Press Start and watch the bar fill.
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Progress bar
A bar that fills up to show how far along something is.
When to use it
- Uploads, exports and installs, where the total is known and it takes more than a few seconds
- Pair it with a percentage or time left to reassure people
When not to
- When the duration is unknown, use a spinner: a fake bar erodes trust
- Anything that finishes within a second
What to tell an AI tool
Show a progress bar with a percentage while exporting, change the text to "Export finished" when done, and give the bar ARIA attributes for screen readers.