Downshift
Downshift is a lightweight, headless React library for building accessible, flexible, and customizable dropdown/select, combobox, and autocomplete components. It provides the logic and state management for these UI patterns while leaving the rendering and styling entirely up to the developer, enabling full control over the user interface. It emphasizes accessibility features like ARIA attributes and keyboard navigation out of the box.
Developers should use Downshift when they need to implement complex dropdown or autocomplete components in React applications that require high customizability, accessibility compliance, and performance without being tied to a specific UI framework or design system. It is particularly useful in projects where the UI must match custom designs or integrate with existing component libraries, as it separates logic from presentation. Common use cases include searchable select inputs, multi-select dropdowns, and typeahead suggestions in forms or data-heavy interfaces.