Entries in .NET MAUI

The Entry control in .NET MAUI is used for single-line text input.

Note: For multi-line text input, consider using the Editor control.

Basic Usage

The simplest way to use an Entry is to declare it in XAML or create it programmatically:

<Entry Placeholder="Enter text here" />

In C#:

var entry = new Entry
{
    Placeholder = "Enter text here"
};

Common Properties

The Entry control offers several properties to customize its appearance and behavior:

Property	Description	Default
`Text`	Gets or sets the text entered by the user.	Empty string
`Placeholder`	Gets or sets the text displayed when the `Entry` is empty.	Empty string
`PlaceholderColor`	Gets or sets the color of the placeholder text.	Platform-specific
`Keyboard`	Gets or sets the type of keyboard to display.	`Keyboard.Default`
`IsPassword`	Gets or sets whether the text entered should be obscured (for password fields).	`false`
`ClearButtonVisibility`	Controls the visibility of the clear button.	Platform-specific
`MaxLength`	Gets or sets the maximum number of characters that can be entered.	Unrestricted
`HorizontalTextAlignment`	Gets or sets the horizontal alignment of the text.	`TextAlignment.Start`
`VerticalTextAlignment`	Gets or sets the vertical alignment of the text.	`TextAlignment.Center`

Keyboard Types

You can specify different keyboard types using the Keyboard property:

Keyboard.Default: Standard keyboard.
Keyboard.Email: Keyboard optimized for email addresses.
Keyboard.Numeric: Keyboard for entering numbers.
Keyboard.Telephone: Keyboard for phone numbers.
Keyboard.Url: Keyboard optimized for URLs.

Example: Numeric Keyboard and Password Field

<Entry Placeholder="Enter your age" Keyboard="Numeric" />
<Entry Placeholder="Enter your password" IsPassword="True" />

Handling Text Changes

You can respond to changes in the Entry's text using the TextChanged event.

Example: Binding Text and Handling Changes

XAML:

<Entry Text="{Binding UserName}"
       Placeholder="Enter username"
       TextChanged="OnUsernameChanged" />

<Label Text="{Binding StatusMessage}" />

C# Code-Behind:

public partial class MyPage : ContentPage
{
    public MyPage()
    {
        InitializeComponent();
        // Assuming a ViewModel is set as BindingContext
        // BindingContext = new MyViewModel();
    }

    private void OnUsernameChanged(object sender, TextChangedEventArgs e)
    {
        // Access the new text: e.NewTextValue
        // Access the old text: e.OldTextValue
        var username = ((Entry)sender).Text;
        // Update ViewModel or perform other actions
        // For example, if you have a ViewModel property StatusMessage:
        // StatusMessage = $"Username changed to: {username}";
        System.Diagnostics.Debug.WriteLine($"Username changed from '{e.OldTextValue}' to '{e.NewTextValue}'");
    }
}

Styling Entries

You can style Entry controls using standard .NET MAUI styling techniques, including:

Setting properties directly in XAML.
Using Style resources.
Applying platform-specific styles.

Example: Using Styles

In App.xaml or a Resource Dictionary:

<Style TargetType="Entry">
    <Setter Property="TextColor" Value="DarkSlateBlue" />
    <Setter Property="FontSize" Value="Medium" />
    <Setter Property="Margin" Value="10" />
    <Setter Property="HorizontalOptions" Value="FillAndExpand" />
</Style>

<Style x:Key="PasswordEntryStyle" TargetType="Entry">
    <Setter Property="IsPassword" Value="True" />
    <Setter Property="PlaceholderColor" Value="LightGray" />
    <Setter Property="BackgroundColor" Value="#f0f0f0" />
</Style>

Using the Styles:

<Entry Placeholder="Enter name" /> <!-- Uses default style -->
<Entry Placeholder="Enter password" Style="{StaticResource PasswordEntryStyle}" />

By leveraging these properties and events, you can effectively implement single-line text input fields in your .NET MAUI applications.

.NET MAUI Docs