How to create an animated toggle with Tailwind CSS

Live Demo Get the code

It’s toggle day! Let’s create a toggle that animates when you click it only with Tailwind CSS. Zero JavaScript required!

What is a toggle?

A toggle is a button that can be toggled on or off. It’s a common UI element that is used in many applications. For example, a toggle button can be used to turn on or off a light or a feature in an application. ( Like the one we have in the demo ).

Use Cases

Toggle a light or a feature in an application.
Toggle a button to show or hide content.
Toggle a button to expand or collapse a menu.
Toggle a button to open or close a modal.
Toggle a button to enable or disable a feature. and many more!

Let’s start writing the code.

The Wrapper

First, let’s create the wrapper for the toggle. We’ll use the label element to wrap the toggle and the input element to toggle the state of the toggle. The input element is hidden by default and will be shown when the user clicks on the toggle. We’ll use the for attribute to associate the input element with the id of the toggle. Finally, we’ll use the aria-labelledby attribute to associate the label with the toggle. This will make the label accessible to screen readers.

for="theme-toggle": Associates the input element with the id of the toggle.

We’ll use the sr-only class to hide the text from the screen and only show it to screen readers.

 <span class="sr-only">Toggle theme</span>

The SVGs

We’ll use a sun and a moon SVG to represent the toggle state. So let’s position them on the left and right side of the toggle.

Light mode SVG

absolute: Positions the SVG absolutely.
left-[0.5em]: Positions the SVG on the left side of the toggle.
top-1/2: Positions the SVG in the middle of the toggle.
flex: Makes the SVG a flex container.
size-8: Sets the size of the SVG.
-translate-y-1/2: Moves the SVG up by half its height.
items-center: Centers the SVG vertically.
justify-center: Centers the SVG horizontally.
aria-hidden="true": Hides the SVG from screen readers.

<svg class="absolute left-[0.5em] top-1/2  size-8 -translate-y-1/2 items-center justify-center " aria-hidden="true"></svg>

Dark mode SVG

absolute: Positions the SVG absolutely.
right-[0.5em]: Positions the SVG on the right side of the toggle.
top-1/2: Positions the SVG in the middle of the toggle.
size-8: Sets the size of the SVG.
-translate-y-1/2: Moves the SVG up by half its height.

<svg class="absolute right-[0.5em] top-1/2 size-8 -translate-y-1/2  items-center justify-center" aria-hidden="true"></svg>

The input

We’ll use the input element to toggle the state of the toggle. The input element is hidden by default and will be shown when the user clicks on the toggle. We’ll use the for attribute to associate the input element with the id of the toggle.

peer: Makes the input element a peer element.
sr-only: Hides the input element from the screen.
id="theme-toggle": Associates the input element with the id of the toggle.
name="theme-toggle": Associates the input element with the name of the toggle.
type="checkbox": Specifies that the input element is a checkbox.
aria-labelledby="theme-toggle-label": Associates the input element with the id of the label.

<input
    class="peer sr-only"
    id="theme-toggle"
    name="theme-toggle"
    type="checkbox"
    aria-labelledby="theme-toggle-label"
/>

The slider

We’ll use the span element to create the slider. We’ll use the id of the slider to associate it with the id of the toggle.

absolute: Positions the slider absolutely.
left-[0.25em]: Positions the slider on the left side of the toggle.
top-1/2: Positions the slider in the middle of the toggle.
flex: Makes the slider a flex container.
size-10: Sets the size of the slider.
-translate-y-1/2: Moves the slider up by half its height.
items-center: Centers the slider vertically.
justify-center: Centers the slider horizontally.
rounded-full: Rounds the slider.
transition-all: Transitions the background color of the slider.
duration-300: Sets the duration of the transition to 300 milliseconds.
peer-checked:left-[calc(100%-2.75em)]: Moves the slider to the right when the toggle is checked.
peer-focus:ring-2: Adds a focus ring to the slider when the toggle is focused.
peer-focus:ring-blue-400: Sets the focus ring color to blue.

<span
 id="theme-toggle-label"
 class="absolute left-[0.25em] top-1/2 flex size-10 -translate-y-1/2 items-center justify-center rounded-full bg-orange-600 to-neutral-400 transition-all duration-300 peer-checked:left-[calc(100%-2.75em)] peer-focus:ring-2 peer-focus:ring-blue-400"
 aria-hidden="true">
</span>

Tehg whole markdown

<label
  for="theme-toggle"
  class="flex items-center cursor-pointer relative h-12 w-24 rounded-full bg-neutral-100 ring-1 ring-inset ring-white shadow mx-auto"
>
  <span class="sr-only">Toggle theme</span>
  <!--- Light mode SVG -->
  <svg
    class="absolute left-[0.5em] top-1/2 flex size-8 -translate-y-1/2 items-center justify-center text-orange-600"
    aria-hidden="true"
  >
  </svg>
  <!--- Dark mode SVG -->
  <svg
    class="absolute right-[0.5em] top-1/2 size-8 -translate-y-1/2 rounded-full text-orange-600"
    aria-hidden="true"
  >
  </svg>
  <input
    class="peer sr-only"
    id="theme-toggle"
    name="theme-toggle"
    type="checkbox"
    aria-labelledby="theme-toggle-label"
  />
  <span
    id="theme-toggle-label"
    class="absolute left-[0.25em] top-1/2 flex size-10 -translate-y-1/2 items-center justify-center rounded-full bg-orange-600 to-neutral-400 transition-all duration-300 peer-checked:left-[calc(100%-2.75em)] peer-focus:ring-2 peer-focus:ring-blue-400"
    aria-hidden="true"
  ></span>
</label>

Conclusion

That’s it! You now know how to create an animated toggle with Tailwind CSS. You can use this code as a starting point for your own toggle. Make sure to make it accessible to screen readers.

Have a great day!

/Michael Andreuzza

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