Skeleton Loaders

Build skeleton loading states that are pixel-perfect matches of real content.

Transparent Text Technique

Use real HTML elements (<p>, <span>, <h2>, <button>) with the same font classes as the real component, plus shimmer + transparency classes. This makes skeletons inherit exact line-height, font-size, and weight — producing pixel-perfect dimensions without hardcoded h-*/w-* values.

Shimmer class constant

Define a shared class string at the top of the skeleton component:

const shimmer =
  'animate-shimmer rounded-sm bg-linear-to-r from-slate-950 via-slate-900 to-slate-950 bg-size-[200%_100%] text-transparent select-none';

Text elements

Copy the real component's element type and font classes, add shimmer, use placeholder text of similar character count:

import {twJoin} from 'tailwind-merge';

// Real component
<p className="truncate text-sm font-semibold text-white">{data.name}</p>
<p className="text-xs text-slate-400">{data.value}</p>

// Skeleton
<p className={twJoin('truncate text-sm font-semibold', shimmer)}>Name</p>
<p className={twJoin('text-xs', shimmer)}>Example value</p>

Non-text elements (images, icons, avatars)

Keep as empty divs with the shimmer class — no text needed:

<div className={twJoin('size-14 shrink-0', shimmer)} />

Interactive elements (buttons)

Use the real element type with tabIndex={-1} to prevent focus:

<button
  className={twJoin('w-full py-2 text-xs font-medium', shimmer)}
  tabIndex={-1}
  type="button"
>
  Click me
</button>

200ms Delay Pattern

Avoid skeleton flash on fast loads. Show stale/empty content for 200ms before revealing the skeleton:

const [showSkeleton, setShowSkeleton] = useState(false);

// Valid Effect: synchronizing component state with a timer (external system).
// The cleanup prevents a state update after unmount.
useEffect(() => {
  const timer = setTimeout(() => setShowSkeleton(true), 200);
  return () => clearTimeout(timer);
}, []);

if (!showSkeleton) return null; // or return stale content
return <MySkeleton />;

When to Use

• Lazy-loaded panels (side panels, detail views)
• Fetcher-driven content swaps
• Async data sections (lists, profiles, detail views)
• Route transitions with pending loader data

Full Example Implementation

import {twJoin} from 'tailwind-merge';

const shimmer =
  'animate-shimmer rounded-sm bg-linear-to-r from-slate-950 via-slate-900 to-slate-950 bg-size-[200%_100%] text-transparent select-none';

const ExampleSkeleton = () => (
  <div className="border border-slate-700 bg-slate-900">
    <div className="flex items-center gap-3 p-3">
      <div className={twJoin('size-14 shrink-0', shimmer)} />
      <div className="min-w-0 flex-1">
        <p className={twJoin('truncate text-sm font-semibold', shimmer)}>
          Name
        </p>
        <p className={twJoin('truncate text-xs', shimmer)}>Example value</p>
      </div>
    </div>
  </div>
);

export default ExampleSkeleton;