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Vertical Layout

Source: TypeScript / Java
Vertical Layout places components top-to-bottom in a column.

Vertical Layout places components top-to-bottom in a column. By default, it has a width of 100% and an undefined height. Its width is constrained by its parent component (i.e., it “fills” the available space). Whereas, its height is determined by the components it contains (i.e., it “hugs” its content).

See Horizontal Layout for information on placing components side-by-side.

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VerticalLayout layout = new VerticalLayout();

Div item1 = new Div("Item 1");
item1.setClassName("example-item");

Div item2 = new Div("Item 2");
item2.setClassName("example-item");

Div item3 = new Div("Item 3");
item3.setClassName("example-item");

layout.add(item1, item2, item3);

Components in a Vertical Layout can be aligned vertically, as you’d expect. However and perhaps surprisingly, they can also be aligned horizontally in a Vertical Layout.

Vertical Alignment

You can position components at the top, middle, or bottom. You can also position them by specifying how the excess space in a layout is distributed among them.

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VerticalLayout layout = new VerticalLayout();
layout.setJustifyContentMode(FlexComponent.JustifyContentMode.CENTER);

Div item1 = new Div("Item 1");
item1.setClassName("example-item");

Div item2 = new Div("Item 2");
item2.setClassName("example-item");

Div item3 = new Div("Item 3");
item3.setClassName("example-item");

layout.add(item1, item2, item3);
Value Description

START (default)

Positions items at the top.

CENTER

Centers items, vertically.

END

Positions items at the bottom.

BETWEEN

Available space is distributed equally among items. However, no space is added before the first item, or after the last.

AROUND

Available space is distributed equally among items. However, the space before the first item and after the last is half of that between items.

EVENLY

Available space is distributed equally among items. The space before the first item and after the last item is the same as between others.

Horizontal Alignment

Components in a Vertical Layout are left-aligned by default, but can be centered, right-aligned or stretched horizontally.

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VerticalLayout layout = new VerticalLayout();
layout.setAlignItems(FlexComponent.Alignment.CENTER);

Div item1 = new Div("Item 1");
item1.setClassName("example-item");

Div item2 = new Div("Item 2");
item2.setClassName("example-item");

Div item3 = new Div("Item 3");
item3.setClassName("example-item");

layout.add(item1, item2, item3);
Value Description

START (default)

Left-aligns items for left-to-right language text (e.g., English). For right-to-left languages (e.g., Arabic, Hebrew), it right-aligns items.

CENTER

Centers items, horizontally.

END

Right-aligns for left-to-right language text. For right-to-left languages, it left-aligns items.

STRETCH

Stretches horizontally items with undefined width.

It’s also possible to align horizontally individual components by overriding the general alignment setting of the layout.

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VerticalLayout layout = new VerticalLayout();
layout.setAlignItems(FlexComponent.Alignment.START);

Div item1 = new Div("Item 1");
item1.setClassName("example-item");
layout.add(item1);
layout.setAlignSelf(Alignment.END, item1);

Div item2 = new Div("Item 2");
item2.setClassName("example-item");
layout.add(item2);
layout.setAlignSelf(Alignment.CENTER, item2);

Div item3 = new Div("Item 3");
item3.setClassName("example-item");
layout.add(item3);

Spacing

Spacing is used to create space between components in the same layout. Spacing can help prevent misclicks and distinguish content areas.

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// VerticalLayout has spacing enabled by default, use setSpacing to
// disable it
VerticalLayout layoutWithoutSpacing = new VerticalLayout();
layoutWithoutSpacing.setSpacing(false);

Five different spacing theme variants are available:

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@state()
private themeVariant = 'spacing-xl';

protected override render() {
  return html`
    <vaadin-vertical-layout
      theme="${this.themeVariant} padding"
      class="height-4xl"
      style="align-items: stretch"
    >
      <div class="example-item">Item 1</div>
      <div class="example-item">Item 2</div>
      <div class="example-item">Item 3</div>
    </vaadin-vertical-layout>
    <vaadin-radio-group
      label="Spacing variant"
      .value="${this.themeVariant}"
      @value-changed="${(event: RadioGroupValueChangedEvent) => {
        this.themeVariant = event.detail.value;
      }}"
    >
      <vaadin-radio-button value="spacing-xs" label="spacing-xs"></vaadin-radio-button>
      <vaadin-radio-button value="spacing-s" label="spacing-s"></vaadin-radio-button>
      <vaadin-radio-button value="spacing" label="spacing"></vaadin-radio-button>
      <vaadin-radio-button value="spacing-l" label="spacing-l"></vaadin-radio-button>
      <vaadin-radio-button value="spacing-xl" label="spacing-xl"></vaadin-radio-button>
    </vaadin-radio-group>
  `;
}
Theme Variant Usage Recommendation

spacing-xs

Extra-small space between items.

spacing-s

Small space between items.

spacing

Medium space between items.

spacing-l

Large space between items.

spacing-xl

Extra-large space between items.

 
VerticalLayout layout = new VerticalLayout();
layout.setSpacing(false);
layout.getThemeList().add("spacing-xs");

Alternatively, the spacing can be set to a custom value:

VerticalLayout layout = new VerticalLayout();
layout.setSpacing(12, Unit.PIXELS);

Padding

Padding is the space allocated between the content in a layout and the outer border. This should not be confused with Margin, which is explained in the next section.

Padding can help distinguish the content in a layout from its surrounding. Padding is applied using the padding theme variant.

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// VerticalLayout has padding enabled by default, use setPadding to
// disable it
VerticalLayout layoutWithoutPadding = new VerticalLayout();
layoutWithoutPadding.setPadding(false);

Margin

Margin is the space around a layout. This is different from Padding, which is explained in the previous section.

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VerticalLayout layoutWithMargin = new VerticalLayout();
layoutWithMargin.setMargin(true);

Wrapping

By default, components in a layout either shrink or overflow when there isn’t enough vertical space. Enable wrapping to allow components to flow onto a new column when space runs out, preventing overflow.

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VerticalLayout layoutWithWrap = new VerticalLayout();
layoutWithWrap.setWrap(true);

Troubleshooting

Component is Smaller than its Specified Size

In some situations, a component with a specific, fixed size is rendered smaller than that size (and its size may vary depending on the size of the UI).

This is usually caused by the component being placed in the same Horizontal or Vertical Layout as another component with 100% (or “full”) size along the same axis.

The reason for this behavior is a combination of two aspects of Horizontal Layout and Vertical Layout:

  • 100% width or height actually means the full width or height of the layout, rather than whatever space is available after any fixed-size items.

  • By default, children of these layouts are allowed to shrink below their specified size. While this allows full-size items to shrink below 100% to make room for other items, it also makes fixed-size items shrink a bit.

There are three main ways to solve this issue:

Prevent the fixed-size element from shrinking

By setting the flex-shrink value of the fixed size component to 0, it is prevented from shrinking below that size.

VerticalLayout layout = new VerticalLayout(fixedSizeComponent, fullSizeComponent);
fixedSizeComponent.setHeight("200px");
fullSizeComponent.setHeightFull();

layout.setFlexShrink(fixedSizeComponent, 0);
// or
fixedSizeComponent.getStyle().setFlexShrink("0");

Use Flex-Grow Instead of 100% Size

Instead of setting a 100% (or “full”) size, you can make a component take all available space by setting its flex-grow value to 1.

VerticalLayout layout = new VerticalLayout(fixedSizeComponent, fullSizeComponent);
fixedSizeComponent.setHeight("200px");

layout.setFlexGrow(fullSizeComponent, 1);
// or
fullSizeComponent.getStyle().setFlexGrow("1");

Enable Layout Improvements (Flow only, experimental)

By enabling the layoutComponentImprovements feature flag, the Flow APIs setWidthFull, setHeightFull and setSizeFull are rewired to automatically apply flex:1 to the component. This prevents fixed-size components from shrinking and makes the full-size component take up the remaining space in the layout.

Component Overflows its Specified Size

This is most commonly noticed on scroll containers like Scroller and TabSheet, or elements that have been scroll-enabled through CSS, but it can occur in other situations as well. The problem often causes extra undesired scrollbars to appear.

This is caused by the default minimum size of a layout item to be equal to the size of its contents.

There are three main ways to solve this issue:

Set an Appropriate Minimum Size

Set the minimum size to 0 or any other specific size.

overFlowingComponent.setMinHeight("0");

Prevent Overflow

You can prevent the component from overflowing by setting the CSS overflow property to hidden. Be aware that this will also clip outlines and box-shadows, such as those used for focus rings.

overFlowingComponent.getStyle().setOverflow(Overflow.HIDDEN);

Enable Layout Improvements (Flow only, experimental)

By enabling the layoutComponentImprovements feature flag, the Flow APIs setWidthFull, setHeightFull and setSizeFull are rewired to also set the minimum size of nested Horizontal and Vertical Layouts to 0, allowing them to shrink below the size of their contents.

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