Fluent Auto Suggest Box #

A highly customizable, performance-optimized auto-suggest/autocomplete widget for Flutter with Fluent UI design. Features include debounced search, LRU caching, keyboard navigation, form validation, advanced search dialog, and BLoC/Cubit state management (similar to smart_pagination).

Features #

Debounced Search - Configurable delay to reduce API calls
LRU Caching - Intelligent caching with TTL (Time To Live) expiration
Keyboard Navigation - Full support for Arrow keys, Tab, Escape, and Enter
Form Validation - Built-in validator support with AutovalidateMode
Server-Side Search - Async search with onNoResultsFound callback
Loading & Error States - Customizable loading and error handling
Custom Builders - Full control over item rendering
Accessibility - Semantic labels and screen reader support
Recent Searches - Track and display search history
Advanced Search Dialog - Full-featured search with filters, pagination, and multiple view modes
BLoC/Cubit Support - State management similar to smart_pagination
Performance Optimized - Reduced rebuilds, efficient memory usage

Installation #

Add this to your pubspec.yaml:

dependencies:
  auto_suggest_box: ^0.0.1

Then run:

flutter pub get

Quick Start #

Basic Usage #

import 'package:auto_suggest_box/auto_suggest_box.dart';

FluentAutoSuggestBox<String>(
  items: [
    FluentAutoSuggestBoxItem(value: '1', label: 'Apple'),
    FluentAutoSuggestBoxItem(value: '2', label: 'Banana'),
    FluentAutoSuggestBoxItem(value: '3', label: 'Cherry'),
  ],
  onSelected: (item) {
    print('Selected: ${item?.label}');
  },
)

With Server Search #

FluentAutoSuggestBox<Product>(
  items: localProducts,
  enableCache: true,
  cacheMaxSize: 100,
  cacheDuration: Duration(minutes: 30),
  debounceDelay: Duration(milliseconds: 300),
  onNoResultsFound: (query) async {
    // Fetch from server
    final response = await api.searchProducts(query);
    return response.map((p) => FluentAutoSuggestBoxItem(
      value: p,
      label: p.name,
      subtitle: Text(p.description),
    )).toList();
  },
  onSelected: (item) {
    if (item != null) {
      navigateToProduct(item.value);
    }
  },
)

Form Validation #

FluentAutoSuggestBox<String>.form(
  items: countries,
  validator: (value) {
    if (value == null || value.isEmpty) {
      return 'Please select a country';
    }
    return null;
  },
  autovalidateMode: AutovalidateMode.onUserInteraction,
  onSelected: (item) => setState(() => selectedCountry = item?.value),
)

Cubit/BLoC State Management #

Similar to smart_pagination, this package provides a Cubit-based state management solution.

Creating a Cubit #

final productsCubit = AutoSuggestCubit<Product>(
  provider: (query, {filters}) async {
    return await api.searchProducts(query);
  },
  config: AutoSuggestConfig(
    debounceDelay: Duration(milliseconds: 300),
    dataAge: Duration(minutes: 15),  // Cache expiration
    maxCacheSize: 50,
    retryConfig: RetryConfig(
      maxRetries: 3,
      initialDelay: Duration(seconds: 1),
    ),
  ),
);

Using BlocAutoSuggestBox #

BlocAutoSuggestBox<Product>(
  cubit: productsCubit,
  itemBuilder: (context, product, isSelected, onTap) {
    return ListTile(
      title: Text(product.name),
      subtitle: Text('\$${product.price}'),
      selected: isSelected,
      onPressed: onTap,
    );
  },
  labelBuilder: (product) => product.name,
  onSelected: (product) {
    print('Selected: ${product.name}');
  },
  showStats: true,  // Show cache statistics
)

Using BlocBuilder Directly #

BlocBuilder<AutoSuggestCubit<Product>, AutoSuggestState<Product>>(
  bloc: productsCubit,
  builder: (context, state) {
    return switch (state) {
      AutoSuggestInitial() => Text('Start typing to search...'),
      AutoSuggestLoading(:final query) => CircularProgressIndicator(),
      AutoSuggestLoaded(:final items) => ListView.builder(
        itemCount: items.length,
        itemBuilder: (context, index) => Text(items[index].name),
      ),
      AutoSuggestEmpty(:final query) => Text('No results for "$query"'),
      AutoSuggestError(:final error) => Text('Error: $error'),
    };
  },
)

AutoSuggestBlocBuilder (Convenience Widget) #

AutoSuggestBlocBuilder<Product>(
  cubit: productsCubit,
  onInitial: (context) => Text('Ready to search'),
  onLoading: (context, query, previousItems) => ProgressRing(),
  onLoaded: (context, items, query) => ProductList(items: items),
  onEmpty: (context, query) => Text('No products found'),
  onError: (context, error, query, previousItems) => ErrorWidget(error),
)

State Classes #

State	Properties	Description
`AutoSuggestInitial`	-	Initial state before any search
`AutoSuggestLoading`	`query`, `previousItems`, `isLoadingMore`	Loading state
`AutoSuggestLoaded`	`items`, `query`, `fetchedAt`, `dataExpiredAt`	Success with data
`AutoSuggestEmpty`	`query`, `searchedAt`	No results found
`AutoSuggestError`	`error`, `query`, `previousItems`	Error state

Data Expiration (like smart_pagination) #

// Check if data is expired
if (cubit.isDataExpired) {
  await cubit.refresh();
}

// Or use automatic check
await cubit.checkAndRefreshIfExpired();

// Access data age
final age = cubit.dataAge;  // Duration since last fetch

Statistics #

final stats = cubit.stats;
print('Cache hits: ${stats['cacheHits']}');
print('Cache misses: ${stats['cacheMisses']}');
print('Hit rate: ${(stats['cacheHitRate'] * 100).toStringAsFixed(1)}%');

API Reference #

FluentAutoSuggestBox #

The main widget for creating auto-suggest input fields.

Parameter	Type	Default	Description
`items`	`List<FluentAutoSuggestBoxItem<T>>`	required	List of suggestion items
`controller`	`TextEditingController?`	null	Text controller for the input field
`autoSuggestController`	`AutoSuggestController<T>?`	null	Controller for managing state
`onChanged`	`OnTextChanged<T>?`	null	Callback when text changes
`onSelected`	`ValueChanged<FluentAutoSuggestBoxItem<T>?>?`	null	Callback when item is selected
`itemBuilder`	`ItemBuilder<T>?`	null	Custom widget builder for items
`noResultsFoundBuilder`	`WidgetBuilder?`	null	Widget shown when no results
`loadingBuilder`	`WidgetBuilder?`	null	Widget shown while loading
`sorter`	`ItemSorter<T>?`	defaultItemSorter	Custom sorting function
`enableCache`	`bool`	true	Enable result caching
`cacheMaxSize`	`int`	100	Maximum cache entries
`cacheDuration`	`Duration`	30 minutes	Cache TTL
`debounceDelay`	`Duration`	300ms	Debounce delay for search
`minSearchLength`	`int`	2	Minimum characters to trigger search
`maxPopupHeight`	`double`	380.0	Maximum height of suggestion popup
`direction`	`AutoSuggestBoxDirection`	below	Popup direction (above/below)
`validator`	`FormFieldValidator<String>?`	null	Form validation function
`autovalidateMode`	`AutovalidateMode`	disabled	Validation mode

FluentAutoSuggestBoxItem #

Represents a single suggestion item.

FluentAutoSuggestBoxItem<T>({
  required T value,        // The actual data value
  required String label,   // Display text
  Widget? child,           // Custom widget (overrides label)
  Widget? subtitle,        // Secondary text/widget
  bool enabled = true,     // Whether item is selectable
  String? semanticLabel,   // Accessibility label
})

AutoSuggestController #

Controller for managing search state and metrics.

final controller = AutoSuggestController<String>(
  debounceDelay: Duration(milliseconds: 300),
  minSearchLength: 2,
  maxRecentSearches: 10,
  enableRecentSearches: true,
);

// Access state
print(controller.searchQuery);
print(controller.isLoading);
print(controller.recentSearches);

// Get statistics
final stats = controller.getStats();
print('Success rate: ${stats['successRate']}');

// Clean up
controller.dispose();

SearchResultsCache #

LRU cache with automatic expiration.

final cache = SearchResultsCache<Product>(
  maxSize: 100,
  maxAge: Duration(minutes: 30),
  enablePrefixMatching: true,
);

// Cache operations
cache.set('query', results);
final cached = cache.get('query');
cache.clear();

// Get statistics
final stats = cache.getStats();
print('Hit rate: ${(stats.hitRate * 100).toStringAsFixed(1)}%');

Advanced Search Dialog #

For complex search requirements, use the AdvancedSearchDialog:

// Single selection
final result = await AdvancedSearchDialog.show<Product>(
  context: context,
  items: products,
  onSearch: (query, filters) async {
    return await api.search(query, filters: filters);
  },
  config: AdvancedSearchConfig(
    title: 'Find Product',
    searchHint: 'Search by name or SKU...',
    showFilters: true,
    showStats: true,
    viewMode: AdvancedSearchViewMode.grid,
    keyboardShortcut: SingleActivator(LogicalKeyboardKey.f3),
  ),
);

// Multi-selection
final results = await AdvancedSearchDialog.showMultiSelect<Product>(
  context: context,
  items: products,
  onSearch: (query, filters) async => await api.search(query),
  maxSelections: 5,
);

View Modes #

Mode	Description
`list`	Traditional list view with details
`grid`	Card-based grid layout
`compact`	Condensed single-line items

Configuration Options #

AdvancedSearchConfig(
  title: 'Search',                    // Dialog title
  searchHint: 'Type to search...',    // Placeholder text
  keyboardShortcut: SingleActivator(LogicalKeyboardKey.f3),
  showFilters: true,                  // Show filter panel
  showStats: true,                    // Show result statistics
  viewMode: AdvancedSearchViewMode.list,
  enableViewModeSwitch: true,         // Allow mode switching
  resultsPerPage: 20,                 // Pagination size
  enablePagination: false,            // Enable pagination
  enableAnimations: true,             // Enable animations
)

Custom Builders #

Custom Item Builder #

FluentAutoSuggestBox<Product>(
  items: products,
  itemBuilder: (context, item) {
    return ListTile(
      leading: Image.network(item.value.imageUrl),
      title: Text(item.label),
      subtitle: Text('\$${item.value.price}'),
      trailing: Icon(Icons.chevron_right),
    );
  },
)

Custom Sorter #

FluentAutoSuggestBox<Product>(
  items: products,
  sorter: (query, items) {
    return items.where((item) {
      // Custom matching logic
      return item.label.toLowerCase().contains(query.toLowerCase()) ||
             item.value.sku.contains(query);
    }).toSet();
  },
)

Custom Loading Builder #

FluentAutoSuggestBox<String>(
  items: items,
  loadingBuilder: (context) {
    return Padding(
      padding: EdgeInsets.all(16),
      child: Row(
        children: [
          CircularProgressIndicator(),
          SizedBox(width: 16),
          Text('Searching...'),
        ],
      ),
    );
  },
)

Keyboard Navigation #

Key	Action
`Arrow Down`	Select next item
`Arrow Up`	Select previous item
`Enter`	Confirm selection
`Tab`	Move to next field
`Shift+Tab`	Move to previous field
`Escape`	Close suggestions
`F3`	Open advanced search (if enabled)

Performance Tips #

Enable Caching - Set enableCache: true for repeated searches
Adjust Debounce - Increase debounceDelay for slow APIs
Set Min Length - Use minSearchLength to prevent unnecessary searches
Use Prefix Matching - Cache uses prefix matching by default
Limit Results - Return limited results from onNoResultsFound

FluentAutoSuggestBox<String>(
  items: items,
  enableCache: true,
  cacheMaxSize: 50,
  cacheDuration: Duration(minutes: 15),
  debounceDelay: Duration(milliseconds: 500),
  minSearchLength: 3,
)

Theming #

Custom Theme #

AdvancedSearchConfig(
  theme: AdvancedSearchTheme(
    primaryColor: Colors.blue,
    backgroundColor: Colors.white,
    cardColor: Colors.grey[50],
    selectedItemColor: Colors.blue.withOpacity(0.1),
    borderRadius: BorderRadius.circular(12),
    spacing: 16.0,
    elevation: 8.0,
  ),
)

Custom Icons #

AdvancedSearchConfig(
  icons: AdvancedSearchIcons(
    search: FluentIcons.search,
    clear: FluentIcons.clear,
    filter: FluentIcons.filter,
    viewList: FluentIcons.view_list,
    viewGrid: FluentIcons.grid_view_medium,
  ),
)

Example App #

See the /example folder for a complete sample application demonstrating:

Basic autocomplete
Server-side search with caching
Form validation
Custom builders
Advanced search dialog
Multiple view modes
Keyboard shortcuts

Run the example:

cd example
flutter run

Requirements #

Flutter >= 1.17.0
Dart SDK >= 3.10.3

Dependencies #

fluent_ui ^4.13.0
flutter_bloc ^8.1.6
equatable ^2.0.5
gap ^3.0.1

Roadmap #

✅ Cubit/BLoC state management integration (similar to smart_pagination)
❌ RTL language support improvements
❌ More animation options
❌ Voice search support
❌ Grouped suggestions
❌ Inline suggestions (ghost text)
❌ Pagination support for large datasets

Contributing #

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

License #

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Support #

If you find this package helpful, please give it a star on GitHub!

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