TextField

Usage

• Use TextField for short, freeform text such as names or email addresses.
• Use TextArea instead for longer, multi-line text such as descriptions or messages.
• Use JsonField instead to validate JSON input within a textarea.
• Use Search instead for search-specific input.
• Provide a visible label (label) so users understand the purpose of the field at a glance.
• Provide an accessible label (ariaLabel) when a visible label isn't possible.
• Never use a placeholder in place of a visible label.

Types

• Text (type="text") — the default. Use for names, emails, and other short-form text.
• Password (type="password") — masks input and adds a toggle button to unmask and mask it.

Appearance

• Medium (size="md") — the default size, suitable for most use cases.
• Small (size="sm") — for dense layouts and smaller viewports.
• Leading icon (icon) — renders to the left of the field text. Use to emphasize the field's meaning, such as denoting search.

Behaviors

• Base, hover, focus, and active states follow standard form-control styling; focus adds the standard 2px focus ring and updates the border color.
• Active state (isActive) — applies the active styling programmatically.
• Disabled state (isDisabled) — blocks all interaction and updates the background and text color.
• Loading state (isLoading) — shows a spinner inside the field while a background job runs.
• Critical state (isInvalid with error) — applies critical styling and renders the error message below the field.
• Clear button (isClearable with onClear) — resets the field to its empty state. The button is hidden while the field is empty.
• Password visibility toggle — renders automatically on type="password" fields and swaps its icon to reflect the current visibility state.

Content

• Write labels as clear, concise nouns or noun phrases describing the data the field expects. Never use instructional phrases as a label.
• Leave placeholder empty for most fields — a blank field reads more clearly as unfilled.
• Use placeholders to show example text and its expected format. Never repeat the label as the placeholder.
• Write description text as short, complete sentences giving hints, formatting guidance, or constraints.
• Write errors as direct instructions naming the problem and how to resolve it. Never write vague errors such as "Invalid input", and never use "please".

Implementation Notes

• label, description, and error accept rich content in place of a plain string: React takes a ReactNode directly; Ember takes the :label, :description, and :error named blocks. Use this for labels with icons or optional indicators, and for descriptions or errors with inline links.
• description and error both render below the field when both are set, and aria-describedby references both, description first — matching the order they appear on screen.
• Setting error alone applies the invalid styling; isInvalid is not required alongside it.
• isClearable requires onClear — the clear button does not render without both. It is also hidden when isDisabled is set.
• shouldShowPasswordVisibilityToggle defaults to true and only applies to type="password". Set it to false to hide the toggle.
• iconColor defaults to "subtle" and is forced to "disabled" when the field is disabled.
• Passing value without onChange or onInput renders an uncontrolled field — the value is applied as the input's default.
• The component throws an accessibility error at render when none of label, ariaLabel, or ariaLabelledby is provided.
• elementBefore and elementAfter render custom content inside the input wrapper: elementBefore in the leading slot after any icon, elementAfter in the trailing slot after the loading spinner, clear button, and password-visibility toggle. In Ember, pass a component or use the :elementBefore / :elementAfter named blocks.
• size values "medium" and "small" are deprecated. Use "md" and "sm".
• shouldAllowAutofill defaults to false, which disables browser autofill and password managers. Set it to true for fields where autofill is wanted.
• Set shouldAllowAutofill to true on any field collecting information about the user — name, email, address, phone, credentials. Suppressing autofill there works against WCAG 1.3.5, and on a sign-in form removes the alternative 3.3.8 expects to a user remembering their password. Keep the default only where autofill would be wrong, such as search or a one-off code.
• unsafe_inputWrapperClassName applies additional classes to the element wrapping the input; wrapperRef (React) and wrapperModifier (Ember) reach that same element.
• Ember invocation is <PlumaTextField> with @argName args. Splattributes land on the input element, so pass container classes through @className rather than class.