Empty State

Empty states are used to convey there is no data is available for display.

Contents

What's new

Empty state is a new pattern for the Dell Design System v2. This pattern consists of established solutions for experiences where a user may encounter a situation where there is nothing for the application to show.

Usage

There are several reasons why a user may encounter an empty state, including search results that do not match the user’s criteria, a new experience that has yet to be configured, and clearing an inbox. An empty screen or container within a screen is an opportunity to provide a user with additional information, whether it’s a suggestion to the user to take immediate action or to try again later. In any case, providing insight into why a user is seeing an empty state can alleviate confusion and help them understand what to do next.

Empty states can use call-to-action buttons when the next step is obvious to the user. Limit the number of buttons used to provide a clear course of action. For example, if the empty state is illustrating that there are no search results available, the button can provide a link to return or try again. Or if the component is an interactive container, an empty state button can prompt the user to add content.

No results

An empty state may occur when a user searches for a product or item and there are no results to display. This can result from an incorrect search due to misspellings or through the application of filters, or from the result simply not existing in the catalog. In addition to telling the user that their search has no results, recommend they adjust their search or filters and check their spelling.

First use

First use products or applications will show an empty state until the user configures or creates the screen to their liking. This includes dashboard views and other areas where users are encouraged to personalize their view with information they find useful. In these instances, it is helpful to tell users that they need to configure their view, and to provide a workflow to help them build the experience they need.

No data

No data views are a hybrid of first use and no data views. In these cases, users may find a screen before there is information available to populate it. These can occur for tables and data visualizations, where information may reset on a monthly or annual basis. For example, subscription storage usage or audit logs prior to any recorded activity.

User-cleared

These empty states occur when a user has completed all actions within an inbox or task list. As a direct result of user action, an empty state may not need to alert users to do anything more. Simply let users know that they’ve completed their tasks with a success message.

Layout

Consider your product, its data, and your users when choosing a layout. All layouts should have a visual logic. Adjust your designs according to best practices for your experience. Empty state should always be vertically and horizontally aligned in the middle of the component. The minimum and maximum width are always equal.