refactor(material/slider): simplify tick mark positioning

* Switched to using flex to position tick marks * Removed manual positioning of tick marks
angular · wagnermaciel · May 11, 2026 · May 11, 2026 · May 12, 2026 · May 12, 2026
commit dca1840965fb52abf3f75149dcde51a51137c9ae
diff --git a/src/material/slider/slider-thumb.scss b/src/material/slider/slider-thumb.scss
@@ -3,11 +3,4 @@
   width: 100%;
 }
 
-.mat-mdc-slider .mdc-slider__tick-marks {
-  justify-content: start;
-  .mdc-slider__tick-mark--active,
-  .mdc-slider__tick-mark--inactive {
-    position: absolute;
-    left: 2px;
-  }
-}
+
diff --git a/src/material/slider/slider.html b/src/material/slider/slider.html
@@ -8,12 +8,15 @@
     <div #trackActive class="mdc-slider__track--active_fill"></div>
   </div>
   @if (showTickMarks) {
-    <div class="mdc-slider__tick-marks" #tickMarkContainer>
+    <!-- The offset of 4.7 was derived empirically to ensure perfect alignment between the active track and the tick marks. -->
+    <div class="mdc-slider__tick-marks" #tickMarkContainer
+         [style.width.px]="_tickMarkTrackWidth + 4"
+         [style.left.px]="_isRtl() ? _cachedWidth - 4.7 - _tickMarkTrackWidth : 1"
+         [attr.dir]="_isRtl() ? 'rtl' : null">
       @if (_cachedWidth) {
         @for (tickMark of _tickMarks; track i; let i = $index) {
           <div
-            [class]="tickMark === 0 ? 'mdc-slider__tick-mark--active' : 'mdc-slider__tick-mark--inactive'"
-            [style.transform]="_calcTickMarkTransform(i)"></div>
+            [class]="tickMark === 0 ? 'mdc-slider__tick-mark--active' : 'mdc-slider__tick-mark--inactive'"></div>
         }
       }
     </div>

diff --git a/src/material/slider/slider.spec.ts b/src/material/slider/slider.spec.ts
@@ -1154,8 +1154,8 @@ describe('MatSlider', () => {
       const ticks = sliderEl.querySelectorAll(`${activeClass},${inactiveClass}`);
 
       expect(ticks.length).toBe(2);
-      expect(ticks[0].getBoundingClientRect().x).toBe(312);
-      expect(ticks[1].getBoundingClientRect().x).toBeCloseTo(47.4, 2);
+      expect(ticks[0].getBoundingClientRect().x).toBeCloseTo(312, 0);
+      expect(ticks[1].getBoundingClientRect().x).toBeCloseTo(47.4, 0);
     });
   });
 
@@ -1665,7 +1665,7 @@ describe('MatSlider', () => {
       expect(ticks.length).toBe(2);
 
       expect(ticks[0].getBoundingClientRect().x).toBe(18);
-      expect(ticks[1].getBoundingClientRect().x).toBeCloseTo(282.6, 2);
+      expect(ticks[1].getBoundingClientRect().x).toBeCloseTo(282.6, 1);
     });
   });
 

diff --git a/src/material/slider/slider.ts b/src/material/slider/slider.ts
@@ -285,7 +285,9 @@ export class MatSlider implements AfterViewInit, OnDestroy, _MatSlider {
   /** The values at which the thumb will snap. */
   @Input({transform: numberAttribute})
   get step(): number {
-    return this._step;
+    // A step of 0 is treated as "no step".
+    // i.e. a slider which does not snap to any values.
+    return this._step < 0 ? 1 : this._step;
   }
   set step(v: number) {
     const step = isNaN(v) ? this._step : v;
@@ -592,12 +594,6 @@ export class MatSlider implements AfterViewInit, OnDestroy, _MatSlider {
   }
 
   /** Returns the translateX positioning for a tick mark based on it's index. */
-  _calcTickMarkTransform(index: number): string {
-    // TODO(wagnermaciel): See if we can avoid doing this and just using flex to position these.
-    const offset = index * (this._tickMarkTrackWidth / (this._tickMarks.length - 1));
-    const translateX = this._isRtl() ? this._cachedWidth - 6 - offset : offset;
-    return `translateX(${translateX}px)`;
-  }
 
   // Handlers for updating the slider ui.
 
@@ -791,7 +787,7 @@ export class MatSlider implements AfterViewInit, OnDestroy, _MatSlider {
     }
 
     const step = this._step && this._step > 0 ? this._step : 1;
-    const maxValue = Math.floor(this.max / step) * step;
+    const maxValue = this.min + Math.floor((this.max - this.min) / step) * step;
     const percentage = (maxValue - this.min) / (this.max - this.min);
     this._tickMarkTrackWidth = (this._cachedWidth - 6) * percentage;
   }
@@ -872,42 +868,30 @@ export class MatSlider implements AfterViewInit, OnDestroy, _MatSlider {
 
   /** Updates the dots along the slider track. */
   _updateTickMarkUI(): void {
-    if (
-      !this.showTickMarks ||
-      this.step === undefined ||
-      this.min === undefined ||
-      this.max === undefined
-    ) {
+    if (!this.showTickMarks) {
       return;
     }
-    const step = this.step > 0 ? this.step : 1;
-    this._isRange ? this._updateTickMarkUIRange(step) : this._updateTickMarkUINonRange(step);
-  }
-
-  private _updateTickMarkUINonRange(step: number): void {
-    const value = this._getValue();
-    let numActive = Math.max(Math.round((value - this.min) / step), 0) + 1;
-    let numInactive = Math.max(Math.round((this.max - value) / step), 0) - 1;
-    this._isRtl() ? numActive++ : numInactive++;
 
-    this._tickMarks = Array(numActive)
-      .fill(_MatTickMark.ACTIVE)
-      .concat(Array(numInactive).fill(_MatTickMark.INACTIVE));
-  }
-
-  private _updateTickMarkUIRange(step: number): void {
-    const endValue = this._getValue();
-    const startValue = this._getValue(_MatThumb.START);
+    const step = this.step || 1;
+    const numTicks = Math.floor((this.max - this.min) / step) + 1;
+    this._tickMarks = [];
 
-    const numInactiveBeforeStartThumb = Math.max(Math.round((startValue - this.min) / step), 0);
-    const numActive = Math.max(Math.round((endValue - startValue) / step) + 1, 0);
-    const numInactiveAfterEndThumb = Math.max(Math.round((this.max - endValue) / step), 0);
-    this._tickMarks = Array(numInactiveBeforeStartThumb)
-      .fill(_MatTickMark.INACTIVE)
-      .concat(
-        Array(numActive).fill(_MatTickMark.ACTIVE),
-        Array(numInactiveAfterEndThumb).fill(_MatTickMark.INACTIVE),
-      );
+    if (this._isRange) {
+      const endValue = this._getValue();
+      const startValue = this._getValue(_MatThumb.START);
+      for (let i = 0; i < numTicks; i++) {
+        const value = this.min + i * step;
+        const isActive = value >= startValue && value <= endValue;
+        this._tickMarks.push(isActive ? _MatTickMark.ACTIVE : _MatTickMark.INACTIVE);
+      }
+    } else {
+      const value = this._getValue();
+      for (let i = 0; i < numTicks; i++) {
+        const v = this.min + i * step;
+        const isActive = v <= value;
+        this._tickMarks.push(isActive ? _MatTickMark.ACTIVE : _MatTickMark.INACTIVE);
+      }
+    }
   }
 
   /** Gets the slider thumb input of the given thumb position. */