Migrating from ion-slides to Swiper.js

Looking for ion-slides?

ion-slides was deprecated in v6.0.0 and removed in v7.0.0. We recommend using the Swiper.js library directly. The migration process is detailed below.

We recommend Swiper.js if you need a modern touch slider component. Swiper 9 introduced Swiper Element as a replacement for its Angular component, so this guide will go over how to get Swiper Element set up in your Ionic Framework application. It will also go over any migration information you may need to move from ion-slides to Swiper Element.

Getting Started

First, update to the latest version of Ionic:

npm install @ionic/angular@latest

Once that is done, install the Swiper dependency in your project:

npm install swiper@latest

Next, we need to add the CUSTOM_ELEMENTS_SCHEMA, which tells Angular that we will be using custom elements. This can be done in either app.module.ts, or the module file for the component where you will be using Swiper.

import { CUSTOM_ELEMENTS_SCHEMA } from '@angular/core';

@NgModule({
  schemas: [..., CUSTOM_ELEMENTS_SCHEMA]
});
...

Finally, we need to call Swiper's register function to globally register Swiper's custom elements. This should only be done once, so place it in app.component.ts.

import { register } from 'swiper/element/bundle';

register();

@Component({
  ...
})
...

From there, we just have to replace ion-slides elements with swiper-container and ion-slide elements with swiper-slide. Note that these custom elements do not need to be imported, as calling register tells Angular about them on its own.

<swiper-container>
  <swiper-slide>Slide 1</swiper-slide>
  <swiper-slide>Slide 2</swiper-slide>
  <swiper-slide>Slide 3</swiper-slide>
</swiper-container>

Bundled vs. Core Versions

By default, make sure you import the register function from swiper/element/bundle. This uses the bundled version of Swiper, which automatically includes all modules and stylesheets needed to run Swiper's various features.

If you would like to use the Core version instead, which does not include additional modules automatically, see https://swiperjs.com/element#core-version-and-modules. The rest of this migration guide will assume you are using the bundled version.

Swiping with Style

To migrate over your CSS, first update your selectors to target the new custom elements instead:

ion-slides Selector	Swiper Selector
ion-slides	swiper-container
ion-slide	swiper-slide

If you were using the CSS custom properties found on ion-slides, below is a list of corresponding properties used in Swiper.

ion-slides CSS property	swiper-container CSS property
--bullet-background	--swiper-pagination-bullet-inactive-color
--bullet-background-active	--swiper-pagination-color
--progress-bar-background	--swiper-pagination-progressbar-bg-color
--progress-bar-background-active	--swiper-pagination-color
--scroll-bar-background	--swiper-scrollbar-bg-color
--scroll-bar-background-active	--swiper-scrollbar-drag-bg-color

For additional custom CSS, because Swiper Element uses Shadow DOM encapsulation, styles will need to be injected into the Shadow DOM scope. See https://swiperjs.com/element#injecting-styles for instructions.

Additional ion-slides Styles

The ion-slides component had additional styling that helped create a native look and feel. These styles are not required to use Swiper.js with Ionic, but if you would like to maintain the look of ion-slides as closely as possible, add the following CSS to your global.scss:

swiper-container {
  --swiper-pagination-bullet-inactive-color: var(--ion-color-step-200, #cccccc);
  --swiper-pagination-color: var(--ion-color-primary, #3880ff);
  --swiper-pagination-progressbar-bg-color: rgba(var(--ion-text-color-rgb, 0, 0, 0), 0.25);
  --swiper-scrollbar-bg-color: rgba(var(--ion-text-color-rgb, 0, 0, 0), 0.1);
  --swiper-scrollbar-drag-bg-color: rgba(var(--ion-text-color-rgb, 0, 0, 0), 0.5);
}

swiper-slide {
  display: flex;
  position: relative;

  flex-direction: column;
  flex-shrink: 0;
  align-items: center;
  justify-content: center;

  width: 100%;
  height: 100%;

  font-size: 18px;

  text-align: center;
  box-sizing: border-box;
}

swiper-slide img {
  width: auto;
  max-width: 100%;
  height: auto;
  max-height: 100%;
}

The IonicSlides Module

With ion-slides, Ionic automatically customized dozens of Swiper properties. This resulted in an experience that felt smooth when swiping on mobile devices. We recommend using the IonicSlides module to ensure that these properties are also set when using Swiper directly. However, using this module is not required to use Swiper.js in Ionic.

It is recommended to review the properties set by IonicSlides and determine which ones you would like to customize.

We can install the IonicSlides module by importing it from @ionic/angular and passing it to the modules property of swiper-container as an array:

// home.page.ts

import { IonicSlides } from '@ionic/angular';

@Component({
  ...
})
export class HomePage {
  swiperModules = [IonicSlides];
}

<!-- home.page.html -->

<swiper-container [modules]="swiperModules"> ... </swiper-container>

note

If you are using the Core version of Swiper and have installed additional modules, ensure that IonicSlides is the last module in the array. This will let it automatically customize the settings of modules such as Pagination, Scrollbar, Zoom, and more.

Properties

Swiper options should be provided as individual properties directly on the <swiper-container> component.

Let's say in an app with ion-slides we had the slidesPerView and loop options set:

<ion-slides [options]="{ slidesPerView: 3, loop: true }">
  <ion-slide>Slide 1</ion-slide>
  <ion-slide>Slide 3</ion-slide>
  <ion-slide>Slide 3</ion-slide>
</ion-slides>

To set these options as properties directly on <swiper-container> we would do the following:

<swiper-container [slidesPerView]="3" [loop]="true">
  <swiper-slide>Slide 1</swiper-slide>
  <swiper-slide>Slide 2</swiper-slide>
  <swiper-slide>Slide 3</swiper-slide>
</swiper-container>

Below is a full list of property changes when going from ion-slides to Swiper Element:

Name	Notes
options	Set each option as a property directly on the <swiper-container> component.
mode	For different styles based upon the mode, you can target the slides with .ios swiper-container or .md swiper-container in your CSS.
pager	Use the pagination property instead.

note

All properties available in Swiper Element can be found at https://swiperjs.com/swiper-api#parameters.

Events

Since the swiper-container component is not provided by Ionic Framework, event names will not have an ionSlide prefix to them. Additionally, all event names should be lowercase instead of camelCase.

Let's say in an app with ion-slides we used the ionSlideDidChange event:

<ion-slides (ionSlideDidChange)="onSlideChange()">
  <ion-slide>Slide 1</ion-slide>
  <ion-slide>Slide 3</ion-slide>
  <ion-slide>Slide 3</ion-slide>
</ion-slides>

To migrate, we would change the name of the event to slidechange:

<swiper-container (slidechange)="onSlideChange()">
  <swiper-slide>Slide 1</swiper-slide>
  <swiper-slide>Slide 2</swiper-slide>
  <swiper-slide>Slide 3</swiper-slide>
</swiper-container>

Below is a full list of event name changes when going from ion-slides to Swiper Angular:

ion-slides Event	Swiper Event
ionSlideWillChange	slidechangetransitionstart
ionSlideDidChange	slidechangetransitionend
ionSlideDoubleTap	doubletap
ionSlideDrag	slidermove
ionSlideNextStart	slidenexttransitionstart
ionSlideNextEnd	slidenexttransitionend
ionSlidePrevStart	slideprevtransitionstart
ionSlidePrevEnd	slideprevtransitionend
ionSlideReachStart	reachbeginning
ionSlideReachEnd	reachend
ionSlideTap	tap
ionSlideTouchStart	touchstart
ionSlideTouchEnd	touchend
ionSlideTransitionStart	transitionstart
ionSlideTransitionEnd	transitionend
ionSlidesDidLoad	init

note

All events available in Swiper Element can be found at https://swiperjs.com/swiper-api#events.

Methods

Most methods have been removed in favor of directly accessing the properties of the Swiper instance. To access the Swiper instance, first get a reference to the <swiper-container> element (such as through ViewChild), then access its swiper prop:

<!-- slides.component.html -->

<swiper-container #swiper>
  <swiper-slide>Slide 1</swiper-slide>
  <swiper-slide>Slide 2</swiper-slide>
  <swiper-slide>Slide 3</swiper-slide>
</swiper-container>

// slides.component.ts

import { ..., ElementRef, ViewChild } from '@angular/core';

@Component({
  ...
})
export class SlidesExample {
  @ViewChild('swiper')
  swiperRef: ElementRef | undefined;

  logActiveIndex() {
    console.log(this.swiperRef?.nativeElement.swiper.activeIndex);
  }
}

Below is a full list of method changes when going from ion-slides to Swiper Element:

ion-slides Method	Notes
getActiveIndex()	Use the activeIndex property instead.
getPreviousIndex()	Use the previousIndex property instead.
getSwiper()	Get a reference to the Swiper instance using the swiper prop. See example above.
isBeginning()	Use the isBeginning property instead.
isEnd()	Use the isEnd property instead.
length()	Use the slides property instead. (i.e swiper.slides.length)
lockSwipeToNext()	Use the allowSlidesNext property instead.
lockSwipeToPrev()	Use the allowSlidePrev property instead.
lockSwipes()	Use the allowSlideNext, allowSlidePrev, and allowTouchMove properties instead.
startAutoplay()	Use the autoplay property instead.
stopAutoplay()	Use the autoplay property instead.

note

All methods and properties available on the Swiper instance can be found at https://swiperjs.com/swiper-api#methods-and-properties.

Effects

Effects such as Cube or Fade can be used in Swiper Element with no additional imports, as long as you are using the bundled version of Swiper. For example, the below code will cause the slides to have a flip transition effect:

<swiper-container effect="flip"> ... </swiper-container>

note

For more information on effects in Swiper, please see https://swiperjs.com/swiper-api#fade-effect.

Wrap Up

Now that you have Swiper installed, there is a whole set of new Swiper features for you to enjoy. We recommend starting with the Swiper Element documentation and then referencing the Swiper API docs.

FAQ

Where can I find an example of this migration?

You can find a sample app with ion-slides and the equivalent Swiper usage at https://github.com/ionic-team/slides-migration-samples.

Where can I get help with this migration?

If you are running into issues with the migration, please create a post on the Ionic Forum.

Where do I file bug reports?

Before opening an issue, please consider creating a post on the Swiper Discussion Board or the Ionic Forum to see if your issue can be resolved by the community.

If you are running into problems with the Swiper library, new bugs should be filed on the Swiper repo: https://github.com/nolimits4web/swiper/issues

If you are running into problems with the IonicSlides module, new bugs should be filed on the Ionic Framework repo: https://github.com/ionic-team/ionic-framework/issues