Reference version

This is documentation for the next SDK version. For up-to-date documentation, see the latest version (SDK 55).

Surface

A Jetpack Compose Surface component for styled content containers.

Android

For the complete documentation index, see llms.txt. Use this file to discover all available pages.

Expo UI Surface matches the official Jetpack Compose Surface API and provides a container that applies Material Design surface styling including color, elevation, and content color.

Installation

Terminal
npx expo install @expo/ui

If you are installing this in an existing React Native app, make sure to install expo in your project.

Usage

Basic surface

BasicSurfaceExample.tsx
import { Host, Surface, Text } from '@expo/ui/jetpack-compose'; import { paddingAll } from '@expo/ui/jetpack-compose/modifiers'; export default function BasicSurfaceExample() { return ( <Host matchContents> <Surface modifiers={[paddingAll(16)]}> <Text>Content on a surface</Text> </Surface> </Host> ); }

Surface with elevation

Use tonalElevation and shadowElevation to control the visual depth of the surface.

SurfaceElevationExample.tsx
import { Host, Surface, Column, Text } from '@expo/ui/jetpack-compose'; import { paddingAll } from '@expo/ui/jetpack-compose/modifiers'; export default function SurfaceElevationExample() { return ( <Host matchContents> <Column modifiers={[paddingAll(16)]}> <Surface tonalElevation={1} shadowElevation={2} modifiers={[paddingAll(16)]}> <Text>Low elevation</Text> </Surface> <Surface tonalElevation={4} shadowElevation={8} modifiers={[paddingAll(16)]}> <Text>High elevation</Text> </Surface> </Column> </Host> ); }

Surface with custom colors

Use the color and contentColor props to override the default Material theme colors.

SurfaceCustomColorsExample.tsx
import { Host, Surface, Text } from '@expo/ui/jetpack-compose'; import { paddingAll } from '@expo/ui/jetpack-compose/modifiers'; export default function SurfaceCustomColorsExample() { return ( <Host matchContents> <Surface color="#1E3A5F" contentColor="#FFFFFF" tonalElevation={2} modifiers={[paddingAll(16)]}> <Text color="#FFFFFF">Custom colored surface</Text> </Surface> </Host> ); }

Surface with shape and border

Use the shape prop to clip content and border to draw a stroke around the surface.

SurfaceShapeBorderExample.tsx
import { Host, Surface, Shape, Text } from '@expo/ui/jetpack-compose'; import { paddingAll } from '@expo/ui/jetpack-compose/modifiers'; export default function SurfaceShapeBorderExample() { return ( <Host matchContents> <Surface shape={Shape.RoundedCorner({ cornerRadii: { topStart: 16, topEnd: 16, bottomStart: 16, bottomEnd: 16 }, })} border={{ width: 2, color: '#6200EE' }} modifiers={[paddingAll(16)]}> <Text>Rounded surface with border</Text> </Surface> </Host> ); }

API

import { Surface } from '@expo/ui/jetpack-compose';

Component

Surface

Android

Type: React.Element<SurfaceProps>

A Material Design surface container. Surface is responsible for:

  • Clipping content to the shape
  • Applying background color based on tonal elevation
  • Providing content color to its children

SurfaceProps

border

Android
Optional • Type: SurfaceBorder

Border stroke drawn around the surface.

checked

Android
Optional • Type: boolean

Whether the surface is in a checked (toggled on) state. When provided together with onCheckedChange, the surface becomes a toggleable surface.

children

Android
Optional • Type: React.ReactNode

The content to display inside the surface.

color

Android
Optional • Type: ColorValue

The background color of the surface. Defaults to MaterialTheme.colorScheme.surface.

contentColor

Android
Optional • Type: ColorValue

The color of the content inside the surface. Defaults to contentColorFor(color).

enabled

Android
Optional • Type: boolean • Default: true

Whether the surface is enabled and responds to user interaction.

modifiers

Android
Optional • Type: ModifierConfig[]

Modifiers for the component.

onCheckedChange

Android
Optional • Type: (checked: boolean) => void

Called when the checked state of a toggleable surface changes. Providing this callback together with checked enables the toggleable variant.

onClick

Android
Optional • Type: () => void

Called when the surface is clicked. Providing this callback makes the surface clickable. When combined with selected, the surface becomes a selectable variant.

selected

Android
Optional • Type: boolean

Whether the surface is in a selected state. When provided together with onClick, the surface becomes a selectable surface that visually reflects its selection state.

shadowElevation

Android
Optional • Type: number • Default: 0

The shadow elevation of the surface. Value in dp.

shape

Android
Optional • Type: ShapeJSXElement

Shape configuration for clipping the surface.

tonalElevation

Android
Optional • Type: number • Default: 0

The tonal elevation of the surface, which affects its background color based on the color scheme. Value in dp.

Types

SurfaceBorder

Android

Border stroke configuration.

PropertyTypeDescription
color(optional)ColorValue

Border color.

Default:MaterialTheme.colorScheme.outline
width(optional)number

Border width in dp.

Default:1