UX Patterns · Hexabinar Insight
Composable Cards for Complex Dashboards
6–8 min read · Published by Hexabinar Design Engineering
Dashboards succeed when complexity feels simple. At Hexabinar we use composable card primitives—small, consistent building blocks that scale from quick summaries to dense operational views without breaking readability, accessibility, or performance.
Card anatomy
- Header: title, context tag, time range, and quick actions.
- Body: primary value/chart; supports density modes (comfortable/compact).
- Meta: deltas, confidence, footnotes, last updated.
- Footer: affordances (drill‑in, compare, export).
Density controls
Operators need to see more without losing clarity. Cards expose a density toggle that adjusts spacing, typography scale, and chart label frequency. Compact mode keeps touch targets ≥ 40×40 px.
Data‑ink ratio and hierarchy
- Primary first: one hero value or chart per card; supporting data recedes.
- Color roles: teal for links/data accents; green for primary CTAs.
- Grid rhythm: align cards to a responsive column grid to aid scanability.
States and resilience
- Loading: skeletons in 100–200 ms; never spinner‑only.
- Empty: explain why; provide a next action (connect source/filter).
- Error: safe copy + retry; show diagnostic hint if helpful.
- Partial: render what’s valid; annotate gaps.
Accessibility
- AA contrast for text/UI; visible focus rings; keyboard reach for card actions.
- ARIA roles where needed (e.g.,
aria-livefor dynamic deltas) with native HTML first. - Chart alternatives: summaries or tables for screen readers.
Performance
- Lazily hydrate interactive parts; ship static HTML first.
- Virtualize long lists; throttle expensive redraws.
- Cache layer: SWR and request coalescing; content‑hash assets with long TTL.
Composition patterns
- Summary → Drill‑down: card links to a detail view; preserves filters/time.
- Compare: side‑by‑side cards sync axes/time ranges.
- KPI bundles: grouped small cards with shared context.
- Alert cards: highlight notable deviations with clear rationale and action.
Impact
- Faster decision‑making via consistent hierarchy and affordances.
- Reduced design/engineering overhead: new cards assemble from primitives.
- Better performance and accessibility by construction.
What’s next
Extending card templates for real‑time collaboration and richer drill‑downs, and expanding our token‑driven theming to cover data‑dense modes across products.