Context menu
A menu that appears at the cursor or touch point, listing actions relevant to the clicked element.
Right-click anywhere
On desktop, right-click. On touch, long-press. The menu's contents change based on what was clicked — different options on a file, a link, or an image. Native context menus are common in OS interfaces; on the web, custom implementations have to balance discoverability (users may not expect right-click on a web app) against power-user value.
Also called
right-click menulong-press menu
When to use
- Power-user apps where right-click is a known interaction
- File or item managers where actions are context-specific
- Apps that already have a discoverable equivalent (toolbar, kebab menu) and want to add a shortcut
When not to use
- Consumer web apps where users won't think to right-click
- Touch-only contexts where long-press conflicts with other gestures
Related
Source
Long-standing OS UI pattern; specified for the web via the `contextmenu` event and HTML's `popover` and `menu` elements. ARIA accessibility pattern: `menu`.