Is it ok not to have a button for a search box?

Question

I was wondering if it was ever ok not to have a submit button (Ok, Go or Search for example) near a search box in Web pages.

I know that hitting enter is much faster and that it will perform the search.

However, is it an accepted convention for the average non tech savvy user or only for the tech community?

For example, the search box here at stackoverflow doesn't have a submit button, but I don't think anyone is complaining (and I sure don't).

On the other hand, someone suggested using Google as an example: would people notice if the buttons were removed?

I just started reading Don't Make Me Think by Steve Krug and he mentions that every search box should have something that tells me I can click on it to launch the search.

Your thoughts?

Premonition

Except that it is making people think. :P – Ceruse

@EBGreen: No, no, it's okay for us to think, as long as we don't make Steve Krug think. :) – Shelter

SO is a niche of technical people, those who're comfortable with the web. if you want to see how a search box for a wide audience is handled, check google. – Naturopathy

Ohh...well that alright then. – Ceruse

for the record I can see anything about submit on enter here. w3.org/TR/html401/interact/forms.html – Slyviasm

I often find it very convenient to select a term on a page, drag & drop it onto the search box and click the submit button, all with the mouse. It probably depends on the site very much. I do that often (yet not always) on Wikipedia, for instance, but, as a different example, I do not remember myself ever wanting to do so on SO, where I use the keyboard quite intensively. – Dacha

On UX: Do you need a search button with a search box? – Hyperbole

Answer 1

Why you should have a button:

• Not everyone knows they can hit enter, so you are leaving some less savvy people out in the cold.
• Some devices like phones and consoles may not have a way to submit without a button. The PC based browser is still dominant but don't assume it is the only way people access your site.

You may not have a button if (both conditions must be satisfied):

• Your audience is tech savvy (as on SO)
• You provide a visual cue that the search box actually is a search box
  • By adding text inside it mentioning it should be used to search
  • By adding an icon inside the box

Generally I would think that hitting enter is a shortcut to submit rather than the primary means.

Slyviasm

What console doesn't provide a way to "enter" ie. say "I am done with this field" My Wii certainly does. I can't think of a phone that doesn't provide this either. – Ceruse

I'm not saying this isn't a valid concern. I'm just trying to define how far to the edge this case is. – Ceruse

I've seen many, many users who don't know they can press Enter on the web any more than they know they can press Ctrl+NumPadPlus to make all columns auto-fit in Windows Explorer. My mum (and many other mums) would be flummoxed without a button to click. – Belfast

There is a difference between saying I am finished with this field and that I want to submit the form. Hitting enter in a text field is explicitly submitting the form. Pressing tab is saying "I am done with this field" – Slyviasm

@EBGreen: The case is quite near the middle if you are developing a regular old web page for consumption by the general population, which is the audience Steve Krug is concerned with in his book. StackOverflow itself is the edge case. ;) – Shelter

@Jeremy - That is true. I still would like to know how prevalent this is. As I say, I cannot think of any device that does not have the equivalent of "enter". Not saying they don't exist, just that I can't think of them. – Ceruse

@Adam - So I think the question needs clarification then. Is the question about the book or SO. I think the answer is different depending. – Ceruse

@Belfast - That is an issue with audience. This answer is an issue with technology. – Ceruse

@Ceruse the question is about search boxes on the Web in general – Premonition

In that case I would say that including SO as an example is counter productive. – Ceruse

@Ceruse yes but it shows that it's an accepted convention for at least a portion of the population. What I'm interested in is the other portion, I've included a more general example for the average user in my question. – Premonition

I would say that for the more general audience you need the button. As I said in my answer. :) – Ceruse

Anyone care submitting a community answer summing all this up? I think the consensus is to have a button when designing for a general audience or when the site could be used on other devices while not having one on a site like SO is ok. – Premonition

Answer 2

Whether or not a button is required depends on the audience. Here are issues to consider:

• Technically oriented users may not need a button and will usually not have to think about hitting enter to submit a search request.
• Conversely non-technical people may not even know it is possible to hit enter to submit a search request. So no amount of thinking might work for them.
• There may be technology limitations that require a button. If you expect your audience to be browsing your form from a platform that does not provide an implicit way to submit a search request then you may need to provide an explicit button.

So essentially you need to know your audiences and determine where the edge cases lie and how critical they are. Using SO as an example, it is directed at technical users so an explicit button probably isn't required. However for a site like google where you need to be accessible to every single user using every possible platform, a clear explicit search button is a must.

Ceruse

Answer 3

I think it depends on your target market. If you are StackOverflow it's not too hard too think they know how to use a browser (using a back button on a browser to navigate is a similair design convention) and pressing Enter = submit for search.

However if your target market is say mechanics (no offence to mechanics) that don't use a browser/computer often then look at how Google does it (and they target the broadest scope) - they have a button to submit.

There is a middle ground you could look at, which is have a water mark like StackOverflow which tells users "Click here, type in search values and press enter to search" - or something like that (hopefully shorter) where you actually catering for users of all levels.

Rider

Yes, I think it's a must that the search box at least looks like a search box with some text implying that you can search by using it. – Premonition

Answer 4

"Don't Make Me Think" - so gimme a button.

There will always be someone using the application for the first time; don't make them think either. And your screen shouldn't be so fussy that it is impossible to fit the button in comfortably - that would indicate a different set of problems.

Thorax

That's pretty much the question, does not having a button make people think? It doesn't make me think but I'm hardly the average user. – Premonition

But are you the average SO user? I think that is the proper question. – Ceruse

I assume that if the question needs to be asked, then the target population is not sufficiently guaranteed to be tech-aware that the button is necessary. Of course, there's also a presumption that the search will work well - which is not necessarily the case with SO. – Thorax

@Crossbrowser - I'm just saying that I think you are the average SO user. In other words I think the average SO user does not have to think to hit enter in a search field. So the SO search is fine the way it is. Just my opinion of course. – Ceruse

@Ceruse oh yes I think that too, I don't think the search box at SO needs to be changed. – Premonition

Answer 5

I think for a non-tech person some sort of submit button is needed. Think about people who don't use computers very much. They often click all of the buttons needed instead of hitting enter because they don't realize enter does the same thing. My opinion...if it isn't for tech guys only then it should be as simple as possible.

Hakan

Answer 6

It depends on your audience. Steve's audience is everybody. Majority of which are so far from IT you'd need a telescope to see them. If your auditory is a single user, you might skip all clues: button (with or w/o names), in-box label.

For my own login window I leave two fields: no labels, no buttons, no javascript to tell you which one is which. But that's not a public project.

Shrill

Answer 7

A while ago there was an article on Smashing Magazine about this. There were some alternatives like a looking glass or another icon, but basically there is always a button, or something which represents it.

Freund

Answer 8

Having a button makes it clearer that the text field is a search field. Merely having the text field itself indicate this in its contents is unsufficient.

Concealment

Answer 9

Although it has been so many years since this question has been made, I feel there needs to be an updated answer to it since it' still getting many hits. Many people have already raised the point of non tech-savy users not realising the functionality of pressing enter in order to submit sth whether it's a search query or a form.

It is great to think of the diversity of the people using our products and therefore I would expand this to people wit disabilites whether permanent, temporary or situational ones. That leaves us with every single one of us. Designing with accessibility in mind can only make interfaces easier to use if it comes hand in hand with usability.

Have been said that having a submit button as an extra way of submitting a form doesn't harm the experience and accommodates the needs of many different cases eg, people who use speech recognition and can say "press search button" or a screen reader user who listens and understands clearly the functionality according to the button label

And yes, it may not be a mandatory feature according to WCAG (web content accessibility guidelines) but it is connected to many of them e.g.

• 2.1.1: Keyboard (Level A)
• 2.4.7: Focus Visible (Level AA)
• 3.3.2: Labels or Instructions

Gormand