Building a Modern Cart Drawer UI with Tailwind CSS

A cart drawer is a sleek, interactive element that slides in from the side of the screen—allowing users to view and manage their cart without leaving the current page. With Tailwind CSS, you can implement this UI pattern quickly and responsively.

Step 1: Create the Drawer Structure

Use fixed positioning and transitions to create a drawer effect.

<div id="cart-drawer" class="fixed top-0 right-0 w-80 h-full bg-white shadow-lg transform translate-x-full transition-transform duration-300 z-50">
  <div class="flex justify-between items-center p-4 border-b">
    <h2 class="text-lg font-bold">Your Cart</h2>
    <button onclick="closeDrawer()" class="text-gray-600 hover:text-black text-xl">×</button>
  </div>

  <div class="p-4 space-y-4">
    <!-- Cart Item Example -->
    <div class="flex gap-4 items-center">
      <img src="/images/product.jpg" alt="Product" class="w-16 h-16 rounded border">
      <div>
        <p class="text-sm font-medium">Eco Leather Backpack</p>
        <p class="text-xs text-gray-500">Qty: 1 • $129.00</p>
      </div>
    </div>

    <!-- Add more items here -->
  </div>

  <div class="p-4 border-t">
    <p class="text-sm font-semibold mb-2">Subtotal: $129.00</p>
    <button class="w-full bg-blue-600 text-white py-3 rounded hover:bg-blue-700 transition">
      Checkout
    </button>
  </div>
</div>

Step 2: Toggle Drawer Visibility

You can control visibility with simple JavaScript or Alpine.js. Here’s a basic vanilla JS toggle:

<script>
  function openDrawer() {
    document.getElementById("cart-drawer").classList.remove("translate-x-full");
  }

  function closeDrawer() {
    document.getElementById("cart-drawer").classList.add("translate-x-full");
  }
</script>

Step 3: Add a Trigger Button

Place a button in your header or nav bar to open the drawer:

<button onclick="openDrawer()" class="relative">
  🛒
  <span class="absolute -top-1 -right-1 bg-red-500 text-white text-xs px-1.5 py-0.5 rounded-full">2</span>
</button>

Step 4: Enhance with Animation and Mobile UX

You can tweak the transition and overlay behavior for better mobile support:

<div id="overlay" class="fixed inset-0 bg-black bg-opacity-50 hidden z-40" onclick="closeDrawer()"></div>

Show or hide this overlay in sync with your cart drawer to dim the background.

✅ Pros:

• 🛍 Keeps users on the current page for seamless shopping
• 📱 Fully responsive and mobile-friendly
• ⚡ Lightweight and fast with minimal JS

⚠️ Cons:

• 🧠 Requires managing cart state dynamically
• 🔁 Need backend/session sync for real orders

Summary

Using Tailwind CSS and just a pinch of JavaScript, you can implement a smooth and elegant cart drawer for your e-commerce site. This improves UX and helps retain shoppers by reducing interruptions in their flow.

📘 Want more ready-to-use Tailwind components for your store?

Download my 17-page guide, Creating a Responsive E-commerce UI with Tailwind, for just $10. It covers drawers, product grids, checkout flows, and more—ideal for solo devs and indie makers.

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