A vertical sidebar navigation — common in dashboards and admin panels — organizes menu items in a fixed-width column, with the active item highlighted, making it easy to navigate between several app sections without a page reload.
Enter your menu item labels and choose an accent color, click an item in the preview to see the active state highlight switch, then copy the complete HTML and CSS needed to build the same sidebar navigation in your own application.
The active item uses a colored left border and tinted background to stand out clearly from inactive items, a common and easily scannable pattern for indicating current location within a dashboard's navigation structure.
Because everything runs locally in your browser, results appear instantly and nothing you type or upload is ever sent to a server.
Bookmark this page if you expect to use this tool regularly — it loads fast and behaves the same way every time, with no account needed.
This kind of task shows up constantly in everyday writing, coding, design, and admin work, which is exactly why a dedicated, focused tool saves so much back-and-forth.
A tool that does one job well, without a cluttered interface or unrelated features competing for attention, tends to be faster to use than a heavier all-in-one app.
Frequently asked questions
Does this include the routing logic to actually navigate between pages?
No, this generates the visual navigation structure and active-state styling only; connecting each item to actual page routing or content switching would be handled in your own application's routing logic.
Can I add icons next to each menu label?
Yes, add an icon element (SVG, icon font, or emoji) before each label's text in the generated markup to include icons alongside the text labels.