CopilotKit

CopilotSidebar

Drop-in collapsible sidebar chat that wraps your main content.


"""Default LangGraph agent — neutral "helpful, concise assistant".This is the fallthrough graph for demos that don't require anything morespecialized. Cells that need tailored behavior (chart viz, weather-only,etc.) should have their own dedicated graph under `src/agents/` andexplicit wiring in the CopilotKit route."""from langchain.agents import create_agentfrom langchain_openai import ChatOpenAIfrom copilotkit import CopilotKitMiddlewaregraph = create_agent(    model=ChatOpenAI(model="gpt-5.4"),    tools=[],    middleware=[CopilotKitMiddleware()],    system_prompt="You are a helpful, concise assistant.",)

What is this?#

<CopilotSidebar> is a prebuilt chat surface that docks to the side of your app. It wraps your main content so the chat can slide out on demand, making it a good fit for in-app copilots that need to stay accessible without taking over the entire viewport.

When should I use this?#

Use the sidebar when you want:

  • A persistent, collapsible chat attached to your app shell
  • Chat to live alongside your main content rather than on top of it
  • A launcher the user can toggle without losing their place

For a floating bubble that overlays content, see CopilotPopup. For a fully embedded chat pane, use <CopilotChat> directly.

Basic setup#

Wrap your app in <CopilotKit> once (it wires the runtime, session, and agent registry) and drop <CopilotSidebar> alongside your main content. The sidebar renders as a sibling so it can slide out without reflowing your page:

page.tsx
    <CopilotKit runtimeUrl="/api/copilotkit" agent="prebuilt-sidebar">      <MainContent />      <CopilotSidebar agentId="prebuilt-sidebar" defaultOpen={true} />      <Suggestions />    </CopilotKit>

Configuring the sidebar#

<CopilotSidebar> accepts the same props as <CopilotChat> plus a few of its own. The example below opens the sidebar by default and targets a named agent:

page.tsx
      <CopilotSidebar agentId="prebuilt-sidebar" defaultOpen={true} />

Common sidebar-specific props:

PropDescription
defaultOpenWhether the sidebar starts open on first render.
agentIdAgent slug the sidebar should talk to (must match an agent configured on the runtime).
labelsUser-facing copy for the header, placeholder, and disclaimer.
headerSlot for the sidebar header bar — see the slot system.
toggleButtonSlot for the open/close launcher button.

Styling#

CopilotSidebar participates in the slot system, so every piece of its UI is customizable, from Tailwind classes on the message view to a full component swap for the header or toggle button. See custom look and feel for the full slot reference.