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Alert notice overview

An alert notice is a non-modal message that informs users of system status, action outcomes, or conditions relevant to their current task.

Types

Three confirmation alert notices with green accents. Number 1 points to page notice. Number 2 points to section notice. Number 3 points to inline notice.
  1. Page
  2. Section
  3. Inline

Alert notice levels

Page notice

A page notice is a prominent message for high-priority conditions that impacts what users can do in the product or on a specific page, like account restrictions, blocking issues, or urgent required actions.

An information page notice placed at the top of a mobile screen. A primary cta button and item price are beneath it.

Section notice

A section notice is a message scoped to a specific area of the page, used for conditions that affect only that section, like form validation errors, shipping issues, or payment setup.

An information section notice placed between a text block and a primary cta button.

Inline notice

An inline notice is a contextual message tied to a single element, like a tile or row item, used for field-level guidance, reminders, or validation.

An information inline notice placed between a group of text and a form field.

Semantic messaging

Semantic messaging means each notice type carries a specific meaning, paired with a distinct visual treatment. Choose the type of alert notice that most accurately reflects the situation.

Prioritizing notices


When multiple conditions are present, you can prioritize in two ways.

For problem-based notices, order by severity: 


  1. Attention
  2. Warning 

For notices that aren't signaling a problem, order by relevance to the user's current moment:


  1. Confirmation
  2. Information
  3. Neutral

Avoid showing notices of the same type at the same time. When a blocking condition is resolved, dismiss its notice before introducing a new one

Attention

Use sparingly. Attention notices communicate urgent issues that are breaking or blocking.

Examples

  • Account suspension
  • Failed payment processing
  • Listing violation
  • Security breach
A page, section and inline notice stacked showing the attention variant.

Confirmation

Confirmation notices communicate the successful completion of an action or process.

Example

  • Account verified
  • Listing posted
  • Auction won
  • Payment successful
  • Profile completed
A page, section and inline notice stacked showing the confirmation variant.

Information

Information notices communicate non-critical but helpful information.

Examples

  • A seller policy update
  • Valuable profile insights
  • Listing quality suggestions
A page, section and inline notice stacked showing the information variant.

Neutral

Neutral notices communicate general information without urgency or a required action. It may or may not be related to the user’s current task.

Examples

  • Community updates
  • Promotion update
  • Feedback reminder
A page, section and inline notice stacked showing the neutral variant.