A grid table contains a set of data that is structured in rows and columns. It allows users to scroll in both directions and is optimized for handling large numbers of rows and columns.

Usage

Use the grid table if:

• The cell level and the spatial relationship between cells are more important than the line item. Examples include spreadsheet analyses and waterfall charts. Note that a grid table is not fully responsive. It is only available for desktops and tablets, so you will need to take an adaptive approach by offering an additional UI for smartphones.

• Users need to work with more than 200 rows. The grid table architecture is optimized for handling a large number of items, in contrast to the responsive table with its display limit of 200 rows after filtering.

• Comparing items is a major use case. In this case, a grid table might be more appropriate than a responsive table. In the grid table, each cell contains only one data point. In contrast, the responsive table is more flexible regarding line items, including the ability to add more data points per cell and also the pop-in function. Both make comparisons more difficult.

• You’re going to implement inline creation and the sequence in which the items are created is important – the grid table creates new items at the bottom of the table.

• Your use case is for tasks performed on a desktop or tablet device. The grid table is not fully responsive.

Do not use the grid table if:

• You need a table to display fewer than 200 rows after filtering. Instead, consider the responsive table. Additional use cases where you might need the responsive table include:
  • The focus is on working on line items, not on cells. The responsive table is optimized for displaying complete items on all devices, such as file browsing and a list of documents you want to act on, like purchase orders and purchase requisitions.
  • Selecting one or several items is the main use case and details are needed to choose the correct item.
  • Line items are independent of each other and no operation across columns is needed.
  • You want to have only one implementation for all devices. However, make sure you adapt the responsive table design to offer the best solution for the tasks performed on mobile devices. Sometimes, a solution without a table is more useful and usable.

• The main use case is choosing one item from a very small number of items with no additional details. A select or combo box might be more appropriate.
• The main use case is choosing one out of several items with only a few details per item. A list might be more appropriate. Pay attention to the layout of the list item to ensure that it has a pleasant appearance.
• Data needs to be structured in a hierarchical manner. Use a tree table instead. Note that neither the tree table nor the grid table are responsive. You will need to take an adaptive approach by offering an additional UI for smartphones and tablets.
• You need an overview of a large amount of data. In this case, use charts.
• You just need it for layout reasons. In this case, use a layout container such as HBox or VBox.
• You need read-only or editable field-value pairs. Use a form instead. The grid table is not optimized for form-like input navigation.

Responsiveness

A grid table is not fully responsive, but available for only desktops and tablets, and it supports touch interactions. For mobile use cases, you need to:​

• Create a new Fiori application with reduced complexity, not an exact match of the desktop application.​
• With the new application, address the most important use cases for users in a mobile context. The responsive controls (responsive table, list or tree,) or a relevant control for your use case (for example a chart or the category navigation pattern) may suffice.

Or, you could create a fallback by using a responsive table, but a completely different solution, such as showing charts in a read-only case, might be more appropriate.

Layout

Components

A grid table does not consist of other elements. However, it is common to use a toolbar above the grid table.

The toolbar can contain entry points for the view settings dialog and the table personalization dialog or for the p13n dialog, as well as view switches in the form of a segmented button, and buttons for Add, Edit, and other actions.

Behavior and Interaction

A grid table is quite restricted in terms of its content.

Table Level

Scroll

Select

Selection Mode

Selection for a grid table depends on the chosen selection mode. The following options are available:

Selection Behavior

An item can be selected in different ways, depending on the configuration of the grid table (sap.ui.table.Table, property: selectionBehavior):

• Row: An item is selected by clicking the checkbox or the row. Use this option for multi-selection grid tables if clicking a row or a cell is not used for anything else.
• RowSelector: An item is selected only by clicking the checkbox in the selector cell. Use this option if clicking the row (or a cell inside the row) is used for something else, such as navigation.
• RowOnly: An item is selected only by clicking the row, and not using checkboxes in the selector cells. Use this for single-selection grid tables if clicking a row or a cell is not used for another purpose, such as navigation.

Compact, Cozy, and Condensed

Like all SAP Fiori controls, the grid table is shown in compact mode on a desktop and in cozy mode on tablets.

For a desktop, you can also display even more rows on the same screen height by adding the condensed mode in addition to the compact mode. This renders less white space for each item.

Note that the condensed content density has always to be set in addition to compact. Do not use condensed on its own. Do not mix condensed with cozy. Doing so could lead to unpredictable and / or unwanted results, e.g. cozy sized controls in condensed sized containers, missing paddings, etc.

Note that neither compact mode nor condensed mode can be interacted with via touch. Even on a desktop with a touch screen, users will have difficulty selecting rows or using controls inside the cells when using their fingers.

Furthermore, condensed mode is not available for Internet Explorer 9. If condensed mode is to be used, please provide a fallback.

For more information on cozy and compact modes, see content density.

Column Header

Column Header Menu

Sort

Filter

Freeze Columns

Line Item Level

Drag and Drop

Context Menu

Cell Level

Guidelines

Data Density vs. Complexity

The grid table can be used to display large amounts of data. Unfortunately, the grid table has a high data density and therefore conveys an immediate feeling of complexity.

Only show tables with a lot of data as a last resort. Try the following instead:

• Break down the data into manageable chunks and allow the user to navigate or drill down between them.
• Use charts with drilldown functionality until the amount of data is more manageable.

Try to avoid horizontal scrolling in the default delivery.

Try to minimize the number of columns, especially if there is a large number of rows.

Table Title

Implement the table title by using a title control in a toolbar.

Use a table title only if the title of the table is not indicated in the surrounding area.

Do not use a table title if it simply repeats text that is already above the table. For example:

• A pricing conditions table is the only control on a tab labeled Pricing Conditions.
• A section or subsection on an object page contains only one table.

Use a table title if you need the item count, table toolbar, or variant management. To avoid repeating text, feel free to use generic text as a table title, such as Items.
Exception: If the surrounding area contains the table title, and both the item count and toolbar can be added to the surrounding area, no additional table title is needed.
Example: An object page (sub-)section contains only one table. In this case, add the item count and the table toolbar to the (sub-)section header.

If you use a table title, show either a title for the table, with or without variant management, or an item count in the following format:

Selection

Single Selection

For single-selection list-detail scenarios within the flexible column layout, do not show an additional “navigated” indicator.

Multiple Selection

• We strongly recommend using the multi-selection plug-in. This ensures that all items selected using Select All or as part of a range are included – even if some items were not initially loaded in the front end. This is not the case if you use the multi-toggle option.
• Do not limit the range selection for the multi-selection plug-in unless you have to.
  • If the dataset is small and/or completely available in the front-end, set the limit property to 0 to enable the Select All option and allow users to select any range.
  • If you have a large dataset, set a limit on the number of selected items to avoid performance issues. Also bear in mind that some actions won’t be helpful if the dataset is too big (for example, a delete operation on 2 million database entries).
• If you set a limit, also display the corresponding message when the user selects more items at once than the limit allows (sap.ui.table.plugins.MultiSelectionPlugin, property: enableNotification).

• In multiple selection mode (multi toggle), do not show checkboxes in the first data column in the default delivery to avoid confusion.

• Never disable the selection checkbox. If an action can’t be performed on a specific item, inform the user after the corresponding action has been triggered. For more information, see Enabling/Disabling Actions.

Loading Data

Errors and Warnings

Columns – Best Practices

Minimize the number of columns. Avoid the need to scroll horizontally in the default delivery.

Optimize the column width for its initial visible content, including the column header texts. If this is not possible (for example, if showing the full texts would result in extremely wide columns), let the texts truncate. End users can change the width of the column to read the full text, as needed.

Maintain a constant column width and avoid adjusting it automatically when the content changes.

Always keep to one line of text. Do not wrap.

Column Headers – Best Practices

For each column, provide a label in the column header. In the default delivery, do not truncate the column header texts. Only let the text truncate if showing the full text would make the column too wide. Never wrap the text.

Content Alignment

For alignment of cell content, follow the guidelines below.

Left-align the following: text, IDs, phone numbers, URLs, passwords, and email addresses.

Right-align numbers (except IDs).

This ensures comparability of numbers and amounts.

Right-align amounts with currencies to the cell and align them in terms of their respective decimal points.

This ensures that amounts with different currencies are shown correctly, whether these currencies have 0, 2, or 3 decimals.

For aligning to the decimal point, use the sap.ui.uinified.Currency control.

Right-align dates and times.

This ensures comparability for most formats and locales.

Left-align status information.

Center-align icons.

Left-align micro charts.

Content Formatting

Key Identifier

Use a bold label or an emphasized link as the key identifier of an item. In the default delivery, show the key identifier in the first column.

For strings with IDs, use one of the following options:

• Show the ID in a separate column. Use this format if users need to sort, or if they need to filter by both the string and the ID.
• Show the ID in parentheses after the corresponding string. In this case, you must opt for one criterion for sorting and filtering, either the string or the ID. This option is then used for all sort and filter actions and can’t be changed later by the user. Use this format only if users don’t need to sort and filter by both the string and the ID.

Truncation

Avoid truncation of typical content in the default delivery (sap.ui.table.Column, property: width). However, since the columns are resizable, do not worry too much if truncation occurs as columns can still be enlarged if necessary.

To prevent adverse side effects when scrolling vertically, all line items must also have the same height. If you need to decide between truncation and different row heights, choose truncation. Do not wrap.

Number of Links

Are there too many links? Use subtle links to avoid a wall of links. Standard links are also emphasized more if they are surrounded by subtle links.

Missing Value

If there is no value for a cell, leave it blank. Do not display text as N/A.

Numbering Items

In terms of numbering items:

• If the item number is more like an ID with regard to its description, use ID formatting as described above.
• In all other cases, use a separate column for the item number.

Status

For status information, use semantic colors on the foreground elements.

For status information on text, use an object status.

Micro Charts

Use only the following micro charts: Bullet, comparison, stacked bar. When using micro charts, use them in size XS.

Empty Tables

Avoid empty grid tables. If necessary, provide instructions on how to fill the grid table with data (sap.ui.table.Table, properties: noDataText, showNoData).

Examples:

• If a table is initially empty, provide at least a basic text:
  No items available.
  Overwrite this whenever a hint can be provided on how to fill the table with data.
• If a table is used together with a filter bar (as in the list report), and is initially empty, use the following text:
  To start, set the relevant filters.
• If a table is used together with a filter bar and the filter does not return results, use the following text:
  No data found. Try adjusting the filter settings.

Adapt the texts above if:

• The standard text is not precise enough for your use case (for example, a search is also offered, or only the search is offered).
• The standard text is misleading (for example, if the data is filled based on a list-detail pattern instead of filter settings).

Invalid State

To show an invalid state of the grid table within the list report floorplan, show an overlay on the grid table and the corresponding toolbar (sap.ui.table.Table, property: showOverlay). The overlay prevents user interactions.

Use this within the list report floorplan if filter settings have been changed but the grid table is has not yet been updated.

Item States

To show that a modified item contains an error, for example, within the global edit flow, add the string Contains errors in the Editing Status column and highlight the row accordingly. This string replaces the Modified string.

A row with errors should be highlighted in all use cases – for example when the field is visible in the row in edit mode.

To show that an item is locked, add a transparent-style button with the corresponding icon and the text Locked by [name] in the Editing Status column.

To show that an item is in draft state, add a transparent-style button with the text Draft in the Editing Status column.

Show only one state at a time.

Numbers and Units

Show the unit of measurement in one of the following ways:

Number and Unit in Same Cell

The number and the unit are in the same cell. Do this if sorting and filtering by the unit of measurement are not needed.

For amounts, use a currency control to display the concatenated string.

Number and Unit in Separate Columns

The number and unit are in separate columns. Do this if sorting and filtering by the unit of measurement are a common use case.

Note that this column can be hidden or moved independently of the column containing the corresponding number. Therefore, be sure to have clear labels for both columns to communicate the dependency.

Show the unit of measurment on the column header, if the unit of measurement is the same for all rows. If not, show the unit of measurement within the row.

Drag and Drop

If you offer drag and drop for rearranging items within the table, use drop targets that are between items (sap.ui.core.dnd.DropPosition.Between). This provides better feedback on where the item will be inserted. Show the “move” mouse cursor (sap.ui.core.dnd.DropEffect.Move).

Do not combine rearranging items and sorting. If you really need to do so, make sure that there is a dedicated sort criterion for the user-defined sort order, and only offer options for rearranging items if this sort order is set.

Drag and drop is “invisible” on the UI: users can’t see where dragging is available and where it isn’t. In addition, there is no generic keyboard interaction. Drag and drop is also not available on all browsers. For these reasons, provide it only in addition to existing (and visible) UI elements that fulfill the same purpose. For example, offer (toolbar) buttons for moving or for copying and pasting items. These are keyboard operable and available on all browsers.

Context Menu

Use the context menu only as a quick way of accessing functions that are already available elsewhere (for example, as buttons in the toolbar). Don’t just offer actions in the context menu itself, as users might not realize that these actions are available at all.

The context menu can be triggered for the table, row, or cell. However, we do not recommend using context menus for cells: because the content of a cell is a different touch target than the cell itself, opening a cell context menu via touch is quite hard, even in cozy mode.

Do not combine context menus with condensed mode: editable controls fill the entire space inside a cell. Because of this, context menus cannot be opened at all with touch or mouse interaction.

Actions

Multiple Items

To trigger actions on multiple items, use a mutliselection grid table (sap.ui.table.Table, property: selectionMode, value: MultiToggle). Offer the corresponding actions in the table toolbar.

Do not offer action triggering on multiple items if the table is generally expected to have fewer than 10 items. In this case, try to use the responsive table instead of the grid table.

Single Item

To trigger actions on a single item (sap.ui.table. Table, property: selectionMode, value: Single):

• Show the actions on the table toolbar.
• In rare cases, show the actions within the line item. One example would be an Add to Cart button in a shopping application. Since these actions are repeated in every line and thus use a lot of screen real estate, do this only for a maximum of one or two actions. Provide a separate column per action. Use a button, unless the action trigger belongs to a link. Hide the action in rows for which it is not applicable.

To trigger navigation on line item level, choose one of the following options:

• Use a link for the attribute that identifies the row. Clicking the link triggers the navigation.
• Add the RowActions column and show the navigation indicator (  ) at the end of the row. The navigation arrow triggers the navigation.

Special case: Multi-selection in a list-detail scenario
When a multi-selection table is used in a list-detail scenario, it is not clear which item was last opened (for example, which item is currently shown in the second column of a flexible column layout). In this case, you can display a “navigated” indicator to show which item is currently open.

Use the RowActions column only for one or both of the following actions:

• Navigate to details page ( )
• Delete ( )

The RowActions column does not provide a column header text. It is fixed and will not scroll away. Users also cannot personalize this column.

Single Cell

To trigger actions on a single cell, create the corresponding click event. Do not use the cell click event if the cell contains interactive controls, such as links.

Add Items

For adding items, place an Add or Create text button on the table toolbar.

• Use Create if the button adds a brand new item that doesn’t yet exist on the database.
• Use Add if the item already exists and is merely added or assigned to the current object.

Show new items as the first item of the table, with a visual highlight at the beginning of the row.

Enable the shortcut Ctrl+Enter (and ideally Enter in addition) to trigger the Add or Create button.

There are three options for adding an item. In order of priority (most recommended first), these are:

1. Add the item inline. Create an empty, editable row as the first item of the table. Show the Save button on the table toolbar. This option is recommended for simple scenarios with just a few columns and no option to hide columns.
2. Open a dialog for larger tables with up to 8 editable columns. Save the new item at dialog level.
3. Navigate to a new page. This behavior should only be used for very complex scenarios that cannot be handled by a dialog (for example, tables with more than 8 columns). When the user presses Save in the footer toolbar of the create page, navigate back to the table.

Depending on the flow, an item can be in one of three different states:

• New: The item was just created inline and is in edit mode (for example, after pressing the Create button). It is highlighted with a visual indicator (information state).
• Recent: The item was just created and is in read-only mode (for example, if Create leads to a dialog, and Save was triggered within the dialog). In this case, keep the item highlighted and display it as the first item of the table. Ignore current sort and filter criteria to keep the item visible.
• Added: The item has been fully added. It follows the sort and filter settings and also loses the visual highlight. This state is used after:
  • Inline creation: After Save was triggered on the table toolbar or at page level.
  • Create with dialog: A table showing one or several items with the state “Recent” gets updated (for example, after sorting or filtering, or when the browser is refreshed).

In the context of draft handling, new items are not saved at table level, but rather with the entire draft.

For more details, see the guidelines for managing objects (including subarticles).

Editable Content

View Settings

Sort

Filter

Personalization

Only offer personalization if you need more columns than those that fit on a tablet screen, which is usually five, to fulfill 80% of your main use cases.

Persist the column layout. When a user reopens the app, show the grid table with the same column layout settings as last defined by this user.

Add, Remove, and Rearrange Columns

To add, remove, or rearrange columns, use one of the following:

• The table personalization dialog: It offers some simple settings for column layout. Use this if you have only a few columns to choose from and/or you use the view settings dialog.
• The p13n dialog: Besides various complex view settings, it also provides settings for column layout. Use this if you have a large number of columns to choose from and/or you use this dialog anyway for view settings.

In both cases, trigger the dialog via the settings button in the table toolbar. As short cut, use Ctrl+comma.

You can also use drag and drop to rearrange columns (sap.ui.table.Table, property: enableColumnReordering). If you allow rearranging via drag and drop as well as via a dialog, keep both places in sync.

Resize Columns

Resizing columns works differently on touch and non-touch devices.

• Non-touch devices: Drag and drop the column separator on the right side of the column. Double-clicking the column separator optimizes the width of the column to the data currently loaded into the front end, which is usually about 100 rows.
• Touch devices: Clicking the column header reveals two buttons: one for opening the column header menu, another one for resizing the column. Drag and drop this second button to resize the column.

Freeze Columns

To freeze columns, offer the setting in the column header menu (sap.ui.table.Table, property: enableColumnFreeze). Selecing Freeze on a column freezes all columns from the first one to the one where Freeze is selected. On this column, the menu entry changes from Freeze to Unfreeze.

Highlight Items

To show that an item needs attention, a highlight indicator can be shown in front of the item. The highlight indicator can be used to indicate:

• A semantic state, such as red or orange for an error or warning. In this case, use semantic colors.
• Additional information, such as blue to highlight newly added items. In this case, use semantic colors.
• Industry-specific or process-specific states, such as “out of stock” or “excess of inventory”. In this case, use indication colors.

Be aware that the highlight is just an indication. It does not tell users exactly what is wrong. Make sure that you provide this information within the table row, ideally in the same color.

For details on the use of highlight colors, see How To Use Semantic Colors / Industry-Specific Colors.

(sap.ui.table.Table, aggregation: rowSettingsTemplate)

Tables in Object Pages

In the object page, we advise against using the analytical, grid, and tree tables. Instead, use a responsive table and offer navigation to a list report with the table types mentioned above.

For more information on the use of tables within the object page, see the Tables section of the Object Page article.

Export to Spreadsheet

On the table toolbar, apps can provide a menu button for exporting table data to a spreadsheet. For the export, use the export to spreadsheet function.

Paste

The browser paste function can be used to paste data from the clipboard to the table (Ctrl+V or browser context menu).

• If the focus is on row level, the app has to take the data from the clipboard and add it to the corresponding controls within the table.
• If the focus is on an editable control within the table, the control gets the data automatically.

Pasting via the context menu does not work if a custom context menu is used.

Properties

sap.ui.table.Column

The following additional properties are available for the column:

• The property: visible defines whether a column is shown or hidden.
• The property: name defines the name shown in the column header menu for showing and hiding columns. In SAP Fiori, columns are shown and hidden via the table personalization dialog or via the table personalization dialog. Do not use this property.
• The property: headerSpan defines whether one column header is used for one or several columns. To prevent adverse side effects, always use one column header for only one single column. Do not use this property.
• The property: Tooltip does not have an effect. Do not use it.

Resources

Want to dive deeper? Follow the links below to find out more about related controls, the SAPUI5 implementation, and the visual design.