Building a Tooltip Component in Vue 3

• 1st Sep 2025 • 3 min read • Vue.js

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Creating a tooltip component in Vue 3 is a rewarding exercise that leverages the reactive nature of Vue to enhance your web applications. Tooltips provide additional information and improve user experience by offering concise details on hover or focus. Let's dive into building a simple yet effective tooltip component using Vue 3.

Why Use Tooltips?link

Tooltips are crucial for augmenting a user's understanding of an interface, especially in data-driven applications where clarity is key. They serve as non-intrusive components that provide context, hints, or explanations for elements within an application.

Setting Up Your Vue 3 Projectlink

First things first, let's set up a basic Vue 3 project. If you haven’t already, install Vue CLI to begin:

npm install -g @vue/cli
vue create vue-tooltip-project
cd vue-tooltip-project

After initializing your project, navigate into your project directory and open the source files.

In your src/components/ directory, create a new file named Tooltip.vue. This component will be reusable and customizable to fit various needs.

Step 1: Define the Basic Template

The template consists of a container that wraps the default slot content and a tooltip element that will appear on hover.

<template>
  <div class="tooltip-container" @mouseover="showTooltip" @mouseleave="hideTooltip">
    <slot></slot>
    <div v-if="isVisible" class="tooltip">{{ text }}</div>
  </div>
</template>

Step 2: Craft Your Script

Within the <script> section, define the component's logic. Use Vue 3's Composition API to create reactive data properties.

<script>
import { ref } from 'vue';

export default {
  name: 'Tooltip',
  props: {
    text: {
      type: String,
      required: true
    }
  },
  setup() {
    const isVisible = ref(false);

    const showTooltip = () => {
      isVisible.value = true;
    };

    const hideTooltip = () => {
      isVisible.value = false;
    };

    return {
      isVisible,
      showTooltip,
      hideTooltip
    };
  }
};
</script>

Add styles to make the tooltip visually appealing and ensure it appears near your component.

<style scoped>
.tooltip-container {
  position: relative;
  display: inline-block;
}

.tooltip {
  position: absolute;
  background-color: #333;
  color: #fff;
  padding: 5px 10px;
  border-radius: 4px;
  font-size: 12px;
  bottom: 100%;
  left: 50%;
  transform: translateX(-50%);
  white-space: nowrap;
  z-index: 1000;
  opacity: 0.9;
}
</style>

Implementing the Componentlink

Now that the Tooltip.vue is ready, it's time to use it within another component. Let's implement it in src/App.vue:

<template>
  <div id="app">
    <h1>Vue 3 Tooltip Example</h1>
    <Tooltip text="This is a helpful tooltip!">
      <button>Hover over me!</button>
    </Tooltip>
  </div>
</template>

<script>
import Tooltip from './components/Tooltip.vue';

export default {
  components: {
    Tooltip
  }
};
</script>

Further Enhancementslink

To make your Tooltip component more robust, consider the following improvements:

Event-Driven Tooltips: Besides mouseover, implement tooltips that appear on other events, like focus for accessibility purposes.
Dynamic Positioning: Update the tooltip position based on screen real estate to ensure it never goes off-screen.
Fade-in/out Effects: Use Vue's transition component to add smooth animations.

For more in-depth study of Vue transitions and animations, the MDN Web Docs on CSS Transitions offers comprehensive guidance.

By utilizing Vue 3's powerful Composition API, you can create interactive, reusable UI components like tooltips with ease. This not only enhances functionality but also improves user experience within your application.

Leverage these strategies to build a wide range of components, and you'll find your Vue 3 applications becoming more engaging and user-friendly. Visit the Vue.js documentation for more insights on mastering Vue 3 development.

Delving Developer