---
title: Radio group
description: Radio group is used to render a short list of mutually exclusive options.
keywords: ['radio button', 'selection', 'input', 'form', 'option', 'single choice']
---

## Usage

Use radio group to allow users to select a single option from a short list of related options.

### Orientation

A vertical orientation makes options easier to visually scan.

### Anatomy

**Label:** A title that labels the group of options and helps users understand the relationship between the options in the group

**Required indicator:** Indicates that a selection is required

**Caption:** May be used to provide additional context about the radio group when the label alone is not sufficient

**Options:** A list of mutually exclusive options represented using [radio buttons](../Radio/index.md)

**Validation message:** A message explaining why the selection failed validation. See the [form pattern documentation](https://primer.style/ui-patterns/forms/overview#validation-message) for more information on form validation patterns.

### Best practices

- Put radio buttons in a logical order
- Only use a radio group for a short list of options: aim for 6 or less options. For longer sets of options, consider using a [select](../Select/index.md) or an [action menu](../../components/ActionMenu/index.md)
- Radio buttons cannot be unchecked, so only use a radio group when a selection is required. Consider the following alternatives:
  - use a radio group, but with one option that equates to "none of these options"
  - use a [checkbox group](../CheckboxGroup/index.md) that fails validation if more than one option is selected
- If there is an option that's the most likely option to be checked, that option should be checked by default

## Accessibility

- Once a user checks an option from a radio group, the result should not be saved or applied until the user has explicitly submitted their input using a "save" or "submit" button. A radio group is a single tab stop, and the options can be navigated using the arrow keys: this means assistive technologies like a screen reader cannot "read" an option without selecting it. See the [saving pattern guidelines](https://primer.style/ui-patterns/saving) for more information.
- Radio groups must be labeled. The label may be visually hidden, but visible labels are preferred.

## Related components

- [FormControl](../FormControl/index.md): Used to group form controls with labels
- [Radio](../Radio/index.md): Individual radio button control
- [CheckboxGroup](../CheckboxGroup/index.md): For allowing multiple selections
