Creating a Customizable Dashboard with React and Drag-and-Drop functionality
Last Updated :
28 Apr, 2025
In this article, we will create a Dashboard with a drag-and-drop functionality using React JS. This project basically implements useState principles and the use of vite to set up the run time environment of React and JavaScript. The drag and drop functionality will enable the user to drag from one container and drop the picked element into the other container and vice versa for the opposite direction as well.
Project Preview: Let us have a look at how the final output will look like.

Prerequisites :
Approach to create Customizable Dashboard:
- The project basically involves the functionalities of dragging a box from one container and be able to drag it over to the other one and drop it there.
- This project utilizes the technologies of React & Javascript.
- It uses a single component that is App.jsx which collectively handles all drag over and drag start functions.
- Usestate hooks are defined for every item which is draggable into the other container.
Steps to Create Project:
Step 1: Set up React Project using vite
npm create vite@latest
Step 2: Add project name and select JavaScript & Reactjs.
Step 3: Run the following commands tocomplete the setup.
cd Path -> To go to the particular directory
npm install -> To install node modules
npm run dev -> To run the site on localhost
Project Structure:

The updated dependencies in package.json file will look like:
"dependencies": {
"react": "^18.2.0",
"react-dom": "^18.2.0"
}
"devDependencies": {
"@types/react": "^18.2.55",
"@types/react-dom": "^18.2.19",
"@vitejs/plugin-react": "^4.2.1",
"eslint": "^8.56.0",
"eslint-plugin-react": "^7.33.2",
"eslint-plugin-react-hooks": "^4.6.0",
"eslint-plugin-react-refresh": "^0.4.5",
"vite": "^5.1.0"
}
Example: Add the following code in App.jsx, index.css.
JavaScript
// App.js
import React, { useState } from 'react';
import './index.css';
function App() {
const [item, setItem] = useState(null);
const handleStart = (e, id) => {
setItem(document.getElementById(id));
};
const handleDrag = (e) => {
e.preventDefault();
};
const handleDrop = (e, id) => {
const targetBox = document.getElementById(id);
e.preventDefault();
if (id === 'right') {
if (item.parentElement.id !== 'right') {
targetBox.appendChild(item);
}
} else {
if (item.parentElement.id === 'right') {
targetBox.appendChild(item);
}
}
setItem(null);
};
return (
<div className="container">
<div id="left">
<div id='list1'
draggable
className="list"
onDragStart={(e)=> handleStart(e, "list1")}
onDragOver={handleDrag}
onDrop={(e) => handleDrop(e, 'left')}
>
<span role="img" aria-label="List Icon">?</span>
<div className='heading'> Reactjs -
Components</div>
<p>Build reusable UI components with React.js</p>
</div>
<div id="list2"
draggable
className="list"
onDragStart={(e)=> handleStart(e, "list2")}
onDragOver={handleDrag}
onDrop={(e) => handleDrop(e, 'left')}
>
<span role="img" aria-label="List Icon">?</span>
<div className='heading'> Nextjs -
Animations</div>
<p>Create stunning animations with Next.js</p>
</div>
<div id="list3"
draggable
className="list"
onDragStart={(e)=> handleStart(e, "list3")}
onDragOver={handleDrag}
onDrop={(e) => handleDrop(e, 'left')}
>
<span role="img" aria-label="List Icon">?</span>
<div className='heading'>HTML -
Layouts</div>
<p>Design responsive layouts using HTML</p>
</div>
<div id="list4"
draggable
className="list"
onDragStart={(e)=> handleStart(e, "list4")}
onDragOver={handleDrag}
onDrop={(e) => handleDrop(e, 'left')}
>
<span role="img" aria-label="List Icon">?</span>
<div className='heading'>CSS - Styling
</div>
<p>Add beautiful styles to your web pages with CSS</p>
</div>
<div id="list5"
draggable
className="list"
onDragStart={(e)=> handleStart(e, "list5")}
onDragOver={handleDrag}
onDrop={(e) => handleDrop(e, 'left')}
>
<span role="img" aria-label="List Icon">?</span>
<div className='heading'>JavaScript -
Functionalities</div>
<p>Implement various functionalities using JavaScript</p>
</div>
</div>
<div id="right"
onDragOver={handleDrag}
onDrop={(e)=> handleDrop(e, 'right')}
>
<p>Drop In Here If Completed</p>
</div>
</div>
);
}
export default App;
CSS
/* index.css */
* {
padding: 0;
margin: 0;
box-sizing: border-box;
}
.container {
display: flex;
align-items: center;
justify-content: center;
background: linear-gradient(200deg, #69deff, #1d0032);
height: 100vh;
width: 100%;
flex-wrap: wrap;
}
#left,
#right {
border: 4px solid #000000;
width: 380px;
height: 430px;
margin: 45px;
background-color: #f0f0f0;
border-radius: 8px;
padding: 10px;
position: relative;
overflow: auto;
}
.list {
margin: 20px;
padding: 12px;
background-color: #000317;
color: white;
cursor: grab;
display: flex;
align-items: center;
border-radius: 6px;
font-size: 19px;
box-shadow: 2px 4px 5px black;
flex-direction: column;
}
.heading {
font-weight: bolder;
text-align: center;
font-size: 22px;
}
#right {
background-color: #e7f0ff;
font-size: 22px;
font-weight: bolder;
}
.list span {
margin-right: 10px;
}
.list p {
margin-left: 10px;
font-size: 18px;
font-weight: normal;
color: #eeeeee;
text-align: center;
}
Output :
Drag & DropExplanation of the Output:
- We have defined an item to be null initially using useState function.
- HandleStart() function is invoked on selection of any element or List where default method is cancelled and on dragging the element, handleDrag() is invoked which cancels the default function again.
- On invoking handleDrop() function, the element is targetted which is being dragged, and if the element is in right position, then it is shifted to the left container, and if the element is in the left position, then it is shifted to the right side of the container.
Similar Reads
Non-linear Components In electrical circuits, Non-linear Components are electronic devices that need an external power source to operate actively. Non-Linear Components are those that are changed with respect to the voltage and current. Elements that do not follow ohm's law are called Non-linear Components. Non-linear Co
11 min read
JavaScript Tutorial JavaScript is a programming language used to create dynamic content for websites. It is a lightweight, cross-platform, and single-threaded programming language. It's an interpreted language that executes code line by line, providing more flexibility.JavaScript on Client Side: On the client side, Jav
11 min read
Web Development Web development is the process of creating, building, and maintaining websites and web applications. It involves everything from web design to programming and database management. Web development is generally divided into three core areas: Frontend Development, Backend Development, and Full Stack De
5 min read
Spring Boot Tutorial Spring Boot is a Java framework that makes it easier to create and run Java applications. It simplifies the configuration and setup process, allowing developers to focus more on writing code for their applications. This Spring Boot Tutorial is a comprehensive guide that covers both basic and advance
10 min read
React Interview Questions and Answers React is an efficient, flexible, and open-source JavaScript library that allows developers to create simple, fast, and scalable web applications. Jordan Walke, a software engineer who was working for Facebook, created React. Developers with a JavaScript background can easily develop web applications
15+ min read
Class Diagram | Unified Modeling Language (UML) A UML class diagram is a visual tool that represents the structure of a system by showing its classes, attributes, methods, and the relationships between them. It helps everyone involved in a projectâlike developers and designersâunderstand how the system is organized and how its components interact
12 min read
JavaScript Interview Questions and Answers JavaScript (JS) is the most popular lightweight, scripting, and interpreted programming language. JavaScript is well-known as a scripting language for web pages, mobile apps, web servers, and many other platforms. Both front-end and back-end developers need to have a strong command of JavaScript, as
15+ min read
React Tutorial React is a JavaScript Library known for front-end development (or user interface). It is popular due to its component-based architecture, Single Page Applications (SPAs), and Virtual DOM for building web applications that are fast, efficient, and scalable.Applications are built using reusable compon
8 min read
Steady State Response In this article, we are going to discuss the steady-state response. We will see what is steady state response in Time domain analysis. We will then discuss some of the standard test signals used in finding the response of a response. We also discuss the first-order response for different signals. We
9 min read
Backpropagation in Neural Network Back Propagation is also known as "Backward Propagation of Errors" is a method used to train neural network . Its goal is to reduce the difference between the modelâs predicted output and the actual output by adjusting the weights and biases in the network.It works iteratively to adjust weights and
9 min read