Component

Textarea With Counter

Textarea with a live character counter (current / maximum) derived from the real value.

  • Component
  • React
  • TSX
  • Tailwind CSS
  • MIT

What it does

Capabilities

  • Semantic HTML
  • Native form control
  • Native textarea
  • Associated labels
  • ARIA
  • Aria-live counter

Preview

Live component

Interactive preview
Open preview
9:41 100%
devsnips.site/library/react/components/textareas/textarea-with-counter/
fluid · no fixed width 100%
No dependencies Responsive · Light/dark · Focus-visible

Install

Add to your project

terminal
npx devsnips add React/Components/Textareas/textarea-with-counter
registry path: React/Components/Textareas/textarea-with-counter

Source

Implementation

code.tsx
import type { ChangeEvent, ReactNode, TextareaHTMLAttributes } from "react";
import { useId, useState } from "react";

function cx(...parts: Array<string | false | null | undefined>): string {
  return parts.filter(Boolean).join(" ");
}

const TEXTAREA_BASE =
  "w-full min-h-[80px] resize-y rounded-[var(--ds-radius-sm)] border bg-[var(--ds-color-input)] px-3 py-2 text-sm leading-5 text-[var(--ds-color-foreground)] shadow-none transition-colors duration-150 ease-out placeholder:text-[var(--ds-color-muted-foreground)] hover:bg-[var(--ds-color-input-hover,var(--ds-color-input))] focus:bg-[var(--ds-color-input-focus,var(--ds-color-input))] focus-visible:outline-2 focus-visible:outline-offset-2 focus-visible:outline-[var(--ds-color-focus-ring)] disabled:pointer-events-none disabled:bg-[var(--ds-color-muted)] disabled:text-[var(--ds-color-muted-foreground)] disabled:opacity-60 read-only:bg-[var(--ds-color-surface-subtle)] read-only:text-[var(--ds-color-muted-foreground)] motion-reduce:transition-none";

const TEXTAREA_BORDER =
  "border-[var(--ds-color-border)] focus:border-[var(--ds-color-border-strong)]";

export interface TextareaWithCounterProps extends TextareaHTMLAttributes<HTMLTextAreaElement> {
  /** Visible label — required. */
  label: ReactNode;
  /** Optional helper text rendered beside the counter. */
  helperText?: ReactNode;
}

/**
 * Textarea with a live character counter. The count is derived from the
 * real value — the controlled `value` when provided, otherwise the
 * uncontrolled text the user has typed — so it always reflects what is
 * actually in the field. When `maxLength` is supplied the counter shows
 * `current / maximum` and the native attribute enforces the limit; at the
 * limit the count gains emphasis (weight + foreground color — no loud
 * colors or animation). When no `maxLength` is supplied the counter shows
 * a plain character count. The counter region is `aria-live` polite and
 * linked with `aria-describedby`.
 */
export function TextareaWithCounter({
  label,
  helperText,
  id,
  className,
  rows = 3,
  value,
  defaultValue = "",
  onChange,
  maxLength,
  ...props
}: TextareaWithCounterProps) {
  const generatedId = useId();
  const textareaId = id ?? `textarea-${generatedId}`;
  const countId = `${textareaId}-count`;
  const [internalValue, setInternalValue] = useState(String(defaultValue ?? ""));
  const currentValue = value === undefined ? internalValue : String(value ?? "");
  const atLimit = maxLength !== undefined && currentValue.length >= maxLength;

  function handleChange(event: ChangeEvent<HTMLTextAreaElement>) {
    if (value === undefined) setInternalValue(event.target.value);
    onChange?.(event);
  }

  return (
    <div className="w-full">
      <label
        htmlFor={textareaId}
        className="mb-2 block text-[13px] font-medium leading-5 text-[var(--ds-color-foreground)]"
      >
        {label}
      </label>
      <textarea
        id={textareaId}
        rows={rows}
        value={currentValue}
        onChange={handleChange}
        maxLength={maxLength}
        aria-describedby={countId}
        className={cx(TEXTAREA_BASE, TEXTAREA_BORDER, className)}
        {...props}
      />
      <div
        id={countId}
        aria-live="polite"
        className="mt-2 flex items-baseline justify-between gap-3 text-xs leading-4 text-[var(--ds-color-muted-foreground)]"
      >
        <span>{helperText}</span>
        <span className={cx("shrink-0", atLimit && "font-medium text-[var(--ds-color-foreground)]")}>
          {currentValue.length}{maxLength !== undefined ? ` / ${maxLength}` : ""}
        </span>
      </div>
    </div>
  );
}

export default TextareaWithCounter;
88 lines UTF-8 · LF · Spaces: 2
DevSnips AI ready Claude · Cursor · Windsurf

Agent skill & Model Context Protocol

Pass this component straight into your AI workflow. DevSnips exposes each resource as a structured, addressable registry entry, so your agent installs the real files instead of approximating them.

devsnips://components/textareas/textarea-with-counter
Prompt instruction
I want to use this DevSnips resource in production:

Page:
https://devsnips.site/library/react/components/textareas/textarea-with-counter/

Install: npx devsnips add
React/Components/Textareas/textarea-with-counter

This is the Textarea With Counter — Textarea with a live character counter (current / maximum) derived from the real value.

Use this DevSnips resource as the starting point for my project.
Adapt it to my project's stack and conventions, fix any issues,
and make it production-ready while preserving its intended design
and behavior.

Paste into ChatGPT, Claude or your agent — it already carries the page URL and the exact install path.

Resource URI
devsnips://components/textareas/textarea-with-counter