Select Menu Interaction

Web features: :user-valid and :user-invalid

The Problem

For mandatory dropdowns (e.g., "Choose a Country"), standard validation flags the field as invalid immediately if the default option has an empty value. This can create visual noise. We want to show the error only if the user opens the menu and closes it without choosing an option, or attempts to submit the form.

The Solution

The :user-invalid pseudo-class works seamlessly with <select> elements. It respects the user's interaction flow: simply loading the page or focusing/blurring without making a change doesn't count as an interaction, so the field stays neutral until they actively attempt a selection.

Implementation Strategy

  1. HTML Constraint: Use a <select> with required. The first option should have value="" and ideally be disabled/hidden to force a valid choice.
  2. Visual Feedback: Use :user-invalid to style the select box border.
  3. Timing: The browser considers the field "interacted" if the user changes the value (even back to the default invalid state) before they blur the control, or upon form submission.

Implementation Guide

1. HTML Structure

The "placeholder" option is key here.

<form>
  <div class="field">
    <label for="country">Country</label>
    <select
      id="country"
      name="country"
      required
      aria-errormessage="country-error"
    >
      <option value="" disabled selected>Select a country...</option>
      <option value="us">United States</option>
      <option value="ca">Canada</option>
      <option value="uk">United Kingdom</option>
    </select>
    <div id="country-error" class="error-msg">
      Please select a country.
    </div>
  </div>
</form>

2. CSS

.error-msg {
  display: none;
  color: #d93025;
  font-size: 0.875rem;
  margin-top: 0.25rem;
}

/*
  Only show error after the user visits the select menu.
*/
select:user-invalid {
  border-color: #d93025;
  background-color: #fce8e6;
}

select:user-invalid + .error-msg {
  display: block;
}

select:user-valid {
  border-color: #188038;
}

Fallbacking & Browser Support

Fallbacks & browser support for :user-valid and :user-invalid

CSS for Fallback

input:user-invalid,
input.user-invalid-fallback {
  border-color: #d93025;
  background-color: #fce8e6;
}

input:user-invalid + .error-msg,
input.user-invalid-fallback + .error-msg {
  display: block;
}

JavaScript Fallback

Use a reusable utility that tracks interaction state using a WeakMap. This avoids polluting the DOM with "dirty" classes or data attributes.

const UserInvalidFallback = (() => {
  const dirtyState = new WeakMap();

  const updateState = (input) => {
    const isValid = input.checkValidity();

    // Update both visual and ARIA state
    input.classList.toggle('user-invalid-fallback', !isValid);
    input.classList.toggle('user-valid-fallback', isValid);

    if (!isValid) {
      input.setAttribute('aria-invalid', 'true');
    } else {
      input.removeAttribute('aria-invalid');
    }
  };

  const handleEvent = (event) => {
    const input = event.target;

    if (event.type === 'reset') {
      const controls = input.elements || [];
      for (const control of controls) {
        dirtyState.delete(control);
        control.classList.remove('user-invalid-fallback');
        control.classList.remove('user-valid-fallback');
        control.removeAttribute('aria-invalid');
      }
      return;
    }

    if (!input.checkValidity) return;

    if (event.type === 'input' || event.type === 'change') {
      const state = dirtyState.get(input) || { hasInteracted: false, hasBlurred: false };
      state.hasInteracted = true;
      dirtyState.set(input, state);
      if (state.hasBlurred) {
        updateState(input);
      }
    } else if (event.type === 'blur') {
      const state = dirtyState.get(input) || { hasInteracted: false, hasBlurred: false };
      state.hasBlurred = true;
      dirtyState.set(input, state);
      if (state.hasInteracted) {
        updateState(input);
      }
    }
  };

  const init = (root = document) => {
    if (CSS.supports('selector(:user-invalid)')) return;

    root.addEventListener('blur', handleEvent, true); // Capture phase
    root.addEventListener('input', handleEvent);
    root.addEventListener('change', handleEvent);
    root.addEventListener('reset', handleEvent, true); // Capture resets
  };

  return { init };
})();

// Initialize for a specific form
const form = document.querySelector('#demo-form');
UserInvalidFallback.init(form);

Other Considerations

  1. Mobile behavior: On mobile devices, "blur" might happen differently depending on the OS picker. Testing on actual devices is recommended.
  2. Accessibility: Native :user-invalid does not automatically sync with ARIA attributes. Add the following JavaScript to keep aria-invalid in sync with the visual state:
// Sync aria-invalid with the CSS :user-invalid state
const syncAria = (el) => {
  el.setAttribute?.('aria-invalid', el.matches(':user-invalid') ? 'true' : 'false');
};

// Update on blur (to show error) and input (to clear it)
document.addEventListener('blur', (e) => syncAria(e.target), true);
document.addEventListener('input', (e) => {
  if (e.target.hasAttribute('aria-invalid')) syncAria(e.target);
});