are currently selected. A change event is dispatched from the <sp-action-group> element when the value of selected is updated. This event can be canceled via event.preventDefault(), after which the value of selected will be returned to what it was previously.

When a selection can be made, it is a good idea to supply the group of options with accessible text that names the group of buttons. This can be done in a non-visual way via the label attribute of the <sp-action-group> element. You can also associate the <sp-action-group> to a second, visible DOM element via the aria-labelledby attribute or, when available, via the for attribute on the second element to make the association in the other direction.

Single

An <sp-action-group selects="single"> will manage its <sp-action-button> children as "radio buttons" allowing the user to select a single one of the buttons presented. The <sp-action-button> children will only be able to turn their selected value on while maintaining a single selection after an initial selection is made.

<sp-action-group
    selects="single"
    emphasized
    label="Single Selection Demo Group"
>
    <sp-action-button>
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        Button 1
    </sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button selected>
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        Longer Button 2
    </sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button>
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        Short 3
    </sp-action-button>
</sp-action-group>

Multiple

An <sp-action-group selects="multiple"> will manage its <sp-action-button> children as "checkboxes" allowing the user to select a multiple of the buttons presented. The <sp-action-button> children will toggle their selected value on and off when clicked successively.

<sp-action-group
    selects="multiple"
    emphasized
    label="Multiple Selection Demo Group"
>
    <sp-action-button selected>
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        Button 1
    </sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button>
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        Longer Button 2
    </sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button selected>
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        Short 3
    </sp-action-button>
</sp-action-group>

Selected

The selected property represents the selection state within a button group. This property can be managed either by the component or by the user. Passing in an array of button values will make <sp-action-group> a controllable component. Though selected would more commonly be set via Javascript expressions (i.e. <sp-action-group .selected=${["first"]}>), it is also possible to set selected as a JSON string.

<sp-action-group selects="single" selected='["first"]'>
    <sp-action-button value="first">First</sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button value="second">Second</sp-action-button>
</sp-action-group>

By default, an <sp-action-group> will select any button passed into selected. Afterwards, .selects controls how button values are added to the selection state. For example, if .selects is not specified when selected is set, any further interaction will result in no change to the selection.

<sp-action-group selected='["first", "second"]'>
    <sp-action-button value="first">First</sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button value="second">Second</sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button value="third">Third</sp-action-button>
</sp-action-group>

Similarly, if selected contains more than one button value, but selects = "single", then those initial buttons will be highlighted, but further interaction will result in radio-button functionality.

<sp-action-group selects="single" selected='["first", "second"]'>
    <sp-action-button value="first">First</sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button value="second">Second</sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button value="third">Third</sp-action-button>
</sp-action-group>

Horizontal

By default, an <sp-action-group> will organize its child buttons horizontally and the delivery of those buttons can be modified with the compact, emphasized, or quiet attributes.

<sp-action-group>
    <sp-action-button>
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        Button 1
    </sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button>
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        Longer Button 2
    </sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button>
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        Short 3
    </sp-action-button>
</sp-action-group>
<br />
<sp-action-group compact>
    <sp-action-button>
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        Button 1
    </sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button>
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        Longer Button 2
    </sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button>
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        Short 3
    </sp-action-button>
</sp-action-group>
<br />
<sp-action-group quiet>
    <sp-action-button label="Zoom in">
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
    </sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button label="Zoom in">
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
    </sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button label="Zoom in">
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
    </sp-action-button>
</sp-action-group>
<br />
<sp-action-group compact emphasized>
    <sp-action-button label="Zoom in">
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
    </sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button label="Zoom in">
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
    </sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button label="Zoom in">
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
    </sp-action-button>
</sp-action-group>

Vertical

The use of the vertical attribute instructs the <sp-action-group> element to organize its child buttons vertically, while accepting the same compact, emphasized, and quiet attributes as modifiers.

<div style="display: flex; justify-content: space-around;">
    <sp-action-group vertical>
        <sp-action-button>
            <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
            Button 1
        </sp-action-button>
        <sp-action-button>
            <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
            Longer Button 2
        </sp-action-button>
        <sp-action-button>
            <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
            Short 3
        </sp-action-button>
    </sp-action-group>
    <sp-action-group vertical compact>
        <sp-action-button>
            <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
            Button 1
        </sp-action-button>
        <sp-action-button>
            <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
            Longer Button 2
        </sp-action-button>
        <sp-action-button>
            <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
            Short 3
        </sp-action-button>
    </sp-action-group>
    <sp-action-group vertical quiet>
        <sp-action-button label="Zoom in">
            <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        </sp-action-button>
        <sp-action-button label="Zoom in">
            <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        </sp-action-button>
        <sp-action-button label="Zoom in">
            <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        </sp-action-button>
    </sp-action-group>
    <sp-action-group compact vertical>
        <sp-action-button label="Zoom in">
            <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        </sp-action-button>
        <sp-action-button label="Zoom in">
            <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        </sp-action-button>
        <sp-action-button label="Zoom in">
            <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        </sp-action-button>
    </sp-action-group>
</div>

Justified

The justified attribute will cause the <sp-action-group> element to fill the available horizontal space and evenly distribute that space across its child button elements.

<sp-action-group justified>
    <sp-action-button>
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        Button 1
    </sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button>
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        Longer Button 2
    </sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button>
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        Short 3
    </sp-action-button>
</sp-action-group>
<br />
<sp-action-group justified compact>
    <sp-action-button>
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        Button 1
    </sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button>
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        Longer Button 2
    </sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button>
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
        Short 3
    </sp-action-button>
</sp-action-group>
<br />
<sp-action-group justified quiet>
    <sp-action-button label="Zoom in">
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
    </sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button label="Zoom in">
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
    </sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button label="Zoom in">
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
    </sp-action-button>
</sp-action-group>
<br />
<sp-action-group compact justified>
    <sp-action-button label="Zoom in">
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
    </sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button label="Zoom in">
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
    </sp-action-button>
    <sp-action-button label="Zoom in">
        <sp-icon-magnify slot="icon"></sp-icon-magnify>
    </sp-action-button>
</sp-action-group>

Accessibility

The accessibility role for an <sp-action-group> element depends on the manner in which items are selected. By default, <sp-action-group selects="single"> will have role="radiogroup", because it manages its children as a "radio group", while <sp-action-group> or <sp-action-group selects="multiple"> will have role="toolbar", which makes sense for a group of buttons or checkboxes between which one can navigate using the arrow keys.

When more than one <sp-action-group> elements are combined together with in a toolbar, the role attribute for <sp-action-group> or <sp-action-group selects="multiple"> should be overwritten using role="group" or role="presentation", so that toolbars are not nested, as demonstrated in the following example of a hypothetical toolbar for formatting text within a rich text editor:

<div
    aria-label="Text Formatting"
    role="toolbar"
    style="height: 32px; display: flex; gap: 6px"
>
    <sp-action-group
        aria-label="Text Style"
        selects="multiple"
        role="group"
        compact
        emphasized
    >
        <sp-action-button label="Bold" value="bold">
            <sp-icon-text-bold slot="icon"></sp-icon-text-bold>
        </sp-action-button>
        <sp-action-button label="Italic" value="italic">
            <sp-icon-text-italic slot="icon"></sp-icon-text-italic>
        </sp-action-button>
        <sp-action-button label="Underline" value="underline">
            <sp-icon-text-underline slot="icon"></sp-icon-text-underline>
        </sp-action-button>
    </sp-action-group>
    <sp-divider
        size="s"
        style="align-self: stretch; height: auto;"
        vertical
    ></sp-divider>
    <sp-action-group
        aria-label="Text Align"
        selects="single"
        compact
        emphasized
    >
        <sp-action-button label="Left" value="left" selected>
            <sp-icon-text-align-left slot="icon"></sp-icon-text-align-left>
        </sp-action-button>
        <sp-action-button label="Center" value="center">
            <sp-icon-text-align-center slot="icon"></sp-icon-text-align-center>
        </sp-action-button>
        <sp-action-button label="Right" value="right">
            <sp-icon-text-align-right slot="icon"></sp-icon-text-align-right>
        </sp-action-button>
        <sp-action-button label="Justify" value="justify">
            <sp-icon-text-align-justify
                slot="icon"
            ></sp-icon-text-align-justify>
        </sp-action-button>
    </sp-action-group>
    <sp-divider
        size="s"
        style="align-self: stretch; height: auto;"
        vertical
    ></sp-divider>
    <sp-action-group
        aria-label="List Style"
        selects="multiple"
        role="group"
        compact
        emphasized
    >
        <sp-action-button
            label="Bulleted"
            value="bulleted"
            onclick="
                /* makes mutually exclusive checkbox */
                this.selected &&
                    requestAnimationFrame(() => this.parentElement.selected = []);
                this.parentElement.selected = [];
            "
        >
            <sp-icon-text-bulleted slot="icon"></sp-icon-text-bulleted>
        </sp-action-button>
        <sp-action-button
            label="Numbering"
            value="numbering"
            onclick="
                /* makes mutually exclusive checkbox */
                this.selected && 
                    requestAnimationFrame(() => this.parentElement.selected = []);
                this.parentElement.selected = [];
            "
        >
            <sp-icon-text-numbered slot="icon"></sp-icon-text-numbered>
        </sp-action-button>
    </sp-action-group>
    <sp-divider
        size="s"
        style="align-self: stretch; height: auto;"
        vertical
    ></sp-divider>
    <sp-action-group role="presentation" compact>
        <sp-action-button disabled label="Copy" value="copy">
            <sp-icon-copy slot="icon"></sp-icon-copy>
        </sp-action-button>
        <sp-action-button disabled label="Paste" value="paste">
            <sp-icon-paste slot="icon"></sp-icon-paste>
        </sp-action-button>
        <sp-action-button disabled label="Cut" value="cut">
            <sp-icon-cut slot="icon"></sp-icon-cut>
        </sp-action-button>
    </sp-action-group>
</div>

Changelog

1.7.0 (2025-06-11)

Minor Changes

sp-overlay: Fixed : Overlays (like pickers and action menus) were incorrectly closing when scrolling occurred within components. The fix ensures the handleScroll method in OverlayStack only responds to document/body scrolling events and ignores component-level scrolling events, which was the original intention.

sp-card: Fixed: On mobile Chrome (both Android and iOS), scrolling on sp-card components would inadvertently trigger click events. This was caused by the timing-based click detection (200ms threshold) in the pointer event handling, which could misinterpret quick scrolls as clicks. This issue did not affect Safari on mobile devices.

sp-action-button: - Fixed : Action buttons with href attributes now properly detects modifier keys and skips the proxy click, allowing only native browser behavior to proceed.

Patch Changes

sp-styles: Remove unnecessary system theme references to reduce complexity for components that don't need the additional mapping layer.

sp-card: - Fixed: sp-card component relies on sp-popover for certain toggle interactive behaviors, but this dependency was missing from its dependency tree.

sp-menu: Fixes: Icons in menu stories weren't properly responding to theme changes when used in functional story components. Switching to class-based LitElement components ensures proper component lifecycle hooks and shadow DOM context for icon initialization and theme integration.

sp-tabs: Added @spectrum-web-components/action-button as a dependency for Tabs as its used in the direction button.

sp-split-view: Added @spectrum-web-components/shared dependency in splitview since it uses ranDomId from the shared package

sp-textfield: Replace deprecated word-break: break-word with overflow-wrap: break-word to align with modern CSS standards and improve cross-browser compatibility. This property was deprecated in Chrome 44 (July 2015) in favor of the standardized overflow-wrap property.