| name | igniteui-wc-choose-components |
| description | Identify and select the right Ignite UI Web Components for your app UI, then navigate to official docs, usage examples, and API references |
| user-invocable | true |
Choose the Right Ignite UI Components
This skill helps AI agents and developers identify the best Ignite UI components for any UI requirement, then provides direct links to official documentation, usage examples, and API references.
Prerequisites
- The Ignite UI CLI MCP server (
igniteui-cli) available as a tool provider
AGENT INSTRUCTION — MCP Server Setup (REQUIRED)
Before using the Ignite UI CLI MCP tools, you MUST verify the MCP server is available
by calling list_components. If the tool is not available or the call fails,
you MUST automatically configure it by following the setup instructions in
reference/mcp-setup.md.
After writing the file, inform the user that the MCP server has been
configured and they may need to reload the editor for the tools to activate.
Start the MCP server and wait for that MCP server to start before continuing the component-related work.
Do NOT skip this step or ask the user to do it manually.
Setting Up the Ignite UI CLI MCP Server
Full setup instructions for VS Code, Cursor, Claude Desktop, and JetBrains IDEs are in reference/mcp-setup.md. Read that file for editor-specific configuration steps and verification.
Before You Answer
- Choose the package before writing imports or install steps.
- If the required package is not present in
package.json, add or install the correct Ignite UI dependency first. Absence from package.json does not mean the package is invalid.
- If the user also needs setup or code, then load igniteui-wc-integrate-with-framework.
Example Usage
- "What component should I use to display a list of items with actions?"
- "I need a date picker for a booking form"
- "How do I show file upload progress?"
- "What's the best component for a navigation sidebar?"
- "I need a searchable dropdown with multi-select"
- "Build a dashboard layout with cards and a data grid"
- "I want to display hierarchical/tree data"
- "Show me components for notifications and alerts"
Related Skills
When to Use
- Agent or user needs to decide which component fits a UI requirement
- User describes a UI pattern and needs a matching component name
- User wants to explore what components are available
- User needs links to official docs or live examples for a specific component
- Starting a new feature and mapping requirements to components
- Reworking existing UI with new or different component requirements
Available Packages
| Component family | License | Trial install | Licensed install |
|---|
| General UI components | MIT | npm install igniteui-webcomponents | (same) |
| Advanced grids | Commercial | npm install igniteui-webcomponents-grids | npm install @infragistics/igniteui-webcomponents-grids |
| Grid Lite | MIT | npm install igniteui-grid-lite | (same) |
| Dock Manager | Commercial | npm install igniteui-dockmanager | npm install @infragistics/igniteui-dockmanager |
| Charts | Commercial | npm install igniteui-webcomponents-core igniteui-webcomponents-charts | npm install @infragistics/igniteui-webcomponents-core @infragistics/igniteui-webcomponents-charts |
If the request only says "grid", choose by features:
- Advanced features (editing, paging, summaries, grouping, hierarchical data, pivot) →
igniteui-webcomponents-grids
- Lightweight table →
igniteui-grid-lite
Component Catalogue by UI Pattern
Use MCP to discover the live component catalogue. Call list_components({ framework: "webcomponents" }) — it returns all 300+ available docs with doc names, summaries, and premium status. Then call get_doc with the exact doc name field to get usage patterns, HTML examples, and slots; call get_api_reference with the component class name (e.g. IgcCarouselComponent) for the full property/method/event API.
list_components({ framework: "webcomponents", filter: "<keyword>" })
get_doc({ framework: "webcomponents", name: "<doc-name-from-list>" })
Use filter to narrow results: "input", "grid", "chart", "nav", "date", "combo", etc.
The tables below are a quick routing reference for the most common UI patterns. Component tags and package assignments are stable; for usage examples call get_doc, for full property/method/event API call get_api_reference.
Inputs & Forms
All inputs are form-associated and integrate natively with <form>.
| UI Need | Component | Tag |
|---|
| Text field / text input | Input | <igc-input> |
| Multi-line text | Textarea | <igc-textarea> |
| Checkbox | Checkbox | <igc-checkbox> |
| On/off toggle | Switch | <igc-switch> |
| Single choice from a list | Radio / Radio Group | <igc-radio> / <igc-radio-group> |
| Star / score rating | Rating | <igc-rating> |
| Formatted / masked text input | Mask Input | <igc-mask-input> |
| Date and time input | Date Time Input | <igc-date-time-input> |
| File upload | File Input | <igc-file-input> |
| Simple dropdown / select | Select | <igc-select> |
| Searchable dropdown, single or multi-select | Combo | <igc-combo> |
| Grouped toggle buttons | Button Group | <igc-button-group> |
| Range / numeric slider | Slider | <igc-slider> |
| Range slider (two handles) | Range Slider | <igc-range-slider> |
Buttons & Actions
| UI Need | Component | Tag |
|---|
| Standard clickable button | Button | <igc-button> |
| Icon-only button | Icon Button | <igc-icon-button> |
| Click ripple effect | Ripple | <igc-ripple> |
| Removable tag / filter chip | Chip | <igc-chip> |
Scheduling & Date Pickers
| UI Need | Component | Tag |
|---|
| Full calendar view | Calendar | <igc-calendar> |
| Date picker (popup calendar) | Date Picker | <igc-date-picker> |
| Date range selection | Date Range Picker | <igc-date-range-picker> |
Notifications & Feedback
| UI Need | Component | Tag |
|---|
| Brief auto-dismiss notification | Toast | <igc-toast> |
| Actionable dismissible notification bar | Snackbar | <igc-snackbar> |
| Persistent status banner (e.g. warning, error) | Banner | <igc-banner> |
| Modal confirmation or content dialog | Dialog | <igc-dialog> |
| Tooltip on hover | Tooltip | <igc-tooltip> |
| Small count / status indicator | Badge | <igc-badge> |
Progress Indicators
| UI Need | Component | Tag |
|---|
| Horizontal progress bar | Linear Progress | <igc-linear-progress> |
| Circular / spinner progress | Circular Progress | <igc-circular-progress> |
Layouts & Containers
| UI Need | Component | Tag |
|---|
| Generic content card | Card | <igc-card> |
| User avatar / profile image | Avatar | <igc-avatar> |
| Icon display | Icon | <igc-icon> |
| Horizontal or vertical divider line | Divider | <igc-divider> |
| Collapsible section | Expansion Panel | <igc-expansion-panel> |
| Multiple collapsible sections (accordion) | Accordion | <igc-accordion> |
| Tabbed content panels | Tabs | <igc-tabs> |
| Image / content slideshow | Carousel | <igc-carousel> |
| Multi-step wizard / onboarding flow | Stepper | <igc-stepper> |
| Resizable, draggable dashboard tiles | Tile Manager | <igc-tile-manager> |
| IDE-style docking / floating panels | Dock Manager | <igc-dockmanager> |
Navigation
| UI Need | Component | Tag |
|---|
| Top application bar / toolbar | Navbar | <igc-navbar> |
| Side navigation drawer | Navigation Drawer | <igc-nav-drawer> |
| Context menu / actions dropdown | Drop Down | <igc-dropdown> |
Lists & Data Display
| UI Need | Component | Tag |
|---|
| Simple scrollable list | List | <igc-list> |
| Hierarchical / tree data | Tree | <igc-tree> |
| Tabular data (MIT, lightweight) | Grid Lite | <igc-grid> |
| Full-featured tabular data grid | Data Grid | <igc-grid> |
| Nested / master-detail grid | Hierarchical Grid | <igc-hierarchical-grid> |
| Parent-child relational tree grid | Tree Grid | <igc-tree-grid> |
| Cross-tabulation / BI pivot table | Pivot Grid | <igc-pivot-grid> |
Charting & Visualization
Charts are provided by the igniteui-webcomponents-charts package (commercial). Use IgcCategoryChartComponent or IgcFinancialChartComponent for simpler domain-specific scenarios; use IgcDataChartComponent for full flexibility (mixed series, numeric/time axes, scatter, polar, etc.).
Call list_components({ framework: "webcomponents", filter: "chart" }) for the full chart doc list, then get_doc on the specific chart type before coding.
| UI Need | Component | Tag |
|---|
| Column / Line / Area / Spline / Step charts | Category Chart | <igc-category-chart> |
| Pie chart | Pie Chart | <igc-pie-chart> |
| Doughnut chart | Doughnut Chart | <igc-doughnut-chart> |
| Financial / stock chart (OHLC, candlestick) | Financial Chart | <igc-financial-chart> |
| Bar / Scatter / Bubble / Polar / Composite charts | Data Chart | <igc-data-chart> |
| Sparkline (inline mini-chart) | Sparkline | <igc-sparkline> |
| Treemap | Treemap | <igc-treemap> |
Conversational / AI
| UI Need | Component | Tag |
|---|
| Chat / AI assistant message thread | Chat | <igc-chat> |
Step-by-Step: Choosing Components for a UI
Follow these steps when an agent or user describes a UI requirement:
Step 1 — Identify UI patterns
Break the described UI into atomic patterns. Examples:
- "A booking form" → date input, text inputs, button, maybe a calendar picker
- "An admin dashboard" → navbar, nav drawer, cards, data grid, charts
- "A notification center" → snackbar or toast, badge, list
- "A settings page" → tabs or accordion, switch, input, select, button
Step 2 — Map patterns to components
Use the Component Catalogue tables above to find matching components. When in doubt:
| If the user needs… | Prefer… | Over… |
|---|
| Simple static list | <igc-list> | Data Grid |
| Basic dropdown | <igc-select> | <igc-combo> |
| Searchable or multi-select dropdown | <igc-combo> | <igc-select> |
| Tabular data with basic display and functionality | Grid Lite | Data Grid (commercial) |
| Tabular data, advanced features needed | Data Grid | Grid Lite |
| Single dismissible message | Toast | Snackbar |
| Message requiring user action | Snackbar | Toast |
| Collapsible single section | Expansion Panel | Accordion |
| Multiple collapsible sections | Accordion | Expansion Panel |
| Stepped wizard UI | Stepper | Tabs |
| Content tabs / view switching | Tabs | Stepper |
Step 3 — Check the package
Confirm which package provides the component:
- MIT components (inputs, layout, notifications, scheduling, chat) →
igniteui-webcomponents
- Advanced grids (Data Grid, Tree Grid, Hierarchical Grid, Pivot Grid) →
igniteui-webcomponents-grids (commercial)
- Lightweight grid (Grid Lite) →
igniteui-grid-lite (MIT)
- Docking layout →
igniteui-dockmanager (commercial)
- Charts & visualizations (Category Chart, Data Chart, Financial Chart, Pie Chart, Sparkline, Treemap, etc.) →
igniteui-webcomponents-charts (commercial)
Step 4 — Look up component documentation
These tools serve different data sources — call the right one to avoid guessing:
-
Usage patterns, HTML examples, slots → get_doc serves the component's topic-page (prose guide, code samples, slot names, CSS examples). Use the kebab-case doc name returned by list_components:
get_doc({ framework: "webcomponents", name: "<doc-name>" })
-
Full property/method/event API → get_api_reference serves class-level reflection data (every @property, method signature, event name with types). It does NOT overlap with get_doc — the topic page rarely lists all properties. Use search_api first when you don't know the exact class name (e.g. IgcCarouselComponent):
search_api({ platform: "webcomponents", query: "<component keyword>" })
get_api_reference({ platform: "webcomponents", component: "<ClassName>" })
For feature-based questions (e.g., "how does combo filtering work"), use search_docs instead:
search_docs({ framework: "webcomponents", query: "<feature keyword>" })
