Focus States

Focus States Generator

Overview

Generate accessible, visible focus indicators for interactive elements. Creates focus styles that meet WCAG 2.4.7 (Focus Visible) and 2.4.11 (Focus Appearance) requirements while maintaining visual design consistency.

When to Use

• Setting up focus styles for a design system
• Ensuring keyboard navigation is visible
• Creating custom focus rings that match brand
• Fixing "invisible" focus states in existing UI

Quick Reference: WCAG Requirements

| Criterion | Requirement | Level | |-----------|-------------|-------| | 2.4.7 Focus Visible | Focus indicator must be visible | AA | | 2.4.11 Focus Appearance | 2px+ perimeter, 3:1 contrast | AAA | | 2.4.12 Focus Not Obscured | Focus not hidden by other content | AA |

The Process

1. Get brand colors: Primary color and background colors
2. Ask style preference:

• Ring (outline around element)
• Glow (soft shadow-based)
• Underline (for text links)
• Hybrid (ring + offset)

1. Ask visibility approach: Always visible or focus-visible only?
2. Generate: Create focus tokens and utility classes
3. Test guidance: Provide keyboard testing checklist

Focus Style Options

| Style | Character | Best For | |-------|-----------|----------| | Ring | Clean, defined | Buttons, inputs, cards | | Glow | Soft, modern | Dark themes, premium UI | | Underline | Minimal | Text links, nav items | | Offset | High contrast | When ring blends with element | | Inset | Subtle | Contained elements |

Output Formats

CSS Custom Properties + Utilities:

:root {
  /* Focus tokens */
  --focus-ring-color: #2563eb;
  --focus-ring-width: 2px;
  --focus-ring-offset: 2px;
  --focus-ring-style: solid;

  /* Computed focus ring */
  --focus-ring: var(--focus-ring-width) var(--focus-ring-style) var(--focus-ring-color);
  --focus-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 0 var(--focus-ring-offset) var(--color-background);
  --focus-ring-shadow: 0 0 0 calc(var(--focus-ring-offset) + var(--focus-ring-width)) var(--focus-ring-color);
}

/* Base focus reset */
*:focus {
  outline: none;
}

/* Focus-visible for keyboard only */
*:focus-visible {
  outline: var(--focus-ring);
  outline-offset: var(--focus-ring-offset);
}

/* Alternative: box-shadow approach (more styling control) */
.focus-ring:focus-visible {
  outline: none;
  box-shadow:
    var(--focus-ring-offset-shadow),
    var(--focus-ring-shadow);
}

Component-Specific Focus:

/* Buttons */
.btn:focus-visible {
  outline: 2px solid var(--focus-ring-color);
  outline-offset: 2px;
}

/* Inputs - inset focus */
.input:focus-visible {
  outline: none;
  border-color: var(--focus-ring-color);
  box-shadow: 0 0 0 3px rgb(37 99 235 / 0.2);
}

/* Cards - offset ring */
.card:focus-visible {
  outline: 2px solid var(--focus-ring-color);
  outline-offset: 4px;
}

/* Links - underline enhancement */
a:focus-visible {
  outline: none;
  text-decoration-thickness: 2px;
  text-underline-offset: 4px;
  background-color: rgb(37 99 235 / 0.1);
  border-radius: 2px;
}

/* Skip link */
.skip-link:focus {
  position: fixed;
  top: 1rem;
  left: 1rem;
  z-index: 9999;
  padding: 1rem;
  background: var(--color-background);
  outline: 2px solid var(--focus-ring-color);
}

Tailwind Config:

module.exports = {
  theme: {
    extend: {
      ringColor: {
        DEFAULT: '#2563eb',
      },
      ringWidth: {
        DEFAULT: '2px',
      },
      ringOffsetWidth: {
        DEFAULT: '2px',
      },
    }
  },
  plugins: [
    // Custom focus-visible variant
    plugin(function({ addVariant }) {
      addVariant('focus-visible-within', '&:has(:focus-visible)')
    })
  ]
}

Tailwind Utilities:

  Button

  Glow Button

JSON Tokens:

{
  "focus": {
    "ring": {
      "color": { "value": "{color.primary.500}" },
      "width": { "value": "2px" },
      "offset": { "value": "2px" },
      "style": { "value": "solid" }
    },
    "glow": {
      "color": { "value": "{color.primary.500}" },
      "blur": { "value": "4px" },
      "spread": { "value": "2px" },
      "opacity": { "value": "0.3" }
    }
  }
}

Dark Mode Focus

/* Light mode */
:root {
  --focus-ring-color: #2563eb;
  --focus-ring-offset-color: #ffffff;
}

/* Dark mode - increase visibility */
:root.dark {
  --focus-ring-color: #60a5fa;
  --focus-ring-offset-color: #1f2937;
}

Focus Indicator Contrast

WCAG 2.4.11 requires 3:1 contrast between:

1. Focus indicator and adjacent background
2. Focus indicator and the element itself

Safe combinations: | Background | Focus Ring | Ratio | |------------|------------|-------| | White | #2563eb (blue-600) | 4.7:1 ✓ | | Gray-100 | #1d4ed8 (blue-700) | 6.5:1 ✓ | | Gray-900 | #60a5fa (blue-400) | 6.2:1 ✓ | | Black | #93c5fd (blue-300) | 9.4:1 ✓ |

Interactive States Order

Apply states in this specificity order:

.element { }
.element:hover { }
.element:focus { }
.element:focus-visible { }  /* Keyboard only */
.element:active { }
.element:disabled { }

Testing Checklist

• [ ] Tab through entire page - focus always visible
• [ ] Focus ring visible against all backgrounds
• [ ] Focus visible on buttons, links, inputs, selects
• [ ] Custom components (dropdowns, modals) receive focus
• [ ] Focus trapped in modals when open
• [ ] Skip link appears on first Tab press
• [ ] Focus returns to trigger when modal closes
• [ ] No focus on non-interactive elements
• [ ] Focus order matches visual order

Common Fixes

Focus disappears on click:

/* Use focus-visible, not focus */
button:focus-visible { outline: ... }

Focus hidden behind sticky header:

:target { scroll-margin-top: 80px; }
*:focus { scroll-margin-top: 80px; }

Focus invisible on element with background:

/* Add offset to create separation */
outline-offset: 2px;
/* Or use contrasting ring color */

Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

• Author: dylantarre
• Source: dylantarre/design-system-skills
• License: MIT

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.