Getting started in Angular Chat UI component

31 Jul 20268 minutes to read

This section explains how to create a simple Chat UI component and configure its available functionalities in Angular.

Prerequisites

Requirement Version
Angular 12 and above
Node.js 14.0.0 or above, Recommended: Latest Version

Note: This guide supports recent Angular versions including Angular 21 and standalone components. For detailed compatibility, refer to the Angular version support matrix in the Syncfusion docs.

Angular supported versions

Angular Version Minimum Syncfusion® Angular Chat UI / Interactive Chat Version
Angular v20 29.2.8
Angular v19 26.1.35
Angular v18 25.2.3
Angular v17 23.2.4
Angular v16 21.1.39
Angular v15 20.4.38
Angular v14 20.2.36
Angular v13 19.4.38 and above
Angular v12 19.3.43

Browser support

Browser Supported Versions
Google Chrome, including Android & iOS Latest 2 versions
Mozilla Firefox Latest version
Microsoft Edge Latest 2 versions
Apple Safari, including iOS Latest 2 versions

Setup the Angular application

A straightforward approach to beginning with Angular is to create a new application using the Angular CLI. Install Angular CLI globally with the following command:

npm install -g @angular/cli

Angular 21 Standalone Architecture: Standalone components are the default in Angular 21. This guide uses the modern standalone architecture. If you need more information about the standalone architecture, refer to the Standalone Guide.

Create a new application

With Angular CLI installed, execute this command to generate a new application:

ng new syncfusion-angular-app
  • This command will prompt you to configure settings like enabling Angular routing and choosing a stylesheet format.
? Which stylesheet format would you like to use? (Use arrow keys)
> CSS             [ https://developer.mozilla.org/docs/Web/CSS                     ]
  Sass (SCSS)     [ https://sass-lang.com/documentation/syntax#scss                ]
  Sass (Indented) [ https://sass-lang.com/documentation/syntax#the-indented-syntax ]
  Less            [ http://lesscss.org                                             ]
  • By default, a CSS-based application is created. Use SCSS if required:
ng new syncfusion-angular-app --style=scss
  • During project setup, when prompted for the Server-side rendering (SSR) option, choose the appropriate configuration.

Server_Side_Rendering_Setup

  • Select the required AI tool or ‘none’ if you do not need any AI tool.

AI_Tool_Setup

  • Navigate to your newly created application directory:
cd syncfusion-angular-app

Note: In Angular 19 and below, it uses app.ts, app.component.html, app.component.css etc. In Angular 20+, the CLI generates a simpler structure with src/app/app.ts, app.html, and app.css (no .component. suffixes).

Adding Syncfusion Angular Chat UI package

To install the Chat UI package, use the following command:

npm install @syncfusion/ej2-angular-interactive-chat

Adding CSS reference

Themes for Syncfusion Chat UI components can be applied using CSS files provided through npm theme packages. For available themes, refer to the Themes documentation.

Install the Material 3 theme package using the following command:

npm install @syncfusion/ej2-material3-theme --save

Then add the following CSS reference to the src/styles.css file:

@import "../node_modules/@syncfusion/ej2-material3-theme/styles/chat-ui/index.css";

Adding Chat UI component

Modify the template in the src/app/app.ts file to render the Chat UI component. Add the Angular Chat UI by using the <ejs-chatui> selector in the template section of the app.ts file.

To define the chat content, use the user property to assign an identity to the current user, which is essential for distinguishing the user’s messages from those of other participants.

import { ChatUIModule } from '@syncfusion/ej2-angular-interactive-chat';
import { UserModel } from '@syncfusion/ej2-interactive-chat';

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


@Component({
    imports: [ ChatUIModule ],
    standalone: true,
    selector: 'app-root',
    // specifies the template string for the Chat UI component
    template: `<div id="chatui" ejs-chatui [user]="currentUserModel">
        <e-messages>
            <e-message text="Hi Michale, are we on track for the deadline?" [author]="currentUserModel"></e-message>
            <e-message text="Yes, the design phase is complete." [author]="michaleUserModel"></e-message>
            <e-message text="I’ll review it and send feedback by today." [author]="currentUserModel"></e-message>
        </e-messages>
    </div>`
})

export class App {
    public currentUserModel: UserModel = { user: 'Albert', id: 'user1' };
    public michaleUserModel: UserModel = { user: 'Michale Suyama', id: 'user2' };
}
import { bootstrapApplication } from '@angular/platform-browser';
import { App } from './app.app';
bootstrapApplication(App).catch((err) => console.error(err));

Run the application

After completing the configuration required to render a basic Chat UI, run the following command to display the output in your default browser.

ng serve

Registering your Syncfusion license

Before using Syncfusion components, generate a license key from the Syncfusion License Dashboard and register it.

Open the main.ts file and add the following code:

import { registerLicense } from '@syncfusion/ej2-base';
registerLicense('YOUR_LICENSE_KEY');

Note: A valid Syncfusion license is required for production use. If a valid license is not registered, a trial license warning message will be displayed when the application runs.

Production build

To create an optimized production build, run:

ng build

This command compiles the application and generates the production-ready files in the dist/ directory.

To preview the production build locally, run:

npx http-server dist

Then open the URL displayed in the terminal.

Troubleshooting

  • Chat UI styles are not applied: Ensure the required Syncfusion theme CSS is imported in src/styles.css.
  • Trial license warning message: Register a valid Syncfusion license key using the registerLicense() method from @syncfusion/ej2-base.

  • Port 4200 is already in use: Stop the conflicting process or run the application on a different port:

    ng serve --port 3000