---
id: community-lemmy-design-en
service: Lemmy
website: https://join-lemmy.org
category: community
document: DESIGN.MD
source_prompt: community-lemmy-representative-en
language: en
generated: 2026-07-18
---

# Lemmy DESIGN.MD

> Use this DESIGN.MD as the persistent design standard before building a Communities site or app. It can be given directly to designers, frontend engineers, AI builders, and coding agents. Lemmy is an information-architecture reference only.

## Purpose

- Lemmy: https://join-lemmy.org
- Communities: discussion and accumulated knowledge
- posts, comments, and channels
- context, reputation, and moderation
- community

## Design brief

Create an original product that supports discussion and accumulated knowledge. Make posts, comments, and channels easy to scan, compare, and act on. Treat context, reputation, and moderation as a primary design constraint. Starting direction: social feed · functional and fast · high information density · compose or discovery rail -> feed -> relationship or recommendation panel · #00BC8C · Lemmy.

## Public interface design analysis

- Reference basis: These are recurring visual and structural patterns from public landing screens and representative task flows. Verify the current live capture because services change over time.
- Interface archetype: social feed
- Tone and manner: functional and fast
- Information density: high
- Color strategy: restrained brand accents on neutral surfaces (#00BC8C)
- Navigation model: three-column contextual navigation
- Structural sequence: compose or discovery rail -> feed -> relationship or recommendation panel
- Reusable patterns: channel nav, discussion card, reputation signal, comment summary, moderation state
- Independent application rule: Use the order and decision principles only. Do not reproduce logos, copy, imagery, icons, or proprietary screen composition.

## Screen architecture

- Global navigation with clear current location and account state
- Overview that exposes the next important action for posts, comments, and channels
- Search, filter, sort, or segmented views only where they reduce decision cost
- Detail view that keeps context, status, evidence, and the primary action together
- Persistent help, recovery, privacy, and safety access for context, reputation, and moderation

## Design tokens

```css
:root {
  --color-primary: #00BC8C;
  --color-ink: #17201D;
  --color-canvas: #F6F8F7;
  --color-surface: #FFFFFF;
  --color-tint: #00BC8C22;
  --color-danger: #DC2626;
  --radius-control: 6px;
  --radius-card: 8px;
  --space-1: 4px; --space-2: 8px; --space-3: 12px;
  --space-4: 16px; --space-6: 24px; --space-8: 32px;
  --content-reading: 720px;
  --content-wide: 1280px;
}
```

## Component specifications

- Navigation: active, hover, focus, disabled, and collapsed states
- Cards and rows: stable dimensions, realistic content, metadata hierarchy, and complete click targets
- Forms: labels, descriptions, validation, error summary, progress, and recovery
- Actions: one clear primary action per region; icon buttons require accessible names and tooltips
- Feedback: inline status, toast, banner, skeleton, progress, confirmation, and destructive-action dialog

## State design

For every data-driven region, define loading, empty, partial-data, stale, error, offline, permission-denied, disabled, saving, and success states. Keep layout dimensions stable so state changes do not shift surrounding content.

## Responsive rules

- 360px: one primary column, no horizontal page scroll, 44px touch targets
- 768px: preserve context with two panes only when each pane remains readable
- 1280px and above: constrain reading width and use extra space for comparison or persistent context
- Never scale type with viewport width; wrap long labels and localize for text expansion

## Accessibility requirements

- Semantic landmarks and heading order
- Complete keyboard operation with visible focus
- WCAG AA contrast in all states
- Programmatic labels, descriptions, errors, and live regions
- 200% zoom, reduced motion, forced colors, and screen-reader verification

## Design instruction for AI builders

```text
Design an original Communities interface for [Product name]. Its goal is discussion and accumulated knowledge; its core objects are posts, comments, and channels; its critical risk is context, reputation, and moderation. Use the token system and screen rules in this document. Specify realistic content, component contracts, all data states, responsive behavior, accessibility, and acceptance criteria. Do not copy Lemmy's logo, proprietary copy, images, or exact layout.
```

## Completion checklist

- [ ] The critical path for discussion and accumulated knowledge is obvious without explanation
- [ ] posts, comments, and channels have clear hierarchy, status, and actions
- [ ] context, reputation, and moderation has prevention and recovery
- [ ] Mobile, tablet, desktop, keyboard, screen reader, zoom, and reduced motion are verified
- [ ] Loading, empty, error, offline, partial, permission, and success states are complete
- [ ] No protected brand asset or pixel-level layout from Lemmy is reproduced