---
title: Lists and Menus
pubDate: 2026-08-17T09:53:44.266Z
antora:
  editUrl: https://github.com/couchbaselabs/docs-style-guide/edit/main/ui-ux/modules/ROOT/pages/lists.adoc
  xref: xref:ui-ux::lists.adoc[]
---

[Consult the llms.txt file for a full list of contents](/llms.txt)
[View original HTML](/ui-ux/lists.html)

# Lists and Menus

Lists can be:

* Radio buttons
* Navigation menus
* Lists of checkboxes
* Dropdowns

## [](#use-parallelism-and-consistency)Use Parallelism and Consistency

Make entries in a list parallel, as much as possible. Parallel list entries follow the same structure, such as being all nouns or starting with a verb.

Use consistent capitalization and other patterns.

For example, the settings options for an organization could include **General** settings, **API Key** settings, **MFA** settings, **Session** settings, and an **Activity Log**.

Do not sacrifice comprehension or understandability for parallelism.

## [](#make-entries-mutually-exclusive)Make Entries Mutually Exclusive

Every option in a list should be mutually exclusive. There should be a clear difference between one list item and the next.

## [](#use-good-instruction-text)Use Good Instruction Text

A user **enters** instead of **types**.

A user **chooses** rather than **selects**.

Do not tell the user to choose "from this dropdown list" in the instruction text. Just tell them what they need to choose.