The Best Filter UI Design for Large-Scale Apps

The advantage of a left sidebar is that it allows you to display more filters on the page without hiding the options. Since a page has infinite vertical space, you can stack them.

However, the downside is that users will often overlook and ignore these filters. It’s unclear to users that the sidebar is connected to the main content area they’re viewing (source).

A horizontal toolbar is a better layout for filters. The same study found that users interpreted controls above the content area as filters even when they weren’t. This means that users expect filters to be there. They perceive it as more connected with the main content and more accessible.

The typical way to display filters on a horizontal toolbar is to use multiple dropdowns. The issue with this approach is that users have to click and open a dropdown to view the options for each criteria. Doing this requires extra physical and cognitive effort

Another issue is with the user confirming the filters they applied. When you select a filter from a dropdown, a checkmark signifies the selection, but there’s no indication of that when the dropdown closes. If the user needs to check which filters are applied, they must reopen the dropdown to see

When you have many filters, rows of dropdowns aren’t the optimal design. It’s far better to dedicate a modal screen to display them. The extra screen space allows users to see the criteria options at a glance to make easier selections

Instead of opening and closing several menus, all they need to do is click a “Filters” button to open them in a modal screen. The “Filters” button is placed above the content adjacent to the “Sort by” dropdown.

Filtering differs from sorting, so separating these functions is important to avoid confusing users. When the user sorts data, they put it in a specific order. However, when they filter data, they hide what’s irrelevant and reveal what’s relevant based on particular criteria.

The batch filter screen displays each criterion in bold titles and a gray border that separates them into rows. Instead of checkboxes, it uses check chips, a more user-friendly variant of traditional checkboxes.

Check chips allow users to make selections easier because they have larger hit targets and distinguished borders. They also conserve a lot of space because they stack horizontally rather than vertically

a horizontal stack also helps with scanning. If the check chips aren’t in a particular order, users can scan them more efficiently in a horizontal direction (source).

Making this batch filtering system responsive and mobile-friendly is easy. The modal would take the full screen, and the criteria options would span the screen width. The user can scroll to see more criteria, and the “Show Results” button will stay visible and fixed at the bottom. Doing this prevents users from having to scroll down to apply the filters.

After the user applies the filters, they’ll see clear visual feedback on which options they selected. A row of X chips displays below the filter button, indicating all of the user’s selections. They don’t have to click anything to go back and check their selections. Their filter state is right in front of them.

The X chips allow users to remove filters with ease. All they have to do is click the X icon, and it’ll remove the filter and update the results instantly. If users need to remove all the selected filters, a “Clear All” button is available