Spacing¶

Usage¶

Thoughtful and intentional spacing between elements plays a crucial role in creating relationships and establishing hierarchy within a design.

Principles¶

Visual grouping¶

Space shapes the visual connection between elements. The more items are related, the closer they should be to each other.

Hierarchy and balance¶

Elements with more space around them are perceived as having higher importance, while elements with less space are seen as subordinate.

White space¶

Incorporating empty space (also known as white space) as a deliberate element is essential. While certain sections may be dense, it is important to value and utilize white space throughout the entire layout, as it enhances visual clarity.

Best practices¶

• It is allowed to use spacing values that are not explicitly defined in the scale, as long as they adhere to the grid system.
• Element provides general spacing guidelines. Adjust according to the content density in the screen.
• It is acceptable to adjust the spacing at page breakpoints in order to fit better the elements in the screen.

Design¶

Spacing scale¶

The spacing scale complements 8px baseline grid and typography scale by using multiples of two, four, and eight.

Spacings can be defined via pixels or relative to the root font size (rem). Pixel values are preferred for layout and general spacing. rem values should be used for font size related values as they provide better accessibility.

Note: Px to rem conversion is based on 1rem = 16px

Visit code tab for more technical details.

Applying spacing¶

Refer to the following suggested space definitions. Spacing may vary according to the content density. We encourage designing with rhythm and contrast to achieve clear visual hierarchy.

• 8px is base unit for creating small separations between text lines or closely related components.
• 16px is the commonly used spacing unit for providing adequate breathing room between components.
• Place 24px around headings. Use it to provide larger gaps between visually dense components.
• Apply 32px spacing between sections to provide clear visual breaks and aid in content grouping.
• 64px or larger: Reserved for larger spacing needs, such as creating substantial visual separations or emphasising content.

Margin vs. padding¶

1. Margin, 2. Border (part of padding), 3. Padding

Embedding border to padding is standard on all component implementations. The following CSS code is enabling this behavior.

box-sizing: border-box;

Code¶

The classes are named using the format {property}{sides}-{size} for xs and {property}{sides}-{breakpoint}-{size} for sm, md, lg, and xl.

Where property is one of:

• m - for classes that set margin
• p - for classes that set padding

Where sides is one of:

• t - for classes that set margin-top or padding-top
• b - for classes that set margin-bottom or padding-bottom
• s - for classes that set margin-left or padding-left (s for start)
• e - for classes that set margin-right or padding-right (e for end)
• x - for classes that set both *-left and *-right
• y - for classes that set both *-top and *-bottom
• blank - for classes that set a margin or padding on all 4 sides of the element

Where size is one of:

• 0 - for classes that eliminate the margin or padding by setting it to 0
• 1 - for classes that set the margin or padding to 2px
• 2 - for classes that set the margin or padding to 4px
• 3 - for classes that set the margin or padding to 6px
• 4 - for classes that set the margin or padding to 8px
• 5 - for classes that set the margin or padding to 12px
• 6 - for classes that set the margin or padding to 16px
• 7 - for classes that set the margin or padding to 20px
• 8 - for classes that set the margin or padding to 24px
• 9 - for classes that set the margin or padding to 32px
• 10 - for classes that set the margin or padding to 64px
• 11 - for classes that set the margin or padding to 96px
• auto - for classes that set the margin to auto
• nX - for classes that set the margin to negative X, where 'X' is a number from above

Sass variables¶

All spacing values can also be accessed via SASS within the $spacers map. Use the accessor function map.get($spacers, SIZE) where SIZE is on of the above defined spacing options.

@use 'sass:map';

@use '@siemens/element-theme/src/styles/variables';

padding-top: map.get(variables.$spacers, 6);