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How to: Build responsive layouts

This guide covers techniques for creating layouts that adapt to different window sizes and form factors. You will learn how to use form-factor markup extensions, container queries, breakpoint-driven view models, and reflowing item layouts to build UIs that work across desktop and mobile.

Adaptive grid columns​

Use the OnFormFactor markup extension to change your layout structure based on the device type. In the following example, a two-column grid with a sidebar appears on desktop while mobile users see a single-column layout:

<Grid ColumnDefinitions="{OnFormFactor Desktop='250,*', Mobile='*'}">
    <Border Grid.Column="0" Background="#F3F4F6"
            IsVisible="{OnFormFactor Desktop=True, Mobile=False}">
        <!-- Sidebar: visible on desktop, hidden on mobile -->
        <ListBox ItemsSource="{Binding MenuItems}" />
    </Border>

    <ContentControl Grid.Column="{OnFormFactor Desktop=1, Mobile=0}"
                    Content="{Binding CurrentPage}" />
</Grid>

OnFormFactor resolves at startup, so the value does not change if you resize the window at runtime. If you need your layout to respond to live size changes, use container queries or a breakpoint-based approach instead.

Container queries​

Container queries adapt layout based on a control's own rendered size rather than the window size. This makes them ideal for reusable components that may appear in panels of varying width.

The following example switches a StackPanel between vertical and horizontal orientation depending on the width of its parent Border:

<Border>
    <Border.Styles>
        <!-- Vertical layout when container is narrow -->
        <Style Selector="Border[Width<400] > StackPanel">
            <Setter Property="Orientation" Value="Vertical" />
        </Style>
        <!-- Horizontal layout when container is wide -->
        <Style Selector="Border[Width>=400] > StackPanel">
            <Setter Property="Orientation" Value="Horizontal" />
        </Style>
    </Border.Styles>

    <StackPanel Spacing="8">
        <TextBlock Text="Label" />
        <TextBox Text="{Binding Value}" />
    </StackPanel>
</Border>

See Container queries for the full syntax and named-container support.

Breakpoint-based layout​

When you need fine-grained control over layout transitions, you can implement breakpoints by observing the window width in your view model. Define boolean properties for each breakpoint tier, then bind your XAML to them:

public partial class MainViewModel : ObservableObject
{
    [ObservableProperty]
    private bool _isCompact;

    [ObservableProperty]
    private bool _isWide;

    public void UpdateLayout(double windowWidth)
    {
        IsCompact = windowWidth < 640;
        IsWide = windowWidth >= 1024;
    }
}

Call UpdateLayout from the window's OnSizeChanged override so that your properties stay in sync as the user resizes:

// In MainWindow code-behind
protected override void OnSizeChanged(SizeChangedEventArgs e)
{
    base.OnSizeChanged(e);
    if (DataContext is MainViewModel vm)
        vm.UpdateLayout(e.NewSize.Width);
}

In your AXAML, swap between compact and wide views by binding IsVisible to the breakpoint properties:

<Grid>
    <!-- Compact layout: single column -->
    <StackPanel IsVisible="{Binding IsCompact}" Spacing="8">
        <views:SidebarView />
        <views:ContentView />
    </StackPanel>

    <!-- Wide layout: two columns -->
    <Grid IsVisible="{Binding !IsCompact}" ColumnDefinitions="280,*">
        <views:SidebarView Grid.Column="0" />
        <views:ContentView Grid.Column="1" />
    </Grid>
</Grid>

This approach gives you full programmatic control and works well when your layout logic involves more than simple width thresholds (for example, combining orientation and platform checks).

Use SplitView for a collapsible sidebar​

The SplitView control provides a built-in collapsible pane pattern. Set DisplayMode to CompactInline so the pane collapses to a narrow strip showing icons, then expands to reveal labels when you toggle IsPaneOpen:

<SplitView IsPaneOpen="{Binding IsSidebarOpen}"
           DisplayMode="CompactInline"
           CompactPaneLength="48"
           OpenPaneLength="250">
    <SplitView.Pane>
        <StackPanel>
            <Button Content="☰" Command="{Binding ToggleSidebarCommand}"
                    HorizontalAlignment="Left" Width="48" />
            <ListBox ItemsSource="{Binding MenuItems}"
                     SelectedItem="{Binding SelectedMenuItem}">
                <ListBox.ItemTemplate>
                    <DataTemplate>
                        <StackPanel Orientation="Horizontal" Spacing="12">
                            <PathIcon Data="{Binding Icon}" Width="16" />
                            <TextBlock Text="{Binding Title}" />
                        </StackPanel>
                    </DataTemplate>
                </ListBox.ItemTemplate>
            </ListBox>
        </StackPanel>
    </SplitView.Pane>

    <SplitView.Content>
        <ContentControl Content="{Binding CurrentPage}" />
    </SplitView.Content>
</SplitView>

You can bind IsPaneOpen to your breakpoint properties so the sidebar opens automatically on wide screens and collapses on narrow ones.

Responsive card grid​

Use ItemsRepeater with a UniformGridLayout to create a card grid that reflows as the available width changes. Set MinItemWidth and MinItemHeight to define the smallest card size, and UniformGridLayout calculates the column count for you:

<ScrollViewer>
    <ItemsRepeater ItemsSource="{Binding Cards}">
        <ItemsRepeater.Layout>
            <UniformGridLayout MinItemWidth="280" MinItemHeight="200"
                               MinColumnSpacing="12" MinRowSpacing="12" />
        </ItemsRepeater.Layout>
        <ItemsRepeater.ItemTemplate>
            <DataTemplate>
                <Border Background="White" CornerRadius="8" Padding="16"
                        BorderBrush="#E5E7EB" BorderThickness="1">
                    <StackPanel Spacing="8">
                        <TextBlock Text="{Binding Title}" FontWeight="Bold" />
                        <TextBlock Text="{Binding Description}"
                                   TextWrapping="Wrap" Foreground="Gray" />
                    </StackPanel>
                </Border>
            </DataTemplate>
        </ItemsRepeater.ItemTemplate>
    </ItemsRepeater>
</ScrollViewer>

If you need a simpler reflowing container without virtualization, you can use WrapPanel instead.

Platform-specific spacing​

Use OnFormFactor to adjust spacing, margins, and font sizes per platform. Mobile interfaces typically benefit from larger touch targets and slightly larger text:

<StackPanel Spacing="{OnFormFactor Desktop=8, Mobile=12}"
            Margin="{OnFormFactor Desktop='16', Mobile='8'}">
    <TextBlock Text="Content" FontSize="{OnFormFactor Desktop=14, Mobile=16}" />
</StackPanel>

Adaptive font sizes​

Use container queries to scale text based on the size of an ancestor. Declare a container on the parent element with Container.Name and Container.Sizing, then apply a ContainerQuery to set different font sizes at different widths:

<Panel Container.Name="content" Container.Sizing="Width">
    <Panel.Styles>
        <Style Selector="TextBlock.title">
            <Setter Property="FontSize" Value="24" />
        </Style>

        <!-- Smaller title when the container is narrow -->
        <ContainerQuery Name="content" Query="max-width:500">
            <Style Selector="TextBlock.title">
                <Setter Property="FontSize" Value="18" />
            </Style>
        </ContainerQuery>
    </Panel.Styles>

    <TextBlock Classes="title" Text="Responsive heading" />
</Panel>

This technique keeps your typography responsive without relying on window-level breakpoints, so the text adapts correctly even when your control is hosted inside a split pane or dialog.

See also​

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