List View Formatting - Flex behavior on rowFormatter not functioning row to row

[a-monkey-smith]

What type of issue is this?

Question

What SharePoint development model, framework, SDK or API is this about?

Declarative list formatting

Target SharePoint environment

SharePoint Online

What browser(s) / client(s) have you tested

• 💥 Internet Explorer
• 💥 Microsoft Edge
• 💥 Google Chrome
• 💥 FireFox
• 💥 Safari
• mobile (iOS/iPadOS)
• mobile (Android)
• not applicable
• other (enter in the "Additional environment details" area below)

Additional environment details

No response

Issue description

New list updates broke this formatting sample among others. The flex box behavior is no longer functioning between items. So the items stack rows instead of flexing to the right. See photo. Obviously, we can figure out something with tile views, but I'm wondering if it's necessary. Is the intended endpoint that the float is no longer going to work this way? Or do we just need to remain patient?

[aaclage]

Dear Andy Smith (@a-monkey-smith),

Also face the same type of issue, What i have done was to replace the List View formatting to be used in "View" > create View Gallery, it's not perfect, but could do the job. You will need to manage the height and width of the card.

[MissHerku]

Would be great with some insight on this. If it's intentional I am surprised by the lack of communication, since almost every single sample online uses the list view, when doing tile-like formatting. So a lot of formatting must be broken...

Personally I have switched all my views to the tile view (At least after they fixed this bug), but it has required some modification as the json behaves a bit different within the two. I did it because I assumed that the change is intentional and that they're cleaning up the schema. It does kind of make sense that you choose between list and tile and then that defines how items are stacked.

[Ajdamec]

I have the same problem, in dev tools it shows me above my code element <\cf-view>\

[tpodugu-ms]

Tetsuya Kawahara (@tecchan1107) Adam Horár (@Ajdamec) Andy Smith (@a-monkey-smith)

Just to provide some clarity — certain CSS properties, such as float, may no longer be supported in Microsoft Lists custom formatting. We recommend using Gallery View as a more stable alternative.

The public documentation reflecting this update is currently in progress and is expected to be published within 1-2 weeks.

[Ashlesha-MSFT]

Hello Andy Smith (@a-monkey-smith),
Thank you for bringing this issue to our attention. We will look into it and get back to you shortly.

[Ashlesha-MSFT]

Andy Smith (@a-monkey-smith),
we recommend using Gallery View, which offers greater flexibility and better support for modern formatting needs.

[Ashlesha-MSFT]

Andy Smith (@a-monkey-smith) ,
If the issue is resolved on your end, can we go ahead and close the issue?

[Ashlesha-MSFT]

Thank you everyone for your input and confirmations on this behavior.

Based on the latest guidance and documentation updates, this change is intentional — float and certain legacy CSS behaviors are no longer supported in list view formatting. The recommended and fully supported approach is to use Gallery View with a custom formatter, as outlined here:

docs/declarative-customization/view-gallery-formatting.md

The gallery view supports modern layout properties (flex, fillHorizontally, etc.) and provides more stable rendering across browsers and form factors.

I’m marking this issue as resolved since the documentation now reflects the updated behavior and supported schema.

Thanks again to everyone who contributed and helped clarify this change!