igniteui-wc-choose-components

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

• igniteui-wc-integrate-with-framework — Set up chosen components in React, Angular, Vue, or vanilla JS
• igniteui-wc-customize-component-theme — Style and theme the components you select
• igniteui-wc-optimize-bundle-size — Import only the components you actually use

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

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>.

Buttons & Actions

Scheduling & Date Pickers

Notifications & Feedback

Progress Indicators

Layouts & Containers

Navigation

Lists & Data Display

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.

Conversational / AI

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:

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>" })

Step 5 — Provide a starter code snippet

Once components are identified, give the user a minimal working snippet. Example for an admin dashboard shell:

import {
  defineComponents,
  IgcNavbarComponent,
  IgcNavDrawerComponent,
  IgcCardComponent,
  IgcButtonComponent,
} from 'igniteui-webcomponents';

defineComponents(IgcNavbarComponent, IgcNavDrawerComponent, IgcCardComponent, IgcButtonComponent);

<igc-navbar><h1>My Dashboard</h1></igc-navbar>
<igc-nav-drawer>
  <igc-nav-drawer-item><span slot="content">Home</span></igc-nav-drawer-item>
</igc-nav-drawer>
<igc-card>
  <igc-card-header><h3 slot="title">Summary</h3></igc-card-header>
  <igc-card-content>Content goes here</igc-card-content>
</igc-card>

Common UI Scenarios → Recommended Component Sets

Login / Authentication Form

• <igc-input> — email and password fields
• <igc-checkbox> — "Remember me"
• <igc-button> — submit
• <igc-snackbar> — error/success feedback

User Profile / Settings Page

• <igc-avatar> — profile picture
• <igc-tabs> — section navigation (Profile, Security, Notifications)
• <igc-input> / <igc-textarea> — editable fields
• <igc-switch> — feature toggles
• <igc-select> — preference dropdowns
• <igc-button> — save/cancel actions

Data Table / Admin List View

• <igc-input> — search bar
• <igc-combo> — filter dropdowns
• <igc-grid> (Grid Lite) or Data Grid — tabular data
• <igc-button> / <igc-icon-button> — actions
• <igc-dialog> — confirm delete modal
• <igc-badge> — status indicators

Booking / Reservation Form

• <igc-date-range-picker> — check-in / check-out
• <igc-input> — guest details
• <igc-select> — room type
• <igc-stepper> — multi-step booking flow
• <igc-button> — next / confirm
• <igc-toast> — booking confirmation

Analytics / Reporting Dashboard

• <igc-navbar> — top bar
• <igc-nav-drawer> — side navigation
• <igc-card> — KPI summary cards
• <igc-tabs> or <igc-tile-manager> — section layout
• Data Grid or Pivot Grid — detailed data tables
• <igc-linear-progress> / <igc-circular-progress> — loading states

Notification / Activity Feed

• <igc-list> — activity items
• <igc-avatar> — user avatars in each item
• <igc-badge> — unread count
• <igc-snackbar> — real-time alerts
• <igc-chip> — filter tags (All, Mentions, Replies)

AI / Chatbot Interface

• <igc-chat> — full chat UI with message threading
• <igc-input> or <igc-textarea> — message input
• <igc-icon-button> — send button
• <igc-avatar> — bot and user avatars
• <igc-circular-progress> — "thinking" indicator

Common Issues & Solutions

"I can't find a component for X"

1. Call list_components({ framework: "webcomponents" }) or use search_docs with a feature keyword to find the best match
2. Consider composing two simpler components (e.g., <igc-card> + <igc-list> for a list card)

"Which grid should I use?"

"I need React support"

Use the igniteui-react package. Components are wrapped with React-friendly event bindings and props. See the igniteui-wc-integrate-with-framework skill for setup.

"How do I get commercial components?"

Visit https://www.infragistics.com/products/ignite-ui-web-components or contact Infragistics sales for licensing information.

Additional Resources