Selection Controls – Overview

Intro

This article offers guidance on when to use the following selection controls:

Choosing the Right Control

To find the most suitable control for your use case, check out the tables below for each selection type:

For each selection type, you can then determine the best selection control based on how an item is identified and the number of items in the selection list.

Single Selection

	Size of selection list: 2 to 12 items	13 to 200 items	200 to 1000 items	More than 1000 items
Item identifiable by: Item label alone	Select	Combo box with validator that prohibits custom values	Input field + select dialog	Input field + value help dialog (items)
Item identifiable by: 2 text attributes	Combo box with validator that prohibits custom values	Combo box with validator that prohibits custom values	Input field + select dialog	Input field + value help dialog (items)
Item identifiable by: Several attributes (including images)	Input field + select dialog	Input field + select dialog	Input field + select dialog	Input field + value help dialog (items)
Item identifiable by: 2 fields	Input field + table select dialog	Input field + table select dialog	Input field + table select dialog	Input field + value help dialog (items)
Item identifiable by: More than 2 fields	Input field + value help dialog (items)	Input field + value help dialog (items)	Input field + value help dialog (items)	Input field + value help dialog (items)

Multi-Selection

	Size of selection list: 2 to 12 items	13 to 200 items	200 to 1000 items	More than 1000 items
Item identifiable by: Item label alone	Multi-combo box	Multi-combo box	Multi-input field + select dialog	Multi-input field + value help dialog (items)
Item identifiable by: 2 text attributes	Multi-input field + select dialog	Multi-input field + select dialog	Multi-input field + select dialog	Multi-input field + value help dialog (items)
Item identifiable by: Several attributes (including images)	Multi-input field + select dialog	Multi-input field + select dialog	Multi-input field + select dialog	Multi-input field + value help dialog (items)
Item identifiable by: 2 fields	Multi-input field + table select dialog	Multi-input field + table select dialog	Multi-input field + table select dialog	Multi-input field + value help dialog (items)
Item identifiable by: More than 2 fields	Multi-input field + value help dialog (items)	Multi-input field + value help dialog (items)	Multi-input field + value help dialog (items)	Multi-input field + value help dialog (items)

Single-Selection or Custom Value

	Size of selection list: 2 to 12 items	13 to 200 items	200 to 1000 items	More than 1000 items
Item identifiable by: Item label alone	Combo box	Combo box	Input field + select dialog	Input field + value help dialog (items)
Item identifiable by: 2 text attributes	Combo box	Combo box	Input field + select dialog	Input field + value help dialog (items)
Item identifiable by: Several attributes (including images)	Input field + select dialog	Input field + select dialog	Input field + select dialog	Input field + value help dialog (items)
Item identifiable by: 2 fields	Input field + table select dialog	Input field + table select dialog	Input field + table select dialog	Input field + value help dialog (items)
Item identifiable by: More than 2 fields	Input field + value help dialog (items)	Input field + value help dialog (items)	Input field + value help dialog (items)	Input field + value help dialog (items)

Information

Currently, it is not possible to add custom items with more than one attribute.

Multi-Selection or Conditions

For this scenario, always use:

Multi-input field + value help dialog (items, conditions)

This is independent of the way an item is identified or the size of the selection list.

Resources

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

Elements and Controls

Select (guidelines)
Combo Box (guidelines)
Multi-Combo Box (guidelines)
Input Field (guidelines)
Multi-Input Field (guidelines)
Select Dialog (guidelines)
Table Select Dialog (guidelines)
Value Help Dialog (guidelines)

Implementation

Select (SAPUI5 samples)
Combo Box (SAPUI5 samples)
Multi-Combo Box (SAPUI5 samples)
Input Field (SAPUI5 samples)
Multi Input (SAPUI5 samples)
Select Dialog (SAPUI5 samples)
Table Select Dialog (SAPUI5 samples)
Smart Field with value help dialog (SAPUI5 samples)