how to set dynamic autocomplete with material ui with code examples

Autocomplete is a user-friendly input element that allows users to select a value from a list of pre-defined options. It's an essential component in modern web design, and it's widely used across many applications and websites. With Material UI, a popular React component library, you can easily create dynamic autocomplete elements that fit seamlessly with your design.

In this article, we'll take a deep dive into how to set up dynamic autocomplete with Material UI using code examples. We'll cover the basics of creating an autocomplete component, integrating it with different data sources, and adding custom styling. By the end of this tutorial, you'll have a robust understanding of how to create dynamic autocomplete elements that work flawlessly with Material UI.

Before diving into the code, let's first take a look at some of the key features of a Material UI autocomplete component.

Key Features of a Material UI Autocomplete Component

1. Dynamic Suggestions: With a Material UI autocomplete component, you can offer dynamic suggestions to users as they type in the input field. These suggestions can be pulled from a variety of data sources, including an API endpoint, a local database, or a pre-defined list of options.

2. Customizable: Material UI offers a wide range of customization options for autocomplete components. You can adjust the styling to match your design, change the input field's behavior, and modify how suggestions are displayed to users.

3. Keyboard Navigation: Users can navigate autocomplete suggestions using keyboard shortcuts, making the experience more efficient and user-friendly.

Now that we've looked at some of the key features let's dive into how to create a Material UI Autocomplete Component.

Creating an Autocomplete Component in Material UI

To create an autocomplete component in Material UI, you'll need to start by installing the required dependencies. You'll need to install the @material-ui/core and @material-ui/lab packages, which provide the basic components and functionality needed for an autocomplete element.

npm install @material-ui/core @material-ui/lab

Once you've installed the dependencies, you can begin implementing your autocomplete component. Here's a basic example of an autocomplete component that uses pre-defined options to suggest choices to the user.

import React, { useState } from "react";
import Autocomplete from "@material-ui/lab/Autocomplete";
import TextField from "@material-ui/core/TextField";

const options = [
  { label: "Option 1" },
  { label: "Option 2" },
  { label: "Option 3" },
  { label: "Option 4" },
  { label: "Option 5" },
];

export default function BasicAutocomplete() {
  const [value, setValue] = useState(null);

  return (
    <Autocomplete
      id="basic-autocomplete"
      options={options}
      getOptionLabel={(option) => option.label}
      value={value}
      onChange={(event, newValue) => {
        setValue(newValue);
      }}
      renderInput={(params) => (
        <TextField {...params} label="Basic Autocomplete" variant="outlined" />
      )}
    />
  );
}

Let's break down what's happening in this example:

1. We're importing the Autocomplete and TextField components from Material UI.

2. We're defining an array of options that we'll use to provide suggestions to the user.

3. We're using the useState hook to manage the current value of the autocomplete element.

4. We're using the Autocomplete and TextField components to create the input field with the suggestions list.

5. We're passing in the options array as the options prop for the Autocomplete component.

6. We're using the getOptionLabel prop to specify how each option object's label property should be displayed to users.

7. We're using the value and onChange props to manage the current value of the autocomplete element.

8. We're using the renderInput prop to specify how the input field should be rendered, including its label and variant.

That's it! You now have a basic autocomplete component in Material UI that suggests choices to users as they type.

Integrating Autocomplete with Data Sources

In the previous example, we used a pre-defined array of options to provide suggestions to the user. However, you may need to integrate your autocomplete component with a dynamic data source, such as an API endpoint or a local database. Fortunately, Material UI makes it easy to integrate autocomplete with these data sources.

Here's an example of how to integrate autocomplete with an API endpoint that returns a list of countries.

import React, { useState, useEffect } from "react";
import Autocomplete from "@material-ui/lab/Autocomplete";
import TextField from "@material-ui/core/TextField";
import axios from "axios";

export default function ApiAutocomplete() {
  const [value, setValue] = useState(null);
  const [options, setOptions] = useState([]);

  useEffect(() => {
    const fetchCountries = async () => {
      const response = await axios.get("https://restcountries.com/v2/all");
      setOptions(response.data);
    };
    fetchCountries();
  }, []);

  return (
    <Autocomplete
      id="api-autocomplete"
      options={options}
      getOptionLabel={(option) => option.name}
      value={value}
      onChange={(event, newValue) => {
        setValue(newValue);
      }}
      renderInput={(params) => (
        <TextField
          {...params}
          label="API Autocomplete"
          variant="outlined"
          inputProps={{
            ...params.inputProps,
            autoComplete: "new-password",
          }}
        />
      )}
    />
  );
}

Let's break down what's happening in this example:

1. We're importing the Autocomplete and TextField components from Material UI, as well as the axios package for making HTTP requests.

2. We're using the useState hook to manage the current value of the autocomplete element and the list of options pulled from the API endpoint.

3. We're using the useEffect hook to fetch the list of countries from the API endpoint when the component mounts.

4. We're using the Autocomplete and TextField components to create the input field with the suggestions list.

5. We're passing in the options array as the options prop for the Autocomplete component.

6. We're using the getOptionLabel prop to specify how each option object's name property should be displayed to users.

7. We're using the value and onChange props to manage the current value of the autocomplete element.

8. We're using the renderInput prop to specify how the input field should be rendered, including its label and variant. We're also passing in an autoComplete prop to prevent browser autocomplete from interfering with our suggestions.

That's it! You now have an autocomplete component that pulls suggestions from an API endpoint dynamically.

Customizing Autocomplete Styling

Material UI offers a wide range of customization options for autocomplete elements, including styling. Using CSS-in-JS with Material UI's styling solution, you can modify the appearance of the autocomplete component to match your design.

Here's an example of how to customize the style of an autocomplete component in Material UI.

import React, { useState } from "react";
import Autocomplete from "@material-ui/lab/Autocomplete";
import TextField from "@material-ui/core/TextField";
import { makeStyles } from "@material-ui/core/styles";

const useStyles = makeStyles((theme) => ({
  autocomplete: {
    marginTop: theme.spacing(2),
  },
  input: {
    "& .MuiOutlinedInput-root .MuiOutlinedInput-notchedOutline": {
      borderColor: "red",
    },
    "& .MuiOutlinedInput-root.Mui-focused .MuiOutlinedInput-notchedOutline": {
      borderColor: "green",
    },
  },
  option: {
    fontSize: 16,
    "& > span": {
      marginRight: 10,
      fontSize: 18,
    },
  },
}));

const options = [
  { label: "Option 1" },
  { label: "Option 2" },
  { label: "Option 3" },
  { label: "Option 4" },
  { label: "Option 5" },
];

export default function CustomAutocomplete() {
  const classes = useStyles();
  const [value, setValue] = useState(null);

  return (
    <Autocomplete
      id="custom-autocomplete"
      className={classes.autocomplete}
      options={options}
      getOptionLabel={(option) => option.label}
      value={value}
      onChange={(event, newValue) => {
        setValue(newValue);
      }}
      renderInput={(params) => (
        <TextField
          {...params}
          className={classes.input}
          label="Custom Autocomplete"
          variant="outlined"
        />
      )}
      renderOption={(option) => (
        <div className={classes.option}>
          <span>{option.label}</span>
        </div>
      )}
    />
  );
}

Let's break down what's happening in this example:

1. We're importing the Autocomplete, TextField, and makeStyles components from Material UI.

2. We're using the makeStyles hook to define custom styles for the autocomplete element.

3. We're using the Autocomplete and TextField components to create the input field with the suggestions list and applying the custom styles to the className prop of the input.

4. We're using the getOptionLabel prop to specify how each option object's label property should be displayed to users.

5. We're using the value and onChange props to manage the current value of the autocomplete element.

6. We're using the renderOption prop to specify how each suggestion should be rendered, including the custom styles.

That's it! You now have an autocomplete component with custom styles that match your design.

Conclusion

Autocomplete elements are essential for user-friendly web design, and Material UI makes it easy to create dynamic and customizable autocomplete components using React. In this article, we covered the basics of setting up an autocomplete component, integrating it with different data sources, and customizing its appearance using CSS-in-JS. With this knowledge, you'll be able to create autocomplete components that enhance the user experience and integrate seamlessly with your design.

let's dive a bit more into the previous topics we covered in the article.

Creating an Autocomplete Component in Material UI

To recap, creating an autocomplete component in Material UI is a straightforward process that involves using the Autocomplete and TextField components provided by the library. You can start by installing the required dependencies, including @material-ui/core and @material-ui/lab. After that, you can create the autocomplete component by passing in the options array as the options prop for the Autocomplete component and managing the value and onChange props to handle user input.

Integrating Autocomplete with Data Sources

While pre-defined arrays of options are useful, it's often necessary to integrate autocomplete with a dynamic data source, such as an API endpoint or a local database. In the example we provided, we used axios to make a GET request to an API that returned a list of countries. We then used useEffect to fetch the data when the component mounts and passed the resulting array as the options prop for the Autocomplete component.

Customizing Autocomplete Styling

Material UI provides extensive customization options that allow developers to tailor their autocomplete components to their specific design needs. By using CSS-in-JS with Material UI's styling solution, you can modify the appearance of the autocomplete component, including the input field's style, the suggestions' style, and the suggestions' behavior. In the example, we provided, we used the makeStyles hook to define custom styles for our autocomplete component, including the autocomplete, input, and option classes. We then applied these styles to the respective components using the className prop.

Conclusion

Material UI's autocomplete component is an essential feature of modern web design that provides users with a user-friendly way to select from a list of pre-defined options or dynamically generated data sources. By following the steps outlined in the article, you have learned how to create, integrate, and customize an autocomplete component in Material UI with code examples. With this knowledge, you can create dynamic and user-friendly autocomplete components in your next React project.

Popular questions

1. What is an autocomplete component?
   An autocomplete component is a user-friendly input element that allows users to select a value from a list of pre-defined options. It offers dynamic suggestions to users as they type in the input field.

2. What are the key features of a Material UI autocomplete component?
   The key features of a Material UI autocomplete component include dynamic suggestions, customizability, and keyboard navigation.

3. How can you create an autocomplete component in Material UI?
   You can create an autocomplete component in Material UI by installing the required dependencies, including @material-ui/core and @material-ui/lab, and using the Autocomplete and TextField components to create the input field with the suggestions list.

4. How can you integrate an autocomplete component with dynamic data sources?
   You can integrate an autocomplete component with dynamic data sources, such as an API endpoint or a local database, by fetching the data using axios or other HTTP request libraries and passing the resulting array as the options prop for the Autocomplete component.

5. How can you customize the styling of an autocomplete component in Material UI?
   You can customize the styling of an autocomplete component in Material UI by using CSS-in-JS with Material UI's styling solution and defining custom styles for the Autocomplete, TextField, and option components using the makeStyles hook. You can then apply these styles to the respective components using the className prop.

Tag

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