---
title: Rich text input
description: A formatted text field, with Slack's formatting toolbar, that reports a rich_text value.
---

`rich_text_input` collects text and hands it back as a `rich_text` block, the same structure Slack
uses for a message composed in its own WYSIWYG editor. It's an `input`-block-only element: it
doesn't appear in an `actions` block or as a section accessory, and, like `file_input`, Slack only
supports it in modals, not Home tabs.

<Preview
  payload={{
    type: "modal",
    title: { type: "plain_text", text: "New entry" },
    submit: { type: "plain_text", text: "Save" },
    close: { type: "plain_text", text: "Cancel" },
    blocks: [
      {
        type: "input",
        block_id: "summary",
        label: { type: "plain_text", text: "Summary" },
        element: {
          type: "rich_text_input",
          action_id: "summary_input",
          placeholder: { type: "plain_text", text: "Write something" },
        },
      },
    ],
  }}
/>

:::note
The formatting toolbar above the field (bold, italic, lists, links, and so on) renders exactly as
Slack draws it, but the buttons are inert: they only act on a text selection inside Slack's own
editor. Typing into the field itself works normally.
:::

## Fields

| Prop | Type | Default | Description |
| - | - | - | - |
| `type` | `"rich_text_input"` | - | Always `rich_text_input`. |
| `action_id?` | `string` | - | Identifies this action in the interaction payload and as the key in `state.values`. Maximum length is 255 characters. |
| `initial_value?` | `RichTextBlock` | - | The rich_text content shown when the surface loads. |
| `placeholder?` | `PlainTextElement` | - | Grey placeholder text shown when the field is empty. Maximum length is 150 characters. |
| `min_lines?` | `number` | - | The minimum number of lines shown. Must be between 1 and 100. |
| `max_lines?` | `number` | `8` | The maximum number of lines shown before the field scrolls. Must be between 1 and 100. |
| `dispatch_action_config?` | `DispatchActionConfig` | - | Configures which edits fire a `block_actions` payload while typing. |
| `focus_on_load?` | `boolean` | `false` | Focuses this field when the surface loads. Only one element per view can set this. |

## Examples

### With an initial value

<Preview
  payload={{
    blocks: [
      {
        type: "input",
        block_id: "notes",
        label: { type: "plain_text", text: "Release notes" },
        element: {
          type: "rich_text_input",
          action_id: "notes_input",
          initial_value: {
            type: "rich_text",
            elements: [
              {
                type: "rich_text_section",
                elements: [{ type: "text", text: "Fixed the login redirect loop." }],
              },
            ],
          },
        },
      },
    ],
  }}
/>

`initial_value` takes a full `rich_text` block, the same shape you'd get back from the element
itself, not a plain string.

### Sizing the field

<Preview
  payload={{
    blocks: [
      {
        type: "input",
        block_id: "bio",
        label: { type: "plain_text", text: "Bio" },
        element: {
          type: "rich_text_input",
          action_id: "bio_input",
          min_lines: 5,
          placeholder: { type: "plain_text", text: "Tell the team about yourself" },
        },
      },
    ],
  }}
/>

`min_lines` sets the field's starting height; `max_lines` (8 by default) caps how tall it grows
before it scrolls.

## Interactivity

Typing calls `onAction` with the current content wrapped as a `rich_text` block, under
`rich_text_value`:

```json
{
  "type": "rich_text_input",
  "action_id": "notes_input",
  "block_id": "notes",
  "action_ts": "1706000000.000100",
  "rich_text_value": {
    "type": "rich_text",
    "elements": [
      {
        "type": "rich_text_section",
        "elements": [{ "type": "text", "text": "Fixed the login redirect loop." }]
      }
    ]
  }
}
```

### Reading the value

Every edit (and the initial value, if any) is written to `state.values` as `{ type, rich_text_value
}`:

```json
{
  "notes": {
    "notes_input": {
      "type": "rich_text_input",
      "rich_text_value": {
        "type": "rich_text",
        "elements": [
          {
            "type": "rich_text_section",
            "elements": [{ "type": "text", "text": "Fixed the login redirect loop." }]
          }
        ]
      }
    }
  }
}
```

## Related

**[Text inputs](/elements/text-inputs)**

Plain text, email, URL and number inputs that report a plain string instead.

**[File input](/elements/file-input)**

Collect file uploads in a modal.

**[Date picker](/elements/date-picker)**

Pick a single date from a calendar dropdown.

**[Elements overview](/elements/index)**

Where each element can live, and how `action_id` and `block_id` fit together.