Toggle is a term used to describe the act of switching back and forth between settings. The word is also a noun, meaning the switch itself, or a device that uses it.

In web design, toggles are used to display information in two different states (on or off) at the same time. This is especially useful for content that can have either a light or dark theme to suit the user’s preferences.

There are a few things to consider when designing a toggle. For one, it’s important to use clear and concise labeling. The label should clearly state what the toggle will do and how it can be changed. Additionally, utilizing visual cues like movement and color can help avoid confusion about which state the toggle is currently in.

It’s also important to consider accessibility when creating toggles. Many people do not think about the fact that toggles can be inaccessible to users with screen readers and other assistive technology. Using low-contrast colors for toggles can make them unreadable, and using red or green as the default state can be problematic for some users with color blindness (8% of men have this).

Another thing to consider is how the toggle will affect performance. If a toggle is stored in a database, each call to the toggle will require a database query. This can add up to thousands or millions of database queries over the course of production, and can have a significant impact on production’s performance. Savvy teams take this into account and try to minimize the number of toggles in their codebase. They often put a task on the backlog for removing toggles once they are no longer needed, and some even set expiration dates for their toggles so that the system will fail to start if they don’t remove them in a timely manner.

With these considerations in mind, implementing toggles can be a powerful tool for a designer. However, there is no one-size-fits-all solution; it is important to understand the problem statement and your target users to create the best toggle possible.