SagUI

Command palette

A complete keyboard driven action surface with search, grouped results, and shortcuts.

import { CommandPalette } from "@sagui/ui";
Markdown
Loading demo

When to use

  • App-wide command search opened with Cmd or Ctrl plus K.
  • Jumping to pages, creating items, and running actions from one input.
  • Inline search panels that group results with shortcuts.

When not to use

  • Use combobox to pick a value inside a form.
  • Use dropdown-menu for a short list of actions.
  • Use expanding-search or search-field to search page content.

Installation

Install the package and import the styles once. The installation guide covers the Tailwind setup.

$ npm install @sagui/ui

Usage

example.tsx
import { CommandPalette, type CommandItem } from "@sagui/ui";

const items: CommandItem[] = [
  { id: "new", label: "New project", group: "Create", shortcut: "N" },
  { id: "invite", label: "Invite teammate", group: "Team", keywords: ["member"] },
  { id: "theme", label: "Toggle theme", description: "Switch light and dark" },
];

export function Palette({ onClose }: { onClose: () => void }) {
  return <CommandPalette items={items} onSelect={item => run(item.id)} onClose={onClose} />;
}

Examples

In a dialog

Open it on demand inside a Dialog, with autoFocus so typing starts at once. onClose runs on Escape with an empty query.

Loading demo

API reference

CommandPalette

An inline search-and-run panel: a combobox input over grouped, filtered results with one highlight that follows the active row.

Prop Type Default Description
items (required) CommandItem[] – Commands to search. Filtering matches label, description, group, and keywords.
placeholder string "Search commands" Input placeholder.
onSelect (item: CommandItem) => void – Called on click or Enter. The query then clears and focus returns to the input.
onClose () => void – Called on Escape with an empty query. Also renders an Esc close button.
label string "Command palette" Visually hidden label for the input.

CommandItem

Item type: { id: string; label: string; description?: string; group?: string; keywords?: string[]; icon?: ReactNode; shortcut?: string }. Items without a group land under Actions.

No props.

Keyboard interactions

Keys Action
Cmd/Ctrl+K Focuses the search input from anywhere on the page.
ArrowDownorArrowUp Moves the active result.
HomeorEnd Jumps to the first or last result.
Enter Runs the active result.
Escape Clears the query, or calls onClose when it is already empty.

Accessibility

  • The input is a combobox with aria-controls and aria-activedescendant pointing at the listbox option, so focus never leaves the input.
  • Results are role=option buttons with aria-selected, grouped in labelled role=group containers.
  • It renders inline, not in a modal. Put it in a dialog yourself if it should trap focus and close on outside click.

Motion

  • The panel rises in on a spring; the results frame springs to the list height as the query filters.
  • Remaining rows glide into place when the shift is small and snap when it is a long jump; the highlight springs for pointer moves and slides in 70ms for arrow keys.
  • Reduced motion removes the entrance, glides, and highlight travel.

Responsive behavior

  • It fills its container width; below 480px shortcut hints are hidden and padding tightens.
  • Below 340px the footer drops its last hint.
  • Results scroll inside a 342px maximum height, and long labels ellipsize.

Performance

  • Filtering is a simple substring match over label, description, group, and keywords on every keystroke.
  • Rows are not virtualized and animate with layout; keep lists to a few hundred items or filter on the server.

Notes

  • Use for app-wide command search. For picking a value inside a form use combobox; for a small list of actions use dropdown-menu.
  • Wrap it in dialog and pass onClose to close the dialog; map onSelect to your router or action handlers by item.id.

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