Placeholders

Use loading placeholders for your components or pages to indicate something may still be loading.

How it works

Create placeholders with the .placeholder class and a grid column class (e.g., .col-6) to set the width. They can replace the text inside an element or be added as a modifier class to an existing component.

We apply additional styling to .btns via ::before to ensure the height is respected. You may extend this pattern for other situations as needed, or add a   within the element to reflect the height when actual text is rendered in its place.

CODE

html

<p aria-hidden="true">
  <span class="placeholder col-6"></span>
</p>

html

<a href="#" tabindex="-1" class="btn btn-primary disabled placeholder col-4" aria-hidden="true"></a>

The use of aria-hidden=“true” only indicates that the element should be hidden to screen readers. The loading behavior of the placeholder depends on how authors will actually use the placeholder styles, how they plan to update things, etc. Some JavaScript code may be needed to swap the state of the placeholder and inform AT users of the update.

Width

You can change the width through grid column classes, width utilities, or inline styles.

CODE

html

<span class="placeholder col-6"></span>

html

<span class="placeholder w-75"></span>

html

<span class="placeholder" style="width: 25%;"></span>

Color options

By default, the placeholder uses currentColor. This can be overridden with a custom color or utility class.

CODE

html

<span class="placeholder col-12 bg-primary"></span>

html

<span class="placeholder col-12 bg-secondary"></span>

html

<span class="placeholder col-12 bg-success"></span>

html

<span class="placeholder col-12 bg-info"></span>

html

<span class="placeholder col-12 bg-warning"></span>

html

<span class="placeholder col-12 bg-danger"></span>

html

<span class="placeholder col-12 bg-light"></span>

html

<span class="placeholder col-12 bg-dark"></span>

Sizing

The size of .placeholders are based on the typographic style of the parent element. Customize them with sizing modifiers: .placeholder-lg, .placeholder-sm, or .placeholder-xs.

CODE

html

<span class="placeholder col-12 placeholder-lg"></span>

html

<span class="placeholder col-12"></span>

html

<span class="placeholder col-12 placeholder-sm"></span>

html

<span class="placeholder col-12 placeholder-xs"></span>

Animation

Animate placeholders with .placeholder-glow or .placeholder-wave to better convey the perception of something being actively loaded.

CODE

html

<p class="placeholder-glow">
  <span class="placeholder col-12"></span>
</p>

html

<p class="placeholder-wave">
  <span class="placeholder col-12"></span>
</p>

On Cards

In the example below, we take a typical card component and recreate it with placeholders applied to create a “loading card”. Size and proportions are the same between the two.

Unlimited Music

Listen to your favourite artists and albums whenever wherever online and offline

CODE

html

<div class="card bg-primary bg-opacity-10" style="width:400px">
  <div class="card-body">
    <h4 class="card-title text-purple">Unlimited Music</h4>
    <p class="card-text">
      Listen to your favourite artists and albums whenever wherever online
      and offline
    </p>
  </div>
  <div class="d-flex justify-content-between align-items-center flex-wrap p-2">
    <button type="button" class="btn btn-outline-primary border-0">
      Listen Now
    </button>

    <div>
      <button type="button" class="btn btn-fab mini-fab btn-primary m-1">
        <i class="bi bi-heart-fill"></i>
      </button>
      <button type="button" class="btn btn-fab mini-fab btn-primary m-1">
        <i class="bi bi-share-fill"></i>
      </button>
      <button type="button" class="btn btn-fab mini-fab btn-primary m-1">
        <i class="bi bi-three-dots-vertical"></i>
      </button>
    </div>
  </div>
</div>

html

<div class="card bg-primary bg-opacity-10" style="width:400px">
  <div class="card-body">
    <h4 class="card-title text-purple placeholder-glow">
      <span class="placeholder col-6">&nbsp;</span>
    </h4>
    <p class="card-text placeholder-glow">
      <span class="placeholder col-12"></span>
      <span class="placeholder col-4"></span>
    </p>
  </div>
  <div class="d-flex justify-content-between align-items-center flex-wrap p-2">
    <button type="button" class="btn btn-outline-primary border-0 placeholder disabled col-4 ms-2">
    </button>

    <div>
      <button type="button" class="btn btn-fab mini-fab btn-primary m-1 placeholder disabled">
      </button>
      <button type="button" class="btn btn-fab mini-fab btn-primary m-1 placeholder disabled">
      </button>
      <button type="button" class="btn btn-fab mini-fab btn-primary m-1 placeholder disabled">
      </button>
    </div>
  </div>
</div>

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