Implement Material 3 Themes in Jetpack Compose Like a Pro

Material Design 3 (M3), also known as Material You, represents the latest evolution in Google's design system. It emphasizes personalization, accessibility, and dynamic theming, allowing developers to craft highly engaging and aesthetically consistent user interfaces. Jetpack Compose, Google’s modern toolkit for building native UIs in Android, seamlessly integrates Material 3, empowering developers to leverage these cutting-edge design principles.

In this blog post, we’ll explore how to implement Material 3 themes in Jetpack Compose, focusing on advanced concepts, best practices, and customization techniques. By the end, you’ll have the tools and knowledge to apply M3 themes in your projects like a pro.

Introduction to Material 3 in Jetpack Compose
Setting Up Material 3 in Your Project
Understanding the MaterialTheme in Jetpack Compose
Customizing the M3 Color Palette
Dynamic Color: Adapting Themes Based on System Colors
Typography and Shapes in Material 3
Implementing Dark Mode with Material 3
Best Practices for Material 3 Themes in Compose
Conclusion

1. Introduction to Material 3 in Jetpack Compose

Material Design 3 focuses on user-centric design with features like dynamic color extraction, enhanced accessibility, and responsive layouts. Jetpack Compose simplifies the integration of M3 by providing a dedicated Material 3 library that includes pre-defined components, typography, and color schemes.

Key Features of Material 3:

Dynamic Colors: Automatically adapt your app’s color palette based on the user’s wallpaper.
Accessibility Improvements: Enhanced contrast ratios and flexible typography settings.
Material You Components: Updated buttons, cards, and other UI elements aligning with M3 guidelines.

Jetpack Compose's Material3 module is the foundation for implementing these features. Let’s dive into how to set it up in your project.

2. Setting Up Material 3 in Your Project

To get started, ensure your project is configured to use Jetpack Compose and includes the Material 3 library.

Step 1: Add Dependencies

In your build.gradle file, include the Material 3 dependency:

dependencies {
    implementation "androidx.compose.material3:material3:<latest_version>"
}

Tip: Always use the latest version of the library to access new features and bug fixes.

Step 2: Enable Compose Features

Ensure that Compose is enabled in your project:

android {
    buildFeatures {
        compose true
    }
    composeOptions {
        kotlinCompilerExtensionVersion = '<compiler_version>'
    }
}

3. Understanding the MaterialTheme in Jetpack Compose

The MaterialTheme is the core of theming in Jetpack Compose. It provides:

A centralized place to define your app’s colors, typography, and shapes.
Automatic application of these styles to Material 3 components.

Basic Structure:

MaterialTheme(
    colorScheme = colorScheme,
    typography = typography,
    shapes = shapes
) {
    // Your composables here
}

Jetpack Compose offers a default MaterialTheme implementation, but for professional-grade apps, you’ll often need to customize it.

4. Customizing the M3 Color Palette

Material 3 introduces the ColorScheme API, replacing the traditional ColorPalette used in Material Design 2.

Default Color Scheme:

Jetpack Compose provides pre-defined light and dark color schemes:

val lightColors = lightColorScheme(
    primary = Color(0xFF6200EE),
    secondary = Color(0xFF03DAC5),
    // Other colors
)

val darkColors = darkColorScheme(
    primary = Color(0xFFBB86FC),
    secondary = Color(0xFF03DAC6),
    // Other colors
)

Customizing Colors:

You can define your own color scheme by overriding individual properties:

val customColors = lightColorScheme(
    primary = Color(0xFF1E88E5),
    onPrimary = Color.White,
    secondary = Color(0xFF43A047),
    // Customize as needed
)

Pro Tip: Use tools like Material Theme Builder to experiment with color combinations and export palettes.

5. Dynamic Color: Adapting Themes Based on System Colors

One of Material 3’s standout features is dynamic color, which allows apps to adapt to the user’s system theme. This is especially powerful on devices running Android 12 or higher.

Implementation:

@Composable
fun MyAppTheme(
    dynamicColor: Boolean = true,
    darkTheme: Boolean = isSystemInDarkTheme(),
    content: @Composable () -> Unit
) {
    val colorScheme = when {
        dynamicColor && Build.VERSION.SDK_INT >= Build.VERSION_CODES.S -> {
            val context = LocalContext.current
            if (darkTheme) dynamicDarkColorScheme(context) else dynamicLightColorScheme(context)
        }
        darkTheme -> darkColorScheme()
        else -> lightColorScheme()
    }

    MaterialTheme(
        colorScheme = colorScheme,
        typography = Typography,
        shapes = Shapes,
        content = content
    )
}

Note: Always provide fallback colors for devices that don’t support dynamic color.

6. Typography and Shapes in Material 3

Typography:

Material 3 introduces a new typography system with a focus on legibility and customization.

val Typography = Typography(
    headlineLarge = TextStyle(
        fontFamily = FontFamily.Default,
        fontWeight = FontWeight.Bold,
        fontSize = 30.sp
    ),
    bodyMedium = TextStyle(
        fontFamily = FontFamily.Serif,
        fontWeight = FontWeight.Normal,
        fontSize = 16.sp
    )
)

Shapes:

Customize shapes for components like buttons and cards:

val Shapes = Shapes(
    small = RoundedCornerShape(4.dp),
    medium = RoundedCornerShape(8.dp),
    large = RoundedCornerShape(16.dp)
)

7. Implementing Dark Mode with Material 3

Material 3’s ColorScheme API makes it straightforward to implement dark mode. Combine dark and light themes with system settings for a seamless experience:

@Composable
fun MyApp() {
    val darkTheme = isSystemInDarkTheme()
    val colors = if (darkTheme) darkColorScheme() else lightColorScheme()

    MaterialTheme(colorScheme = colors) {
        // Content
    }
}

Best Practice: Test dark mode thoroughly to ensure sufficient contrast and readability.

8. Best Practices for Material 3 Themes in Compose

Consistency: Define a single source of truth for themes to ensure uniformity.
Scalability: Use dynamic colors for future-proofing your app.
Accessibility: Test with high contrast modes and screen readers.
Performance: Avoid recomposing entire themes unnecessarily by using static values where possible.

9. Conclusion

Implementing Material 3 themes in Jetpack Compose empowers developers to craft visually stunning and user-friendly Android apps. By mastering the MaterialTheme, customizing the ColorScheme, and leveraging dynamic colors, you can elevate your app’s design to a professional level.

Take the time to experiment with M3’s features and follow best practices to ensure your app not only looks great but also provides an exceptional user experience.

Ready to start? Update your Compose project today and embrace the power of Material 3 themes!

Android, .NET & ColdFusion Tutorials