State Views

Replace or restyle the default empty, error, and loading state views with custom layouts.

Components display state views when the list is empty, an error occurs, or data is loading. You can replace these with custom layouts or restyle the default ones.

Replacing State Views

Each state view setter accepts an Android layout resource ID (@LayoutRes int). The component inflates the layout when the corresponding state is triggered.

Setter	State
setEmptyView(@LayoutRes int)	No data to display
setErrorView(@LayoutRes int)	An error occurred during data fetching
setLoadingView(@LayoutRes int)	Data is being fetched

Example: Custom Empty State

Create a custom layout:

<!-- res/layout/custom_empty_state.xml -->
<LinearLayout
    xmlns:android="http://schemas.android.com/apk/res/android"
    android:layout_width="match_parent"
    android:layout_height="match_parent"
    android:gravity="center"
    android:orientation="vertical"
    android:padding="32dp">

    <ImageView
        android:layout_width="120dp"
        android:layout_height="120dp"
        android:src="@drawable/ic_empty_conversations"
        android:contentDescription="No conversations" />

    <TextView
        android:layout_width="wrap_content"
        android:layout_height="wrap_content"
        android:layout_marginTop="16dp"
        android:text="No conversations yet"
        android:textSize="18sp"
        android:textColor="@color/text_secondary" />

    <TextView
        android:layout_width="wrap_content"
        android:layout_height="wrap_content"
        android:layout_marginTop="8dp"
        android:text="Start a new chat to get going"
        android:textSize="14sp"
        android:textColor="@color/text_tertiary" />
</LinearLayout>

Set it on the component:

Kotlin

conversations.setEmptyView(R.layout.custom_empty_state)

Java

conversations.setEmptyView(R.layout.custom_empty_state);

State Visibility Controls

Hide or show specific state views entirely:

Method	Description
setEmptyStateVisibility(int)	Show or hide the empty state (View.VISIBLE or View.GONE)
setErrorStateVisibility(int)	Show or hide the error state
setLoadingStateVisibility(int)	Show or hide the loading state

Kotlin

// Hide the error state entirely
conversations.setErrorStateVisibility(View.GONE)

// Hide the loading state (useful if you have your own loading indicator)
conversations.setLoadingStateVisibility(View.GONE)

Java

// Hide the error state entirely
conversations.setErrorStateVisibility(View.GONE);

// Hide the loading state
conversations.setLoadingStateVisibility(View.GONE);

Restyling Default State Views

If you want to keep the default state layout but change its appearance, use the text customization setters:

Empty State

Method	Description
setEmptyStateTitleTextColor(@ColorInt int)	Title text color
setEmptyStateSubtitleTextColor(@ColorInt int)	Subtitle text color
setEmptyStateTextTitleAppearance(@StyleRes int)	Title text appearance (font, size, style)
setEmptyStateTextSubtitleAppearance(@StyleRes int)	Subtitle text appearance

Error State

Method	Description
setErrorStateTitleTextColor(@ColorInt int)	Title text color
setErrorStateSubtitleTextColor(@ColorInt int)	Subtitle text color
setErrorStateTextTitleAppearance(@StyleRes int)	Title text appearance
setErrorStateTextSubtitleAppearance(@StyleRes int)	Subtitle text appearance

Kotlin

// Restyle the default empty state
conversations.setEmptyStateTitleTextColor(Color.parseColor("#1A1A1A"))
conversations.setEmptyStateSubtitleTextColor(Color.parseColor("#808080"))
conversations.setEmptyStateTextTitleAppearance(R.style.TextAppearance_Heading)

Java

// Restyle the default empty state
conversations.setEmptyStateTitleTextColor(Color.parseColor("#1A1A1A"));
conversations.setEmptyStateSubtitleTextColor(Color.parseColor("#808080"));
conversations.setEmptyStateTextTitleAppearance(R.style.TextAppearance_Heading);

Related

• Customization Overview — See all customization categories.