Skip to main content
Light Dark System

Textarea

<sl-textarea> | SlTextarea
Since 2.0 stable

Textareas collect data from the user and allow multiple lines of text.

<sl-textarea></sl-textarea>
import SlTextarea from '@shoelace-style/shoelace/dist/react/textarea';

const App = () => <SlTextarea />;

Examples

Labels

Use the label attribute to give the textarea an accessible label. For labels that contain HTML, use the label slot instead.

<sl-textarea label="Comments"></sl-textarea>
import SlTextarea from '@shoelace-style/shoelace/dist/react/textarea';

const App = () => <SlTextarea label="Comments" />;

Help Text

Add descriptive help text to a textarea with the help-text attribute. For help texts that contain HTML, use the help-text slot instead.

<sl-textarea label="Feedback" help-text="Please tell us what you think."> </sl-textarea>
import SlTextarea from '@shoelace-style/shoelace/dist/react/textarea';

const App = () => <SlTextarea label="Feedback" help-text="Please tell us what you think." />;

Rows

Use the rows attribute to change the number of text rows that get shown.

<sl-textarea rows="2"></sl-textarea>
import SlTextarea from '@shoelace-style/shoelace/dist/react/textarea';

const App = () => <SlTextarea rows={2} />;

Placeholders

Use the placeholder attribute to add a placeholder.

<sl-textarea placeholder="Type something"></sl-textarea>
import SlTextarea from '@shoelace-style/shoelace/dist/react/textarea';

const App = () => <SlTextarea placeholder="Type something" />;

Filled Textareas

Add the filled attribute to draw a filled textarea.

<sl-textarea placeholder="Type something" filled></sl-textarea>
import SlTextarea from '@shoelace-style/shoelace/dist/react/textarea';

const App = () => <SlTextarea placeholder="Type something" filled />;

Disabled

Use the disabled attribute to disable a textarea.

<sl-textarea placeholder="Textarea" disabled></sl-textarea>
import SlTextarea from '@shoelace-style/shoelace/dist/react/textarea';

const App = () => <SlTextarea placeholder="Textarea" disabled />;

Sizes

Use the size attribute to change a textarea’s size.



<sl-textarea placeholder="Small" size="small"></sl-textarea>
<br />
<sl-textarea placeholder="Medium" size="medium"></sl-textarea>
<br />
<sl-textarea placeholder="Large" size="large"></sl-textarea>
import SlTextarea from '@shoelace-style/shoelace/dist/react/textarea';

const App = () => (
  <>
    <SlTextarea placeholder="Small" size="small"></SlTextarea>
    <br />
    <SlTextarea placeholder="Medium" size="medium"></SlTextarea>
    <br />
    <SlTextarea placeholder="Large" size="large"></SlTextarea>
  </>
);

Prevent Resizing

By default, textareas can be resized vertically by the user. To prevent resizing, set the resize attribute to none.

<sl-textarea resize="none"></sl-textarea>
import SlTextarea from '@shoelace-style/shoelace/dist/react/textarea';

const App = () => <SlTextarea resize="none" />;

Expand with Content

Textareas will automatically resize to expand to fit their content when resize is set to auto.

<sl-textarea resize="auto"></sl-textarea>
import SlTextarea from '@shoelace-style/shoelace/dist/react/textarea';

const App = () => <SlTextarea resize="auto" />;

Importing

If you’re using the autoloader or the traditional loader, you can ignore this section. Otherwise, feel free to use any of the following snippets to cherry pick this component.

Script Import Bundler React

To import this component from the CDN using a script tag:

<script type="module" src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/@shoelace-style/shoelace@2.7.0/cdn/components/textarea/textarea.js"></script>

To import this component from the CDN using a JavaScript import:

import 'https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/@shoelace-style/shoelace@2.7.0/cdn/components/textarea/textarea.js';

To import this component using a bundler:

import '@shoelace-style/shoelace/dist/components/textarea/textarea.js';

To import this component as a React component:

import SlTextarea from '@shoelace-style/shoelace/dist/react/textarea';

Slots

Name Description
label The textarea’s label. Alternatively, you can use the label attribute.
help-text Text that describes how to use the input. Alternatively, you can use the help-text attribute.

Learn more about using slots.

Properties

Name Description Reflects Type Default
name The name of the textarea, submitted as a name/value pair with form data. string ''
value The current value of the textarea, submitted as a name/value pair with form data. string ''
size The textarea’s size. 'small' | 'medium' | 'large' 'medium'
filled Draws a filled textarea. boolean false
label The textarea’s label. If you need to display HTML, use the label slot instead. string ''
helpText
help-text
The textarea’s help text. If you need to display HTML, use the help-text slot instead. string ''
placeholder Placeholder text to show as a hint when the input is empty. string ''
rows The number of rows to display by default. number 4
resize Controls how the textarea can be resized. 'none' | 'vertical' | 'auto' 'vertical'
disabled Disables the textarea. boolean false
readonly Makes the textarea readonly. boolean false
form By default, form controls are associated with the nearest containing <form> element. This attribute allows you to place the form control outside of a form and associate it with the form that has this id. The form must be in the same document or shadow root for this to work. string ''
required Makes the textarea a required field. boolean false
minlength The minimum length of input that will be considered valid. number -
maxlength The maximum length of input that will be considered valid. number -
autocapitalize Controls whether and how text input is automatically capitalized as it is entered by the user. 'off' | 'none' | 'on' | 'sentences' | 'words' | 'characters' -
autocorrect Indicates whether the browser’s autocorrect feature is on or off. string -
autocomplete Specifies what permission the browser has to provide assistance in filling out form field values. Refer to this page on MDN for available values. string -
autofocus Indicates that the input should receive focus on page load. boolean -
enterkeyhint Used to customize the label or icon of the Enter key on virtual keyboards. 'enter' | 'done' | 'go' | 'next' | 'previous' | 'search' | 'send' -
spellcheck Enables spell checking on the textarea. boolean true
inputmode Tells the browser what type of data will be entered by the user, allowing it to display the appropriate virtual keyboard on supportive devices. 'none' | 'text' | 'decimal' | 'numeric' | 'tel' | 'search' | 'email' | 'url' -
defaultValue The default value of the form control. Primarily used for resetting the form control. string ''
validity Gets the validity state object - -
validationMessage Gets the validation message - -
updateComplete A read-only promise that resolves when the component has finished updating.

Learn more about attributes and properties.

Events

Name React Event Description Event Detail
sl-blur onSlBlur Emitted when the control loses focus. -
sl-change onSlChange Emitted when an alteration to the control’s value is committed by the user. -
sl-focus onSlFocus Emitted when the control gains focus. -
sl-input onSlInput Emitted when the control receives input. -
sl-invalid onSlInvalid Emitted when the form control has been checked for validity and its constraints aren’t satisfied. -

Learn more about events.

Methods

Name Description Arguments
focus() Sets focus on the textarea. options: FocusOptions
blur() Removes focus from the textarea. -
select() Selects all the text in the textarea. -
scrollPosition() Gets or sets the textarea’s scroll position. position: { top?: number; left?: number }
setSelectionRange() Sets the start and end positions of the text selection (0-based). selectionStart: number, selectionEnd: number, selectionDirection: 'forward' | 'backward' | 'none'
setRangeText() Replaces a range of text with a new string. replacement: string, start: number, end: number, selectMode: 'select' | 'start' | 'end' | 'preserve'
checkValidity() Checks for validity but does not show a validation message. Returns true when valid and false when invalid. -
getForm() Gets the associated form, if one exists. -
reportValidity() Checks for validity and shows the browser’s validation message if the control is invalid. -
setCustomValidity() Sets a custom validation message. Pass an empty string to restore validity. message: string

Learn more about methods.

Parts

Name Description
form-control The form control that wraps the label, input, and help text.
form-control-label The label’s wrapper.
form-control-input The input’s wrapper.
form-control-help-text The help text’s wrapper.
base The component’s base wrapper.
textarea The internal <textarea> control.

Learn more about customizing CSS parts.