Label
The Label control displays text and transfers focus to a designated target control. When you click the label or press its access key in combination with the Alt key, focus moves to the control specified by the Target property. This makes Label especially useful for building accessible forms where each input has a corresponding text label.
Common properties
| Property | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
Content | object | The content to display in the label. You can set this to a string or bind it to a view model property. |
Target | IInputElement | The target control that receives focus when the label is clicked or its access key is pressed. Set this to the x:Name of the target control. |
Basic usage
To associate a Label with an input control, set the Target property to the name of the input control. When your user clicks the label text, focus moves to the target:
<StackPanel Spacing="4">
<Label Target="nameBox" Content="Name" />
<TextBox x:Name="nameBox" />
</StackPanel>
Access keys
You can define a keyboard shortcut (access key) by placing an underscore (_) before a character in the Content string. Letters, numbers, and accented characters are all supported. When your user presses Alt plus that character, focus moves to the target control:
<StackPanel Spacing="4">
<Label Target="nameBox" Content="_Name" />
<TextBox x:Name="nameBox" />
<Label Target="emailBox" Content="_Email" />
<TextBox x:Name="emailBox" />
</StackPanel>
In the example above, pressing Alt+N focuses the Name TextBox and pressing Alt+E focuses the Email TextBox.
Choose unique access key characters within each view to avoid conflicts. The underlined character is visible to your users as a hint when they press the Alt key.
Binding content
You can bind the Content property to a view model property so that label text updates dynamically:
<Label Target="quantityBox" Content="{Binding QuantityLabel}" />
<NumericUpDown x:Name="quantityBox" Value="{Binding Quantity}" />
public string QuantityLabel => "Quantity";
Building accessible forms
The Label control is a key building block for accessible forms. By pairing each input with a Label that has a Target, you give your users two ways to focus a field: clicking the label or pressing its access key. The following example shows a complete form layout:
<Grid ColumnDefinitions="Auto,*" RowDefinitions="Auto,Auto,Auto" Margin="8">
<Label Grid.Row="0" Grid.Column="0" Target="firstNameBox" Content="_First name" Margin="0,0,8,4" />
<TextBox Grid.Row="0" Grid.Column="1" x:Name="firstNameBox" />
<Label Grid.Row="1" Grid.Column="0" Target="lastNameBox" Content="_Last name" Margin="0,0,8,4" />
<TextBox Grid.Row="1" Grid.Column="1" x:Name="lastNameBox" />
<Label Grid.Row="2" Grid.Column="0" Target="ageBox" Content="_Age" Margin="0,0,8,4" />
<NumericUpDown Grid.Row="2" Grid.Column="1" x:Name="ageBox" />
</Grid>
Label vs TextBlock
| Feature | Label | TextBlock |
|---|---|---|
| Focus transfer | Yes (via Target) | No |
| Access key support | Yes | No |
| Rich text formatting | No | Yes (via Inlines) |
| Typical use | Form field labels | Display text, paragraphs |
Use Label when you need accessibility and keyboard navigation in forms. Use TextBlock for general-purpose text display where focus transfer is not required.