Scrollspy

Automatically update Bootstrap navigation or list group components based on scroll position to indicate which link is currently active in the viewport.

Scrollspy has a few requirements to function properly:

  • It must be used on a nav component or list group.
  • Scrollspy requires position: relative; on the element you’re spying on, usually the <body>.
  • When spying on elements other than the <body>, be sure to have a height set and overflow-y: scroll; applied.
  • Anchors (<a>) are required and must point to an element with that id.

When successfully implemented, your nav or list group will update accordingly, moving the .active class from one item to the next based on their associated targets.

Nested navs also work. If a nested nav is .active, its parents will also be .active.

Example navbar

one

Ad leggings keytar, brunch id art party dolor labore. Pitchfork yr enim lo-fi before they sold out qui. Tumblr farm-to-table bicycle rights whatever. Anim keffiyeh carles cardigan. Velit seitan mcsweeney's photo booth 3 wolf moon irure. Cosby sweater lomo jean shorts, williamsburg hoodie minim qui you probably haven't heard of them et cardigan trust fund culpa biodiesel wes anderson aesthetic. Nihil tattooed accusamus, cred irony biodiesel keffiyeh artisan ullamco consequat.

two

Veniam marfa mustache skateboard, adipisicing fugiat velit pitchfork beard. Freegan beard aliqua cupidatat mcsweeney's vero. Cupidatat four loko nisi, ea helvetica nulla carles. Tattooed cosby sweater food truck, mcsweeney's quis non freegan vinyl. Lo-fi wes anderson +1 sartorial. Carles non aesthetic exercitation quis gentrify. Brooklyn adipisicing craft beer vice keytar deserunt.

three

Occaecat commodo aliqua delectus. Fap craft beer deserunt skateboard ea. Lomo bicycle rights adipisicing banh mi, velit ea sunt next level locavore single-origin coffee in magna veniam. High life id vinyl, echo park consequat quis aliquip banh mi pitchfork. Vero VHS est adipisicing. Consectetur nisi DIY minim messenger bag. Cred ex in, sustainable delectus consectetur fanny pack iphone.

four

In incididunt echo park, officia deserunt mcsweeney's proident master cleanse thundercats sapiente veniam. Excepteur VHS elit, proident shoreditch +1 biodiesel laborum craft beer. Single-origin coffee wayfarers irure four loko, cupidatat terry richardson master cleanse. Assumenda you probably haven't heard of them art party fanny pack, tattooed nulla cardigan tempor ad. Proident wolf nesciunt sartorial keffiyeh eu banh mi sustainable. Elit wolf voluptate, lo-fi ea portland before they sold out four loko. Locavore enim nostrud mlkshk brooklyn nesciunt.

five

Ad leggings keytar, brunch id art party dolor labore. Pitchfork yr enim lo-fi before they sold out qui. Tumblr farm-to-table bicycle rights whatever. Anim keffiyeh carles cardigan. Velit seitan mcsweeney's photo booth 3 wolf moon irure. Cosby sweater lomo jean shorts, williamsburg hoodie minim qui you probably haven't heard of them et cardigan trust fund culpa biodiesel wes anderson aesthetic. Nihil tattooed accusamus, cred irony biodiesel keffiyeh artisan ullamco consequat. Keytar twee blog, culpa messenger bag marfa whatever delectus food truck. Sapiente synth id assumenda. Locavore sed helvetica cliche irony, thundercats you probably haven't heard of them consequat hoodie gluten-free lo-fi fap aliquip. Labore elit placeat before they sold out, terry richardson proident brunch nesciunt quis cosby sweater pariatur keffiyeh ut helvetica artisan. Cardigan craft beer seitan readymade velit. VHS chambray laboris tempor veniam. Anim mollit minim commodo ullamco thundercats.


<nav id="navbar-example2" class="navbar navbar-light bg-light">
	<a class="navbar-brand" href="#">Navbar</a>
	<ul class="nav nav-pills">
		<li class="nav-item">
			<a class="nav-link" href="#one">one</a>
		</li>
		<li class="nav-item">
			<a class="nav-link" href="#two">two</a>
		</li>
		<li class="nav-item dropdown">
			<a class="nav-link dropdown-toggle" data-toggle="dropdown" href="#" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" aria-expanded="false">Dropdown</a>
			<div class="dropdown-menu">
				<a class="dropdown-item" href="#three">three</a>
				<a class="dropdown-item" href="#four">four</a>
				<div role="separator" class="dropdown-divider"></div>
				<a class="dropdown-item" href="#five">five</a>
			</div>
		</li>
	</ul>
</nav>
<div data-spy="scroll" data-target="#navbar-example2" data-offset="0" class="position-relative">
	<h4 id="one">one</h4>
	<p>...</p>
	<h4 id="two">two</h4>
	<p>...</p>
	<h4 id="three">three</h4>
	<p>...</p>
	<h4 id="four">four</h4>
	<p>...</p>
	<h4 id="five">five</h4>
	<p>...</p>
</div>

Example list group

one

Ad leggings keytar, brunch id art party dolor labore. Pitchfork yr enim lo-fi before they sold out qui. Tumblr farm-to-table bicycle rights whatever. Anim keffiyeh carles cardigan. Velit seitan mcsweeney's photo booth 3 wolf moon irure. Cosby sweater lomo jean shorts, williamsburg hoodie minim qui you probably haven't heard of them et cardigan trust fund culpa biodiesel wes anderson aesthetic. Nihil tattooed accusamus, cred irony biodiesel keffiyeh artisan ullamco consequat.

two

Veniam marfa mustache skateboard, adipisicing fugiat velit pitchfork beard. Freegan beard aliqua cupidatat mcsweeney's vero. Cupidatat four loko nisi, ea helvetica nulla carles. Tattooed cosby sweater food truck, mcsweeney's quis non freegan vinyl. Lo-fi wes anderson +1 sartorial. Carles non aesthetic exercitation quis gentrify. Brooklyn adipisicing craft beer vice keytar deserunt.

three

Occaecat commodo aliqua delectus. Fap craft beer deserunt skateboard ea. Lomo bicycle rights adipisicing banh mi, velit ea sunt next level locavore single-origin coffee in magna veniam. High life id vinyl, echo park consequat quis aliquip banh mi pitchfork. Vero VHS est adipisicing. Consectetur nisi DIY minim messenger bag. Cred ex in, sustainable delectus consectetur fanny pack iphone.

four

In incididunt echo park, officia deserunt mcsweeney's proident master cleanse thundercats sapiente veniam. Excepteur VHS elit, proident shoreditch +1 biodiesel laborum craft beer. Single-origin coffee wayfarers irure four loko, cupidatat terry richardson master cleanse. Assumenda you probably haven't heard of them art party fanny pack, tattooed nulla cardigan tempor ad. Proident wolf nesciunt sartorial keffiyeh eu banh mi sustainable. Elit wolf voluptate, lo-fi ea portland before they sold out four loko. Locavore enim nostrud mlkshk brooklyn nesciunt.


<div id="list-example" class="list-group">
	<a class="list-group-item list-group-item-action" href="#list-item-1">Item 1</a>
	<a class="list-group-item list-group-item-action" href="#list-item-2">Item 2</a>
	<a class="list-group-item list-group-item-action" href="#list-item-3">Item 3</a>
	<a class="list-group-item list-group-item-action" href="#list-item-4">Item 4</a>
</div>
<div data-spy="scroll" data-target="#list-example" data-offset="0" class="position-relative">
	<h4 id="list-item-1">Item 1</h4>
	<p>...</p>
	<h4 id="list-item-2">Item 2</h4>
	<p>...</p>
	<h4 id="list-item-3">Item 3</h4>
	<p>...</p>
	<h4 id="list-item-4">Item 4</h4>
	<p>...</p>
</div>

Usage

Via data attributes

Add data-spy="scroll" and data-target="“ to the element you wish to spy on, such as the <body>, where data-target="“ points to the target nav or list group element.


<body data-spy="scroll" data-target="#navbar-example" class="position-relative">
  ...
  <div id="navbar-example">
    <ul class="nav nav-tabs" role="tablist">
      ...
    </ul>
  </div>
  ...
</body>

Via JavaScript

Call scrollspy via JavaScript like this: 


$('body').scrollspy({ target: '#navbar-example' })

Resolvable ID targets required

Navbar links must have resolvable id targets. For example, a <a href=”#home”>home</a> must correspond to something in the DOM like <div id="home”></div>.

Options

Options can be passed via data attributes or JavaScript. For data attributes, append the option name to data-, as in data-offset="“.

Name Type Default Description
offset number 10 Pixels to offset from top when calculating position of scroll.
method string auto Finds which section the spied element is in. auto will choose the best method get scroll coordinates. offset will use jQuery offset method to get scroll coordinates. position will use jQuery position method to get scroll coordinates.
target string Specifies element to apply Scrollspy plugin to.

Methods

Method Description
$().modal('refresh') When using scrollspy in conjunction with adding or removing of elements from the DOM, you’ll need to call the refresh method like the example below.
$().modal('dispose') Destroys an element’s scrollspy. 

$('[data-spy="scroll"]').each(function () {
  var $spy = $(this).scrollspy('refresh')
})

Events

Event type Description
activate.bs.scrollspy This event fires on the scroll element whenever a new item becomes activated by the scrollspy. 

$('[data-spy="scroll"]').on('activate.bs.scrollspy', function () {
  // do something...
})

Read more

Progress Selects