Generally speaking, toggles are best used when people need to update a setting or state that affects content or a view. Toggle switches typically have a clear label and use a standard visual appearance with different colors to communicate each state.
In a release cycle a toggle is short lived compared to other categories of Feature Flags and will often be replaced with a more stable configuration in the next iteration. However, it’s important for a team to be proactive in removing the toggle from the codebase as soon as it is no longer needed (especially if they have a policy of adding a removal task on their backlog when a new toggle is first introduced). This practice is known as blue-green deployment.
The word toggle derives from the 18th century meaning “pin passed through the eye of a rope to fasten.” In software development, it has come to mean a switch that can be in one of two positions, like on or off. Toggles are a great way to help users manage the status of views and content without having to click Save or a Submit button.
When designing for accessibility, it’s important to keep in mind that toggles tend to rely on color to communicate state and should be avoided where possible. Moreover, if you need to use a toggle as a control and require immediate results consider alternatives such as radio buttons or checkboxes that do not rely on color alone.
