shadcn/ui Setup Skill

This skill covers shadcn/ui component library installation and customization.

When to Use

Use this skill when:

• Need pre-styled accessible components
• Building design systems quickly
• Want full control over component code
• Using Tailwind CSS

Core Principle

COPY, DON'T IMPORT - shadcn/ui components are copied into your codebase. You own and customize them fully.

Installation

Initialize Project

# For new Next.js project
npx create-next-app@latest my-app --typescript --tailwind --eslint

# Initialize shadcn/ui
npx shadcn@latest init

Configuration Options

Would you like to use TypeScript? yes
Which style would you like to use? Default
Which color would you like to use as base color? Slate
Where is your global CSS file? app/globals.css
Would you like to use CSS variables for colors? yes
Where is your tailwind.config.ts located? tailwind.config.ts
Configure the import alias for components: @/components
Configure the import alias for utils: @/lib/utils
Are you using React Server Components? yes

Generated Configuration

// components.json
{
  "$schema": "https://ui.shadcn.com/schema.json",
  "style": "default",
  "rsc": true,
  "tsx": true,
  "tailwind": {
    "config": "tailwind.config.ts",
    "css": "app/globals.css",
    "baseColor": "slate",
    "cssVariables": true,
    "prefix": ""
  },
  "aliases": {
    "components": "@/components",
    "utils": "@/lib/utils"
  }
}

Adding Components

# Add individual components
npx shadcn@latest add button
npx shadcn@latest add card
npx shadcn@latest add dialog
npx shadcn@latest add dropdown-menu
npx shadcn@latest add form
npx shadcn@latest add input
npx shadcn@latest add select
npx shadcn@latest add tabs
npx shadcn@latest add toast

# Add multiple components
npx shadcn@latest add button card dialog

# Add all components
npx shadcn@latest add --all

Component Structure

src/
├── components/
│   └── ui/
│       ├── button.tsx
│       ├── card.tsx
│       ├── dialog.tsx
│       └── ...
├── lib/
│   └── utils.ts
└── app/
    └── globals.css

Utility Function

// lib/utils.ts
import { type ClassValue, clsx } from 'clsx';
import { twMerge } from 'tailwind-merge';

export function cn(...inputs: ClassValue[]): string {
  return twMerge(clsx(inputs));
}

Using Components

Button

import { Button } from '@/components/ui/button';

function App(): React.ReactElement {
  return (
    <div className="flex gap-2">
      <Button variant="default">Default</Button>
      <Button variant="secondary">Secondary</Button>
      <Button variant="destructive">Destructive</Button>
      <Button variant="outline">Outline</Button>
      <Button variant="ghost">Ghost</Button>
      <Button variant="link">Link</Button>

      <Button size="sm">Small</Button>
      <Button size="lg">Large</Button>
      <Button size="icon"><Icon /></Button>

      <Button disabled>Disabled</Button>
      <Button asChild>
        <a href="/about">Link as Button</a>
      </Button>
    </div>
  );
}

Card

import {
  Card,
  CardContent,
  CardDescription,
  CardFooter,
  CardHeader,
  CardTitle,
} from '@/components/ui/card';

function UserCard({ user }: { user: User }): React.ReactElement {
  return (
    <Card>
      <CardHeader>
        <CardTitle>{user.name}</CardTitle>
        <CardDescription>{user.email}</CardDescription>
      </CardHeader>
      <CardContent>
        <p>{user.bio}</p>
      </CardContent>
      <CardFooter className="flex justify-between">
        <Button variant="outline">Cancel</Button>
        <Button>Save</Button>
      </CardFooter>
    </Card>
  );
}

Dialog

import {
  Dialog,
  DialogContent,
  DialogDescription,
  DialogFooter,
  DialogHeader,
  DialogTitle,
  DialogTrigger,
} from '@/components/ui/dialog';

function ConfirmDialog(): React.ReactElement {
  return (
    <Dialog>
      <DialogTrigger asChild>
        <Button variant="outline">Delete</Button>
      </DialogTrigger>
      <DialogContent>
        <DialogHeader>
          <DialogTitle>Are you sure?</DialogTitle>
          <DialogDescription>
            This action cannot be undone.
          </DialogDescription>
        </DialogHeader>
        <DialogFooter>
          <Button variant="outline">Cancel</Button>
          <Button variant="destructive">Delete</Button>
        </DialogFooter>
      </DialogContent>
    </Dialog>
  );
}

Form with React Hook Form + Zod

import { zodResolver } from '@hookform/resolvers/zod';
import { useForm } from 'react-hook-form';
import { z } from 'zod';
import { Button } from '@/components/ui/button';
import {
  Form,
  FormControl,
  FormDescription,
  FormField,
  FormItem,
  FormLabel,
  FormMessage,
} from '@/components/ui/form';
import { Input } from '@/components/ui/input';

const formSchema = z.object({
  username: z.string().min(2).max(50),
  email: z.string().email(),
});

type FormValues = z.infer<typeof formSchema>;

function ProfileForm(): React.ReactElement {
  const form = useForm<FormValues>({
    resolver: zodResolver(formSchema),
    defaultValues: {
      username: '',
      email: '',
    },
  });

  function onSubmit(values: FormValues): void {
    console.log(values);
  }

  return (
    <Form {...form}>
      <form onSubmit={form.handleSubmit(onSubmit)} className="space-y-8">
        <FormField
          control={form.control}
          name="username"
          render={({ field }) => (
            <FormItem>
              <FormLabel>Username</FormLabel>
              <FormControl>
                <Input placeholder="johndoe" {...field} />
              </FormControl>
              <FormDescription>
                Your public display name.
              </FormDescription>
              <FormMessage />
            </FormItem>
          )}
        />

        <FormField
          control={form.control}
          name="email"
          render={({ field }) => (
            <FormItem>
              <FormLabel>Email</FormLabel>
              <FormControl>
                <Input type="email" {...field} />
              </FormControl>
              <FormMessage />
            </FormItem>
          )}
        />

        <Button type="submit">Submit</Button>
      </form>
    </Form>
  );
}

Customizing Components

Adding Variants

// components/ui/button.tsx
import { cva, type VariantProps } from 'class-variance-authority';

const buttonVariants = cva(
  'inline-flex items-center justify-center rounded-md text-sm font-medium transition-colors focus-visible:outline-none focus-visible:ring-1 disabled:pointer-events-none disabled:opacity-50',
  {
    variants: {
      variant: {
        default: 'bg-primary text-primary-foreground shadow hover:bg-primary/90',
        destructive: 'bg-destructive text-destructive-foreground shadow-sm hover:bg-destructive/90',
        outline: 'border border-input bg-background shadow-sm hover:bg-accent',
        secondary: 'bg-secondary text-secondary-foreground shadow-sm hover:bg-secondary/80',
        ghost: 'hover:bg-accent hover:text-accent-foreground',
        link: 'text-primary underline-offset-4 hover:underline',
        // Add custom variants
        success: 'bg-green-500 text-white hover:bg-green-600',
        warning: 'bg-yellow-500 text-white hover:bg-yellow-600',
      },
      size: {
        default: 'h-9 px-4 py-2',
        sm: 'h-8 rounded-md px-3 text-xs',
        lg: 'h-10 rounded-md px-8',
        icon: 'h-9 w-9',
        // Add custom sizes
        xl: 'h-12 rounded-md px-10 text-base',
      },
    },
    defaultVariants: {
      variant: 'default',
      size: 'default',
    },
  }
);

Customizing Theme Colors

/* app/globals.css */
@layer base {
  :root {
    --background: 0 0% 100%;
    --foreground: 222.2 84% 4.9%;
    --primary: 222.2 47.4% 11.2%;
    --primary-foreground: 210 40% 98%;
    /* Add custom colors */
    --success: 142 76% 36%;
    --success-foreground: 0 0% 100%;
    --warning: 38 92% 50%;
    --warning-foreground: 0 0% 100%;
  }

  .dark {
    --background: 222.2 84% 4.9%;
    --foreground: 210 40% 98%;
    /* Dark mode colors */
  }
}

Best Practices

1. Don't modify node_modules - Components are in your codebase
2. Use cn() utility - For conditional classes
3. Keep variants consistent - Follow existing patterns
4. Customize at theme level - Use CSS variables
5. Document customizations - For team consistency

Common Patterns

Loading Button

<Button disabled={isLoading}>
  {isLoading && <Loader2 className="mr-2 h-4 w-4 animate-spin" />}
  {isLoading ? 'Loading...' : 'Submit'}
</Button>

Responsive Dialog

import {
  Dialog,
  DialogContent,
} from '@/components/ui/dialog';
import {
  Drawer,
  DrawerContent,
} from '@/components/ui/drawer';
import { useMediaQuery } from '@/hooks/use-media-query';

function ResponsiveDialog({ open, onOpenChange, children }: Props): React.ReactElement {
  const isDesktop = useMediaQuery('(min-width: 768px)');

  if (isDesktop) {
    return (
      <Dialog open={open} onOpenChange={onOpenChange}>
        <DialogContent>{children}</DialogContent>
      </Dialog>
    );
  }

  return (
    <Drawer open={open} onOpenChange={onOpenChange}>
      <DrawerContent>{children}</DrawerContent>
    </Drawer>
  );
}

Notes

• shadcn/ui is built on Radix UI primitives
• All components are fully accessible
• Works with React Server Components
• No runtime dependency (code is yours)