react-modal

name	react-modal
description	Create modal dialogs in the frontend using a custom Modal component built on top of Radix UI Dialog. Use this skill whenever the user asks to create, add, or modify a modal, dialog, popup, or confirmation prompt in the React application.

This skill defines the standard approach for creating modal dialogs in this project. All modals MUST use the custom Modal component located at src/components/ui/Modal.tsx, which wraps Radix UI Dialog primitives.

Prerequisites

Before creating any modal, ensure @radix-ui/react-dialog is installed:

npm list @radix-ui/react-dialog || npm install @radix-ui/react-dialog

The Modal Component

The base Modal component lives at src/components/ui/Modal.tsx. If it does not exist yet, create it with the following implementation:

import * as React from "react";
import * as DialogPrimitive from "@radix-ui/react-dialog";
import { cn } from "../../lib/utils";

const Modal = DialogPrimitive.Root;

const ModalTrigger = DialogPrimitive.Trigger;

const ModalPortal = DialogPrimitive.Portal;

const ModalClose = DialogPrimitive.Close;

const ModalOverlay = React.forwardRef<
  React.ComponentRef<typeof DialogPrimitive.Overlay>,
  React.ComponentPropsWithoutRef<typeof DialogPrimitive.Overlay>
>(({ className, ...props }, ref) => (
  <DialogPrimitive.Overlay
    ref={ref}
    className={cn(
      "fixed inset-0 z-50 bg-black/60 backdrop-blur-sm",
      "data-[state=open]:animate-in data-[state=open]:fade-in-0",
      "data-[state=closed]:animate-out data-[state=closed]:fade-out-0",
      className
    )}
    {...props}
  />
));
ModalOverlay.displayName = "ModalOverlay";

const ModalContent = React.forwardRef<
  React.ComponentRef<typeof DialogPrimitive.Content>,
  React.ComponentPropsWithoutRef<typeof DialogPrimitive.Content>
>(({ className, children, ...props }, ref) => (
  <ModalPortal>
    <ModalOverlay />
    <DialogPrimitive.Content
      ref={ref}
      className={cn(
        "fixed left-1/2 top-1/2 z-50 w-full max-w-lg -translate-x-1/2 -translate-y-1/2",
        "bg-white dark:bg-gray-800 rounded-xl shadow-xl border border-gray-200 dark:border-gray-700",
        "p-6 duration-200",
        "data-[state=open]:animate-in data-[state=open]:fade-in-0 data-[state=open]:zoom-in-95 data-[state=open]:slide-in-from-left-1/2 data-[state=open]:slide-in-from-top-[48%]",
        "data-[state=closed]:animate-out data-[state=closed]:fade-out-0 data-[state=closed]:zoom-out-95 data-[state=closed]:slide-out-to-left-1/2 data-[state=closed]:slide-out-to-top-[48%]",
        className
      )}
      {...props}
    >
      {children}
    </DialogPrimitive.Content>
  </ModalPortal>
));
ModalContent.displayName = "ModalContent";

const ModalHeader = ({
  className,
  ...props
}: React.HTMLAttributes<HTMLDivElement>) => (
  <div className={cn("flex flex-col space-y-1.5 mb-4", className)} {...props} />
);
ModalHeader.displayName = "ModalHeader";

const ModalFooter = ({
  className,
  ...props
}: React.HTMLAttributes<HTMLDivElement>) => (
  <div
    className={cn("flex justify-end gap-3 mt-6", className)}
    {...props}
  />
);
ModalFooter.displayName = "ModalFooter";

const ModalTitle = React.forwardRef<
  React.ComponentRef<typeof DialogPrimitive.Title>,
  React.ComponentPropsWithoutRef<typeof DialogPrimitive.Title>
>(({ className, ...props }, ref) => (
  <DialogPrimitive.Title
    ref={ref}
    className={cn("text-lg font-semibold text-gray-900 dark:text-white", className)}
    {...props}
  />
));
ModalTitle.displayName = "ModalTitle";

const ModalDescription = React.forwardRef<
  React.ComponentRef<typeof DialogPrimitive.Description>,
  React.ComponentPropsWithoutRef<typeof DialogPrimitive.Description>
>(({ className, ...props }, ref) => (
  <DialogPrimitive.Description
    ref={ref}
    className={cn("text-sm text-gray-600 dark:text-gray-400", className)}
    {...props}
  />
));
ModalDescription.displayName = "ModalDescription";

export {
  Modal,
  ModalPortal,
  ModalOverlay,
  ModalTrigger,
  ModalClose,
  ModalContent,
  ModalHeader,
  ModalFooter,
  ModalTitle,
  ModalDescription,
};

The ConfirmModal Component

The ConfirmModal is a specialized, ready-to-use confirmation dialog that lives at src/components/ui/ConfirmModal.tsx. It replaces all uses of window.confirm(). If it does not exist yet, create it with the following implementation:

import * as React from "react";
import {
  Modal,
  ModalContent,
  ModalHeader,
  ModalFooter,
  ModalTitle,
  ModalDescription,
  ModalClose,
} from "./Modal";
import { cn } from "../../lib/utils";

type ConfirmVariant = "danger" | "warning" | "default";

interface ConfirmModalProps {
  open: boolean;
  onOpenChange: (open: boolean) => void;
  onConfirm: () => void | Promise<void>;
  title: string;
  description?: string;
  confirmLabel?: string;
  cancelLabel?: string;
  variant?: ConfirmVariant;
  loading?: boolean;
}

const variantStyles: Record<ConfirmVariant, string> = {
  danger:
    "bg-red-600 hover:bg-red-700 text-white focus:ring-red-500",
  warning:
    "bg-yellow-500 hover:bg-yellow-600 text-white focus:ring-yellow-400",
  default:
    "bg-blue-600 hover:bg-blue-700 text-white focus:ring-blue-500",
};

export function ConfirmModal({
  open,
  onOpenChange,
  onConfirm,
  title,
  description,
  confirmLabel = "Confirm",
  cancelLabel = "Cancel",
  variant = "default",
  loading = false,
}: ConfirmModalProps) {
  const handleConfirm = async () => {
    await onConfirm();
    onOpenChange(false);
  };

  return (
    <Modal open={open} onOpenChange={onOpenChange}>
      <ModalContent className="max-w-md">
        <ModalHeader>
          <ModalTitle>{title}</ModalTitle>
          {description && (
            <ModalDescription>{description}</ModalDescription>
          )}
        </ModalHeader>
        <ModalFooter>
          <ModalClose asChild>
            <button
              type="button"
              disabled={loading}
              className="px-4 py-2 rounded-lg text-sm font-medium bg-gray-100 hover:bg-gray-200 text-gray-700 dark:bg-gray-700 dark:hover:bg-gray-600 dark:text-gray-200 transition-colors focus:outline-none focus:ring-2 focus:ring-gray-400 focus:ring-offset-2"
            >
              {cancelLabel}
            </button>
          </ModalClose>
          <button
            type="button"
            onClick={handleConfirm}
            disabled={loading}
            className={cn(
              "px-4 py-2 rounded-lg text-sm font-medium transition-colors focus:outline-none focus:ring-2 focus:ring-offset-2 disabled:opacity-50 disabled:cursor-not-allowed",
              variantStyles[variant]
            )}
          >
            {loading ? "Loading..." : confirmLabel}
          </button>
        </ModalFooter>
      </ModalContent>
    </Modal>
  );
}

Usage Rules

1. Always use the Modal component from src/components/ui/Modal.tsx for any modal, dialog, or popup — unless the user explicitly requests an exception.
2. Always use ConfirmModal from src/components/ui/ConfirmModal.tsx for any confirmation prompt (e.g., "Are you sure you want to delete?"). Never build confirmation dialogs manually from Modal primitives.
3. Never use raw Radix UI Dialog primitives directly in page or feature components. Always go through the Modal or ConfirmModal wrappers.
4. Never use window.alert(), window.confirm(), or window.prompt() — use ConfirmModal for confirmations, the Modal component for other dialogs, and toast from sonner for alerts.
5. Never create a custom modal from scratch with manual overlay/backdrop logic. The Modal component already handles overlay, backdrop blur, animations, focus trapping, and accessibility.

Usage Patterns

ConfirmModal — Confirmation prompt (replaces window.confirm())

This is the standard way to ask the user to confirm a destructive or important action:

import * as React from "react";
import { ConfirmModal } from "@/components/ui/ConfirmModal";
import { toast } from "sonner";

function DeleteUserButton({ userId }: { userId: string }) {
  const [open, setOpen] = React.useState(false);
  const [loading, setLoading] = React.useState(false);

  const handleDelete = async () => {
    setLoading(true);
    try {
      await deleteUser(userId);
      toast.success("User deleted successfully!");
    } catch (error) {
      toast.error("Failed to delete user.");
    } finally {
      setLoading(false);
    }
  };

  return (
    <>
      <button onClick={() => setOpen(true)}>Delete User</button>
      <ConfirmModal
        open={open}
        onOpenChange={setOpen}
        onConfirm={handleDelete}
        title="Delete User"
        description="Are you sure you want to delete this user? This action cannot be undone."
        confirmLabel="Delete"
        cancelLabel="Cancel"
        variant="danger"
        loading={loading}
      />
    </>
  );
}

ConfirmModal variants:

• variant="danger" — Red button. Use for destructive actions (delete, remove, revoke).
• variant="warning" — Yellow button. Use for risky but reversible actions.
• variant="default" — Blue button. Use for neutral confirmations.

General Modal — Custom content dialogs

For modals with custom content (forms, detail views, etc.):

import {
  Modal,
  ModalTrigger,
  ModalContent,
  ModalHeader,
  ModalFooter,
  ModalTitle,
  ModalDescription,
  ModalClose,
} from "@/components/ui/Modal";

function Example() {
  return (
    <Modal>
      <ModalTrigger asChild>
        <button>Open Modal</button>
      </ModalTrigger>
      <ModalContent>
        <ModalHeader>
          <ModalTitle>Modal Title</ModalTitle>
          <ModalDescription>
            A brief description of what this modal does.
          </ModalDescription>
        </ModalHeader>

        {/* Modal body content goes here */}
        <div>Your content here</div>

        <ModalFooter>
          <ModalClose asChild>
            <button>Cancel</button>
          </ModalClose>
          <button>Confirm</button>
        </ModalFooter>
      </ModalContent>
    </Modal>
  );
}

Controlled Modal (programmatic open/close)

When you need to control the modal state programmatically (e.g., close after an async action):

function ControlledExample() {
  const [open, setOpen] = React.useState(false);

  const handleConfirm = async () => {
    await someAsyncAction();
    setOpen(false);
  };

  return (
    <Modal open={open} onOpenChange={setOpen}>
      <ModalTrigger asChild>
        <button>Open</button>
      </ModalTrigger>
      <ModalContent>
        <ModalHeader>
          <ModalTitle>Confirm Action</ModalTitle>
        </ModalHeader>
        <ModalFooter>
          <ModalClose asChild>
            <button>Cancel</button>
          </ModalClose>
          <button onClick={handleConfirm}>Confirm</button>
        </ModalFooter>
      </ModalContent>
    </Modal>
  );
}

When to use which

Scenario	Component
"Are you sure you want to delete?"	ConfirmModal
"Discard unsaved changes?"	ConfirmModal
Edit form in a dialog	Modal
Detail/preview popup	Modal
Alert/notification message	toast from sonner (not a modal)

Styling

• The Modal component follows the same styling conventions as other src/components/ui/ components (Tailwind CSS, cn() utility, dark mode support via dark: variants).
• Override styles by passing className to any Modal sub-component.
• The default width is max-w-lg. Pass a different className to ModalContent to change it (e.g., className="max-w-2xl" for wider modals).

Accessibility

The Radix UI Dialog primitive already provides:

• Focus trapping within the modal
• Escape key to close
• Click outside (overlay) to close
• Proper aria- attributes via ModalTitle and ModalDescription

Always include a ModalTitle for accessibility. If the title should be visually hidden, use sr-only class.