A toggle is a pin that is passed through a hole or loop to fasten it. In software applications, toggles enable users to turn features on or off. They are also often used as a circuit breaker for the application by temporarily disabling non-essential features during high latency periods.

Toggles are a great tool for continuous delivery because they allow teams to experiment with new functionality before rolling it out to the entire user base. They can be especially useful for testing with a small, targeted segment of users before a larger rollout, as they let you avoid exposing the entire population to a bugged feature and potentially making the problem worse.

When designing toggles, it’s important to keep in mind that they must be easy for users to read and understand. This requires a clear and simple label, and an appropriate visual design (such as a more saturated or pronounced color for the active state). When selecting a color, it is also essential to consider societal and cultural differences. For example, using a red toggle for an active state can be counterintuitive to some users who associate this color with stop signs or traffic lights.

As you’re designing your toggle, remember that it should deliver immediate results to the user without them having to click a Save or Submit button to apply the change. This is why toggles are sometimes better suited to settings that have a default value, than to form fields where the user must provide information in order to apply the change.