Button

Buttons are used to trigger an action in the interface. We provide a number of styles that work on their own or part of a group

Writing buttons

The text on a button should clearly communicate what happens when that button is pressed.

Make the nature of the destination clear. If a button says ‘Find out more’, it should lead to informational content. If it says ‘Start application’, it should go straight into an application journey. Mixing these will frustrate or confuse users.

Follow these rules:

Use sentence case

No more than 3 words

Start with a verb: ‘Start now’ or ‘Go back’

Avoid…

Articles (a, the)

Softeners (please)

Adjectives (next, another)

Possessives (my, your, our), unless they aid navigation

Example 1:

❌ Return to your dashboard	✅ Go to dashboard
Extra words and complexity ‘Return’ could be ‘Back’ or ‘Go’, depending on context. And ‘your’ is redundant.	Short and simple This makes it clear and glanceable.

Example 2:

❌ Find out more	✅ Book a call
Misleading This sounds like it leads to informational content.	Clear destination It’s clear that this starts a booking journey.

Button patterns

We use consistent buttons across journeys and platforms to create a coherent user experience.

Use these patterns as a default in all journeys. If you think there is a strong, research-based reason to use a different pattern or change these patterns, submit a contribution to Compound.

See also: Grouping examples

Button	Usage
<Next> and <Back>	For progressing through any multi-step digital journey.
<Get started>	To enter a task-based journey.
<Continue>	For review and confirmation screens in a multi-step journey.
<Delete>	To delete information a user has entered.
<Cancel>	To cancel an action. See Alert dialogs and Modals for more on writing cancellations.