Nested & Expandable Folders

Avatar of Chris Coyier
Chris Coyier on (Updated on )

This was a demo originally by Martin Ivanov, utilizing hidden checkboxes and adjacent sibling combinators to set the “state” of each folder. The live demo has since fallen off of the internet, so I’ll post a copy of it here, with the original code below it.

See the Pen Nested Folders, No JS by Chris Coyier (@chriscoyier) on CodePen.

.css-treeview ul,
.css-treeview li
{
	padding: 0;
	margin: 0;
	list-style: none;
}

.css-treeview input
{
	position: absolute;
	opacity: 0;
}

.css-treeview
{
	font: normal 11px "Segoe UI", Arial, Sans-serif;
	-moz-user-select: none;
	-webkit-user-select: none;
	user-select: none;
}

.css-treeview a
{
	color: #00f;
	text-decoration: none;
}

.css-treeview a:hover
{
	text-decoration: underline;
}

.css-treeview input + label + ul
{
	margin: 0 0 0 22px;
}

.css-treeview input + label + ul
{
	display: none;
}

.css-treeview label,
.css-treeview label::before
{
	cursor: pointer;
}

.css-treeview input:disabled + label
{
	cursor: default;
	opacity: .6;
}

.css-treeview input:checked:not(:disabled) + label + ul
{
	display: block;
}

.css-treeview label,
.css-treeview label::before
{
	background: url("icons.png") no-repeat;
}

.css-treeview label,
.css-treeview a,
.css-treeview label::before
{
	display: inline-block;
	height: 16px;
	line-height: 16px;,
	vertical-align: middle;
}

.css-treeview label
{
	background-position: 18px 0;
}

.css-treeview label::before
{
	content: "";
	width: 16px;
	margin: 0 22px 0 0;
	vertical-align: middle;
	background-position: 0 -32px;
}

.css-treeview input:checked + label::before
{
	background-position: 0 -16px;
}

/* webkit adjacent element selector bugfix */
@media screen and (-webkit-min-device-pixel-ratio:0)
{
	.css-treeview 
	{
		-webkit-animation: webkit-adjacent-element-selector-bugfix infinite 1s;
	}
	
	@-webkit-keyframes webkit-adjacent-element-selector-bugfix 
	{
		from 
		{ 
			padding: 0;
		} 
		to 
		{ 
			padding: 0;
		}
	}
}
<div class="css-treeview">
	<ul>
		<li><input type="checkbox" id="item-0" /><label for="item-0">This Folder is Closed By Default</label>
			<ul>
				<li><input type="checkbox" id="item-0-0" /><label for="item-0-0">Ooops! A Nested Folder</label>
					<ul>
						<li><input type="checkbox" id="item-0-0-0" /><label for="item-0-0-0">Look Ma - No Hands!</label>
							<ul>
								<li><a href="./">First Nested Item</a></li>
								<li><a href="./">Second Nested Item</a></li>
								<li><a href="./">Third Nested Item</a></li>
								<li><a href="./">Fourth Nested Item</a></li>
							</ul>
						</li>
						<li><a href="./">Item 1</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">Item 2</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">Item 3</a></li>
					</ul>
				</li>
				<li><input type="checkbox" id="item-0-1" /><label for="item-0-1">Yet Another One</label>
					<ul>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
					</ul>
				</li>
				<li><input type="checkbox" id="item-0-2" disabled="disabled" /><label for="item-0-2">Disabled Nested Items</label>
					<ul>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
					</ul>
				</li>
				<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
				<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
				<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
				<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
			</ul>
		</li>
		<li><input type="checkbox" id="item-1" checked="checked" /><label for="item-1">This One is Open by Default...</label>
			<ul>
				<li><input type="checkbox" id="item-1-0" /><label for="item-1-0">And Contains More Nested Items...</label>
					<ul>
						<li><a href="./">Look Ma - No Hands</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">Another Item</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">And Yet Another</a></li>
					</ul>
				</li>
				<li><a href="./">Lorem</a></li>
				<li><a href="./">Ipsum</a></li>
				<li><a href="./">Dolor</a></li>
				<li><a href="./">Sit Amet</a></li>
			</ul>
		</li>
		<li><input type="checkbox" id="item-2" /><label for="item-2">Can You Believe...</label>
			<ul>
				<li><input type="checkbox" id="item-2-0" /><label for="item-2-0">That This Treeview...</label>
					<ul>
						<li><input type="checkbox" id="item-2-2-0" /><label for="item-2-2-0">Does Not Use Any JavaScript...</label>
							<ul>
								<li><a href="./">But Relies Only</a></li>
								<li><a href="./">On the Power</a></li>
								<li><a href="./">Of CSS3</a></li>
							</ul>
						</li>
						<li><a href="./">Item 1</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">Item 2</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">Item 3</a></li>
					</ul>
				</li>
				<li><input type="checkbox" id="item-2-1" /><label for="item-2-1">This is a Folder With...</label>
					<ul>
						<li><a href="./">Some Nested Items...</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">Some Nested Items...</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">Some Nested Items...</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">Some Nested Items...</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">Some Nested Items...</a></li>
					</ul>
				</li>
				<li><input type="checkbox" id="item-2-2" disabled="disabled" /><label for="item-2-2">Disabled Nested Items</label>
					<ul>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
						<li><a href="./">item</a></li>
					</ul>
				</li>
			</ul>
		</li>
	</ul>
</div>