Checkbox

Bootstrap 5 Checkbox component

The checkbox is a component used to allow a user to make multiple choices that are broadly used in forms and surveys. Checkboxes are used to select one or several options in a list, while radio (option) buttons are for selecting one option from many.

Basic example

Browser default checkboxes and radios are replaced with the help of .form-check, a series of classes for both input types that improves the layout and behavior of their HTML elements, that provide greater customization and cross browser consistency. Checkboxes are for selecting one or several options in a list, while radios are for selecting one option from many.

Structurally, our <input>s and <label>s are sibling elements as opposed to an <input> within a <label>. This is slightly more verbose as you must specify id and for attributes to relate the <input> and <label>.

We use the sibling selector (~) for all our <input> states, like :checked or :disabled. When combined with the .form-check-label class, we can easily style the text for each item based on the <input>'s state. 


          <!-- Default checkbox -->
          <div class="form-check">
            <input 
              class="form-check-input" 
              type="checkbox" 
              value="" 
              id="flexCheckDefault" 
            />
            <label class="form-check-label" for="flexCheckDefault">
              Default checkbox
            </label>
          </div>

          <!-- Checked checkbox -->
          <div class="form-check">
            <input
              class="form-check-input"
              type="checkbox"
              value=""
              id="flexCheckChecked"
              checked
            />
            <label class="form-check-label" for="flexCheckChecked">
              Checked checkbox
            </label>
          </div>

Disabled

Add the disabled attribute and the associated <label>s are automatically styled to match with a lighter color to help indicate the input’s state. 


          <div class="form-check">
            <input
              class="form-check-input"
              type="checkbox"
              value=""
              id="flexCheckDisabled"
              disabled
            />
            <label class="form-check-label" for="flexCheckDisabled"> Disabled checkbox </label>
          </div>

          <div class="form-check">
            <input
              class="form-check-input"
              type="checkbox"
              value=""
              id="flexCheckCheckedDisabled"
              checked
              disabled
            />
            <label class="form-check-label" for="flexCheckCheckedDisabled">
              Disabled checked checkbox
            </label>
          </div>

Inline

Group checkboxes or radios on the same horizontal row by adding .form-check-inline to any .form-check. 


          <div class="form-check form-check-inline">
            <input class="form-check-input" type="checkbox" id="inlineCheckbox1" value="option1" />
            <label class="form-check-label" for="inlineCheckbox1">1</label>
          </div>

          <div class="form-check form-check-inline">
            <input class="form-check-input" type="checkbox" id="inlineCheckbox2" value="option2" />
            <label class="form-check-label" for="inlineCheckbox2">2</label>
          </div>

          <div class="form-check form-check-inline">
            <input
              class="form-check-input"
              type="checkbox"
              id="inlineCheckbox3"
              value="option3"
              disabled
            />
            <label class="form-check-label" for="inlineCheckbox3">3 (disabled)</label>
          </div>

Without labels

Omit the wrapping .form-check for checkboxes and radios that have no label text. Remember to still provide some form of label for assistive technologies (for instance, using aria-label). 


          <div>
            <input
              class="form-check-input"
              type="checkbox"
              id="checkboxNoLabel"
              value=""
              aria-label="..."
            />
          </div>

          <div>
            <input
              class="form-check-input"
              type="checkbox"
              id="checkboxNoLabel2"
              value=""
              aria-label="..."
            />
          </div>

Toggle buttons

MDB’s .btn styles can be applied to <label>s, to provide checkbox style button toggling. Add an input with a .btn-check class as previous sibling to toggle the input state. 


          <input type="checkbox" class="btn-check" id="btn-check" autocomplete="off" />
          <label class="btn btn-primary" for="btn-check">Checkbox button</label>

          <input type="checkbox" class="btn-check" id="btn-check2" checked autocomplete="off" />
          <label class="btn btn-primary" for="btn-check2">Checkbox button</label>

          <input type="checkbox" class="btn-check" id="btn-check3" autocomplete="off" />
          <label class="btn btn-primary" for="btn-check3">Checkbox button</label>

If you want to support our friends from Tailwind Elements you can also check out the Tailwind checkbox documentation.