How to Add Spacing Between Cards in Bold Reports Designer
In Bold Reports Designer, card-based layouts are a popular design choice for presenting grouped data in a visually appealing format. However, when multiple cards are displayed close together, the layout can appear cluttered and hard to read. To improve clarity and presentation, you can insert spacing between cards by modifying the table structure and configuring pagination settings.
This article walks through the steps to add spacing by modifying the table structure and configuring pagination settings.
Steps to Add Spacing Between Cards
Step 1: Add a Row for Spacing:
- Select the table containing the card layout in your report.
- Right-click on a row in the table and choose Insert Row > Inside Group - Below to add a new row within the group. This row will act as a spacer between cards.
- In the Properties panel under Position, adjust the height of the inserted row to control the spacing.
- Ensure the newly added row is empty or contains no data-bound elements to serve as a blank spacer.
- Optionally, set the row’s BackgroundColor to transparent or match the report’s background for a seamless look (Properties > Background > Color).
- If the cards are part of a repeating group, verify that the row is added within the group to apply spacing between each card instance.
- If the spacing is too large or small, fine-tune the row height and preview the report again.
Step 2: Set the RowsPerPage Property for the Cards:
- Set the RowsPerPage value based on the number of cards you want to display per page (e.g., 4 cards per page for a grid layout). This ensures proper pagination and consistent spacing across pages.
- If pagination is not required, you can leave this property unset or adjust it based on your layout needs.
For more details, refer to the article: How to Limit the Number of Rows Per Page in Bold Reports
Step 3: Validate the Changes
Preview before Adding Spacing between Cards
- Cards appear tightly packed with no visual separation therefore the layout may feel cluttered and harder to scan visually.
- Pagination may not be optimized, leading to inconsistent card distribution across pages.
Preview After Adding Spacing between Cards
- A visible space appears between each card, enhancing readability. The overall layout becomes cleaner and more professional.
- Cards are evenly distributed across pages when RowsPerPage is configured.
Conclusion
Adding spacing between cards in Bold Reports RDL layouts is a simple yet effective way to enhance the visual clarity of your reports. By inserting spacer rows and configuring pagination, you can create layouts that are both aesthetically pleasing and easy to navigate. These improvements are especially useful in dashboards, summaries, and grouped data presentations.
You can download the sample report here.
