syncfusion-wpf-dropdownbuttonadv

Implementing WPF DropDownButtonAdv

The DropDownButtonAdv is a WPF dropdown button control that displays a popup menu when the arrow is clicked. It supports menu items with icons, data binding, command binding, configurable popup direction, resizing, multiline text, and full theme support.

Assembly: Syncfusion.Shared.WPF
Namespace: Syncfusion.Windows.Tools.Controls
XAML Schema: xmlns:syncfusion="http://schemas.syncfusion.com/wpf"

When to Use This Skill

• User wants a button that opens a dropdown list of options
• User needs a WPF dropdown button with icons, checkable items, or grouped items
• User asks about DropDownButtonAdv, DropDownMenuGroup, DropDownMenuItem
• User needs MVVM binding for dropdown menu items or command binding
• User needs to control popup direction, resizing, or multiline label
• User asks how to handle dropdown open/close events or item click events

Quick Start

xmlns:syncfusion="http://schemas.syncfusion.com/wpf"

<syncfusion:DropDownButtonAdv Label="Country" SizeMode="Normal" SmallIcon="Images/flag.png">
    <syncfusion:DropDownMenuGroup>
        <syncfusion:DropDownMenuItem HorizontalAlignment="Left" Header="India">
            <syncfusion:DropDownMenuItem.Icon>
                <Image Source="Images/india.png"/>
            </syncfusion:DropDownMenuItem.Icon>
        </syncfusion:DropDownMenuItem>
        <syncfusion:DropDownMenuItem HorizontalAlignment="Left" Header="France"/>
        <syncfusion:DropDownMenuItem HorizontalAlignment="Left" Header="Germany"/>
    </syncfusion:DropDownMenuGroup>
</syncfusion:DropDownButtonAdv>

// C# equivalent
DropDownButtonAdv button = new DropDownButtonAdv();
button.Label = "Country";
button.SizeMode = SizeMode.Normal;
button.SmallIcon = new BitmapImage(new Uri("Images/flag.png", UriKind.RelativeOrAbsolute));
DropDownMenuGroup menu = new DropDownMenuGroup();
menu.Items.Add(new DropDownMenuItem { Header = "India", HorizontalAlignment = HorizontalAlignment.Left });
button.Content = menu;

Common Patterns

Goal	Approach
Static menu items	Declare DropDownMenuItem directly inside DropDownMenuGroup
Dynamic items from data	Bind DropDownMenuGroup.ItemsSource + use ItemTemplate
MVVM command on item click	Set Command + CommandParameter on DropDownMenuItem
Popup opens below-left	DropDirection="BottomLeft" (default)
Large button with label wrapping	SizeMode="Large" + IsMultiLine="True"
Checkable items	IsCheckable="True" on DropDownMenuItem
Custom UIElement in menu	Use DropDownMenuGroup.MoreItems property
Scrollable long list	Set MaxHeight + ScrollBarVisibility="Visible" on group
Resizable popup	IsResizable="True" on DropDownMenuGroup

Key Properties

Property	Type	Description
Label	string	Button text label
SizeMode	SizeMode	Small / Normal / Large
SmallIcon	ImageSource	Icon for Small and Normal modes
LargeIcon	ImageSource	Icon for Large mode
IconTemplate	DataTemplate	Vector/path icon template (overrides image icons)
IconTemplateSelector	DataTemplateSelector	Conditionally select icon template
IconWidth / IconHeight	double	Icon dimensions
DropDirection	DropDirection	Popup position (default: BottomLeft)
IsMultiLine	bool	Multi-line label (Large mode only)
DropDownMenuGroup.ItemsSource	IEnumerable	Data-bound menu items
DropDownMenuGroup.IconBarEnabled	bool	Show vertical icon bar
DropDownMenuGroup.ScrollBarVisibility	ScrollBarVisibility	Scrollbar in popup
DropDownMenuGroup.IsResizable	bool	Resize gripper on popup
DropDownMenuGroup.MoreItems	ObservableCollection<UIElement>	Custom bottom items
DropDownMenuItem.IsCheckable	bool	Allow check/uncheck
DropDownMenuItem.Command	ICommand	MVVM command
DropDownMenuItem.CommandParameter	object	Command parameter

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Documentation and Navigation Guide

Getting Started

📄 Read: references/getting-started.md

• Assembly reference (Syncfusion.Shared.WPF)
• Add via designer, XAML, or C#
• Setting Label, SizeMode (Small/Normal/Large)
• SmallIcon, LargeIcon, IconWidth/IconHeight
• IconTemplate and IconTemplateSelector
• Basic menu items inline
• Applying themes with SfSkinManager

Dropdown Menu Items

📄 Read: references/dropdown-menu-items.md

• DropDownMenuGroup as the container element
• Declarative DropDownMenuItem with Header and Icon
• IconBarEnabled (vertical icon strip)
• ScrollBarVisibility for long item lists
• IsResizable gripper for popup resize
• IsCheckable / IsChecked for checkable items
• MoreItems for custom UIElement additions
• IsMoreItemsIconTrayEnabled

Data Binding

📄 Read: references/data-binding.md

• Model and ViewModel pattern
• Binding DropDownMenuGroup.ItemsSource
• ItemTemplate with DataTemplate
• Binding DropDownMenuItem.Command from ViewModel via x:Reference
• Full MVVM example with DelegateCommand<T>
• When to use data binding vs declarative items

Command Binding

📄 Read: references/command-binding.md

• Command and CommandParameter on DropDownMenuItem
• DelegateCommand<T> implementation
• CanExecute and CanPerformAction toggle pattern
• Binding to ViewModel commands in declarative XAML
• Gotchas: scoping commands in DataTemplates

Dropdown Behavior

📄 Read: references/dropdown-behavior.md

• DropDirection enum: Left, Right, BottomLeft, BottomRight, TopLeft, TopRight
• Default direction is BottomLeft
• IsMultiLine for wrapping long labels (Large mode only)
• FlowDirection for RTL support

Events & Appearance

📄 Read: references/events-and-appearance.md

• DropDownOpening / DropDownOpened events (cancel support)
• DropDownClosing / DropDownClosed events
• DropDownMenuItem.Click event
• DropDownMenuItem.IsCheckedChanged event
• Editing control template in Expression Blend or Visual Studio
• SfSkinManager themes + ThemeStudio custom themes