RazorConsole

Build rich, interactive console applications using familiar Razor syntax and the power of Spectre.Console

🎯 What is RazorConsole?

RazorConsole bridges the gap between modern web UI development and console applications. It lets you create sophisticated terminal interfaces using Razor components, complete with interactive elements, rich styling, and familiar development patterns.

📦 Install

dotnet add package RazorConsole.Core

🚀 Usage

Project Setup

RazorConsole requires the Microsoft.NET.Sdk.Razor SDK to compile Razor components. Update your project file (.csproj) to use the Razor SDK:

<Project Sdk="Microsoft.NET.Sdk.Razor">
    <!-- other settings -->
</Project>

Basic Example

Here's a simple counter component to get you started:

Counter.razor

@using Microsoft.AspNetCore.Components
@using Microsoft.AspNetCore.Components.Web
@using RazorConsole.Components

<Columns>
    <p>Current count</p>
    <Markup Content="@currentCount.ToString()" Foreground="@Spectre.Console.Color.Green" />
</Columns>
<TextButton Content="Click me"
            OnClick="IncrementCount"
            BackgroundColor="@Spectre.Console.Color.Grey"
            FocusedColor="@Spectre.Console.Color.Blue" />


@code {
    private int currentCount = 0;
    private void IncrementCount()
    {
        currentCount++;
    }
}

Program.cs

using Microsoft.Extensions.Hosting;
using RazorConsole.Core;

IHostBuilder hostBuilder = Host.CreateDefaultBuilder(args)
    .UseRazorConsole<Counter>();
IHost host = hostBuilder.Build();
await host.RunAsync();

For more complete sample applications, check out the Examples section below.

Rendering pipeline

RazorConsole renders every frame through WidgetLayout: components become widgets that are measured, arranged and painted into terminal cells, which gives every element known bounds for focus, layout queries and coordinate-aware mouse events. Spectre.Console-backed content such as charts, Figlet text and syntax highlighting is painted as widget leaves.

The legacy Spectre.Console layout pipeline was removed in 1.0 (earlier warnings said 1.1.0). If you upgrade from 0.x, remove any ConsoleAppOptions.RenderingPipeline assignment and the RAZORCONSOLE_RENDERING_PIPELINE environment variable, which no longer has any effect, and move custom ITranslationMiddleware translators to IWidgetTranslator. ConsoleAppOptions.AfterRenderAsync was also removed; use the root component's OnAfterRenderAsync, IHostApplicationLifetime.ApplicationStarted or an IHostedService instead. ConsoleViewResult, ConsoleLiveDisplayContext and FocusManager.BeginSession are now internal. See the Widget Layout guide and the custom translator guide for details.

Animated applications can opt into synchronized frame presentation with options.ConsoleLiveDisplayOptions.EnableSynchronizedUpdates = true. On terminals supporting DEC private mode 2026, all changed rows are presented together instead of showing partially drawn frames. This option is off by default; terminals without synchronized-output support may still show tearing.

✨ Key Features

🧩 Component-Based Architecture

Build your console UI using familiar Razor components with full support for data binding, event handling, and component lifecycle methods.

🎮 Interactive Components

Create engaging user experiences with interactive elements like buttons, text inputs, selectors, and keyboard navigation - all with focus management handled automatically.

🎯 Built-in Component Library

Get started quickly with 25+ pre-built components covering layout, input, display, and navigation needs:

• Layout (8): Align, Columns, FlexBox, Rows, Grid, Padder, Scrollable, ViewHeightScrollable
• Input (3): TextInput, TextButton, Select
• Display (12): BarChart, BreakdownChart, StepChart, Border, Figlet, Markdown, Markup, ModalWindow, Panel, SpectreCanvas, SyntaxHighlighter, Table
• Utilities (2): Spinner, Newline

For a full list of components and usage details, see the Built-in Components section below.

This is the beginning of the README. Read the rest at the original. Read the full README ↗