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Components

Tabs

Use with caution: Available
Tabs organize related groups of content within the same hierarchy into parallel views that a user can easily navigate between.

Examples

GI Bill Comparison Tool

GI bill comparison tool tabs

Facility locator mobile view

facility locator mobile tabs

Usage

Because tabs stack horizontally or wrap to a second line, they’re not an optimal design solution for mobile viewports. In some cases, using 2 tabs (only) to present a set of complementary options is acceptable.

When to use tabs

  • To group 2 to 3 pieces of related content that the user doesn’t need to read at the same time.
  • To allow the user to easily toggle between a binary set of options, like Search by name/Search by location or View list/View map.

When to consider something else

  • Consider using a single-select accordion to display one chunk of content at a time.
  • If your content is hierarchical and/or sequential, consider using a single page of well-formatted headings and body text.

Behavior and design

  • Allow the user to click anywhere on a tab to select it.
  • Make sure the selected tab is highlighted and visually connected to the content below it.
  • Never let a row of tabs wrap to a second line.
  • Keep the interaction design simple. Document selected and not selected tab styles along with the focus state for each style. Hover and active states are optional for tabs.

Content considerations

  • Keep tab labels succinct and use plain language. Labels should be 1 to 2 words.
  • Use sentence case for tab labels.

Accessibility considerations

Component checklist

Maturity

Guidance
Examples, usage, code usage, content considerations, and accessibility considerations are all complete.
Research
VFS team conducted research on this component which is linked from this page.
Stability
Component has been in production for more than 3 months with no significant issues found.
Note: This component has mobile accessibility issues and should be used sparingly.
Adoption
Multiple teams have adopted this component.

Accessibility

While this component has been previously tested against older criteria, it has not yet been audited with the updated testing criteria.

Code assets

Variations
Storybook includes all variations (style, size, orientation, optional iconography, selection, error state, etc.)
Responsive
Component depicted in all responsive breakpoints.
Interactive states
Includes all interactive states that are applicable (hover, active, focus, keyboard focus, disabled).
Tokens
All design attributes (color, typography, layout, etc.) are available as tokens.
Internationalization
Describes i18n attributes.

Visual assets

Variations
Sketch library includes all variations (style, size, orientation, optional iconography, selection, error state, etc.)
Responsive
Component designed to work in all responsive breakpoints.
Interactive states
Includes all interactive states that are applicable (hover, active, focus, keyboard focus, disabled).
Tokens
All design attributes (color, typography, layout, etc.) are available as tokens.
20% complete (2 of 10)

Legend:

  • Complete
  • Incomplete
  • Not applicable
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Last updated: Feb 12, 2025