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
- stats
- css-grid
- css-only
- hairline
- no-assets
Reporting only — the figures are the whole job.
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="hss-cap">Reporting only — the figures are the whole job.</p>
<div class="hss-strip four">
<div class="hss-tile">
<span class="hss-label">Documents</span>
<span class="hss-fig">1,482</span>
<span class="hss-sub">this period</span>
</div>
<div class="hss-tile">
<span class="hss-label">Median time</span>
<span class="hss-fig">3.2s</span>
<span class="hss-sub">last 24h</span>
</div>
<!-- … clean runs, quality score … -->
</div>
<div class="hss-strip five" id="hss-filter">
<button class="hss-tile" data-state="all" aria-pressed="true">
<span class="hss-label">All</span>
<span class="hss-fig">6</span>
<span class="hss-sub">downloads</span>
</button>
<!-- … queued, downloading, done, failed … -->
</div>
<ul class="hss-list" id="hss-list">…</ul>
<p class="hss-status" 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; /* the hairline */
background: var(--border); /* shows through the gap */
border: 1px solid var(--border);
border-radius: var(--radius);
overflow: hidden;
grid-template-columns: 1fr;
}
@media (min-width: 21rem) { .hss-strip { grid-template-columns: repeat(2, minmax(0, 1fr)); } }
@media (min-width: 42rem) { .hss-strip.four { grid-template-columns: repeat(4, minmax(0, 1fr)); } }
@media (min-width: 52rem) { .hss-strip.five { grid-template-columns: repeat(5, minmax(0, 1fr)); } }
.hss-tile { background: var(--surface); padding: 1rem 1.1rem; min-width: 0; }
.hss-label { font: 500 0.8125rem/1.3 ui-monospace, monospace; text-transform: uppercase;
color: var(--dim); overflow-wrap: anywhere; }
.hss-fig { font-size: 1.6rem; font-weight: 700; font-variant-numeric: tabular-nums; }
.hss-fig.missing { color: var(--dim); font-weight: 400; }
button.hss-tile[aria-pressed="true"] {
background: color-mix(in srgb, var(--accent) 14%, var(--surface));
}const strip = document.getElementById('hss-filter');
strip.addEventListener('click', (event) => {
const tile = event.target.closest('button');
if (!tile) return;
const wasPressed = tile.getAttribute('aria-pressed') === 'true';
const target = wasPressed ? 'all' : tile.dataset.state;
for (const other of strip.querySelectorAll('button')) {
other.setAttribute('aria-pressed', String(other.dataset.state === target));
}
// counts come from the unfiltered set, so they never change while filtering
for (const item of document.querySelectorAll('#hss-list li')) {
item.hidden = target !== 'all' && item.dataset.state !== target;
}
});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.
Pin the column counts. One column, then two from 21rem, then four (or five for the filter form) from wider breakpoints. Never let auto-fit choose, because it will produce a three-and-one row that looks broken.
Tile anatomy. A mono uppercase label, a large tabular-nums figure, and a short qualifier underneath that says over what window the figure was measured.
Two rules of honesty. Render a missing value as a dimmed em dash, never as zero. Keep units with the number.
The filter form. Each tile becomes a toggle button for the list beneath it. Compute counts from the unfiltered set so they never shift while filtering, and use aria-pressed rather than tab roles, since the tiles filter one list rather than swapping panels.