LayoutUpdatedAdded 2026-08-21 · Updated 2026-09-28

Hairline stat strip

A row of stat tiles joined by hairlines that are grid gap, not borders — the container paints the border color and the tiles paint the surface, so separators never double up or break when the row wraps — in a reporting form and in a second form where each tile is the filter for the list beneath it.

Reach for it when building

summary strip at the top of a detail page
dashboard KPI row
account usage overview
report header figures
profile stats band

Tags

statscss-gridcss-onlyhairlineno-assets

Reporting only — the figures are the whole job.

Documents1,482this period

Median time3.2slast 24h

Clean runs98.4%no retries

Quality score—not rated yet

Same strip, working as the filter. Press a tile to narrow the list; press it again to clear.

Bicycle drivetrain teardownDone
Kiln firing, part threeDownloading
Field recording — marsh at dawnQueued
Lathe restoration, episode 12Done
Sourdough hydration testsFailed
Bookbinding: the long stitchQueued

Showing all 6 downloads.

<p class="stage-cap">Reporting only — the figures are the whole job.</p>
<div class="hss-strip">
  <div class="hss-tile"><span class="label">Documents</span><span class="hss-fig">1,482</span><span class="hss-sub">this period</span></div>
  <div class="hss-tile"><span class="label">Median time</span><span class="hss-fig">3.2s</span><span class="hss-sub">last 24h</span></div>
  <div class="hss-tile"><span class="label">Clean runs</span><span class="hss-fig">98.4%</span><span class="hss-sub">no retries</span></div>
  <div class="hss-tile"><span class="label">Quality score</span><span class="hss-fig empty" aria-label="No value">—</span><span class="hss-sub">not rated yet</span></div>
</div>
<p class="stage-cap">Same strip, working as the filter. Press a tile to narrow the list; press it again to clear.</p>
<div class="hss-strip five" role="group" aria-label="Filter downloads by status">
  <button type="button" class="hss-tile" data-hss-filter="all" aria-pressed="false"><span class="label">All</span><span class="hss-fig">6</span><span class="hss-sub">downloads</span></button>
  <button type="button" class="hss-tile" data-hss-filter="queued" aria-pressed="false"><span class="label">Queued</span><span class="hss-fig">2</span><span class="hss-sub">downloads</span></button>
  <button type="button" class="hss-tile" data-hss-filter="downloading" aria-pressed="false"><span class="label">Downloading</span><span class="hss-fig">1</span><span class="hss-sub">downloads</span></button>
  <button type="button" class="hss-tile" data-hss-filter="done" aria-pressed="false"><span class="label">Done</span><span class="hss-fig">2</span><span class="hss-sub">downloads</span></button>
  <button type="button" class="hss-tile" data-hss-filter="failed" aria-pressed="false"><span class="label">Failed</span><span class="hss-fig">1</span><span class="hss-sub">downloads</span></button>
</div>
<ul class="dl-list" id="dl-list">
  <li data-status="done"><span>Bicycle drivetrain teardown</span><span class="status st-done">Done</span></li>
  <li data-status="downloading"><span>Kiln firing, part three</span><span class="status st-dl">Downloading</span></li>
  <li data-status="queued"><span>Field recording — marsh at dawn</span><span class="status st-q">Queued</span></li>
  <li data-status="done"><span>Lathe restoration, episode 12</span><span class="status st-done">Done</span></li>
  <li data-status="failed"><span>Sourdough hydration tests</span><span class="status st-fail">Failed</span></li>
  <li data-status="queued"><span>Bookbinding: the long stitch</span><span class="status st-q">Queued</span></li>
</ul>
<p class="live-line" id="dl-live" role="status" aria-live="polite">Showing all 6 downloads.</p>

Colors come from shared theme tokens — --surface, --ink, --border, --accent and friends — so this CSS carries no palette of its own. Use Runnable file to copy the tokens along with it.

.hss-strip {
  display: grid;
  gap: 1px;
  background: var(--border);
  border: 1px solid var(--border);
  border-radius: var(--radius);
  overflow: hidden;
  grid-template-columns: 1fr;
}
@container (min-width: 21rem) { .hss-strip { grid-template-columns: repeat(2, minmax(0, 1fr)); } }
@container (min-width: 42rem) { .hss-strip { grid-template-columns: repeat(4, minmax(0, 1fr)); } }
@container (min-width: 50rem) { .hss-strip.five { grid-template-columns: repeat(5, minmax(0, 1fr)); } }

.hss-tile { background: var(--surface); padding: .9rem 1rem; min-width: 0; }
.hss-tile .label { font: 500 .8125rem/1.3 ui-monospace, monospace; text-transform: uppercase; overflow-wrap: anywhere; }
.hss-fig { font-size: 1.6rem; font-weight: 700; font-variant-numeric: tabular-nums; }
.hss-fig.empty { color: var(--dim); font-weight: 400; }
button.hss-tile[aria-pressed="true"] {
  background: color-mix(in srgb, var(--accent) 14%, var(--surface));
}

const tiles = document.querySelectorAll('[data-hss-filter]');
const rows = document.querySelectorAll('#dl-list li');
const line = document.getElementById('dl-live');

tiles.forEach((tile) => {
  tile.addEventListener('click', () => {
    const value = tile.dataset.hssFilter;
    const wasPressed = tile.getAttribute('aria-pressed') === 'true';
    const active = wasPressed || value === 'all' ? 'all' : value;
    tiles.forEach((other) => other.setAttribute('aria-pressed',
      String(other.dataset.hssFilter === active && active !== 'all')));
    let shown = 0;
    rows.forEach((row) => {
      row.hidden = active !== 'all' && row.dataset.status !== active;
      if (!row.hidden) shown += 1;
    });
    line.textContent = active === 'all'
      ? 'Showing all 6 downloads.'
      : `Filtered to ${tile.querySelector('.label').textContent}: ${shown} of 6. Press the lit tile again to clear.`;
  });
});

Build a strip of statistic tiles that reads as one joined instrument panel rather than a row of floating cards.

The separators between tiles must not be borders. Make the container a CSS grid with gap: 1px and give the container itself the border color as its background; each tile then paints the surface color on top. The 1px of container showing through the gap is the hairline. This is the entire pattern: real borders double where two tiles meet and leave a stray edge when auto-fit wraps the row, and a gap physically cannot do either.

The full prompt continues with sections on:

Pinning column counts rather than letting auto-fit choose them.
Tile anatomy: label, figure, sub-line.
Two rules of honesty: render a missing value as a dimmed em dash, and keep units with the number.
The filter form, with counts computed from the unfiltered set.
Using aria-pressed rather than tab roles.

The five-tile filter row pins five columns only when the stage is at least 50rem wide, so labels like “Downloading” never overflow their tile.