Microcopy

마이크로카피

The short bits of text scattered across a screen — labels, helper lines, button copy. A word or two decides what the user does next.

Also known as: UX writingMicro-copy
···
html
<div class="stage">
  <div class="pane bad"><span class="mark">✕</span><span class="label">Before</span>
    <div class="field"><div class="finput"></div><p class="copy" id="bt"></p></div>
    <p class="why" id="bw"></p></div>
  <div class="pane good"><span class="mark">✓</span><span class="label">After</span>
    <div class="field"><div class="finput"></div><p class="copy" id="gt"></p></div>
    <p class="why" id="gw"></p></div>
</div>
css
.stage{width:94%;height:88%;display:flex;gap:4%}
.pane{position:relative;flex:1;border-radius:14px;border:1px solid var(--line);background:var(--surface);padding:16px 14px 12px;display:flex;flex-direction:column;gap:8px}
.mark{position:absolute;top:10px;right:12px;font:800 16px/1 system-ui;color:var(--accent-2)}
.good .mark{color:var(--accent-3)}
.label{font:700 10px/1 monospace;color:var(--muted);text-transform:uppercase;letter-spacing:.06em}
.field{display:flex;flex-direction:column;gap:6px}
.finput{height:26px;border-radius:7px;border:1px solid var(--line);background:var(--bg)}
.copy{margin:0;font:650 clamp(12px,3.2vmin,15px)/1.35 -apple-system,"Segoe UI",sans-serif;color:var(--fg)}
.why{margin:0;font:500 11px/1.3 -apple-system,sans-serif;color:var(--muted)}
js
const bt = document.getElementById('bt'), bw = document.getElementById('bw');
const gt = document.getElementById('gt'), gw = document.getElementById('gw');
const L = {
  ko: { bt: '입력하세요', bw: '이미 보이는 사실만 반복', gt: '8자 이상 입력하면 자동 저장돼요', gw: '무엇·언제·결과를 미리 알려줌' },
  en: { bt: 'Enter text', bw: 'just restates the obvious', gt: "8+ characters \u2014 we'll save automatically", gw: 'states what, when, and the outcome' },
};
let lang = 'ko';
function paint() {
  const t = L[lang];
  bt.textContent = t.bt; bw.textContent = t.bw; gt.textContent = t.gt; gw.textContent = t.gw;
}
paint();
setInterval(() => { lang = lang === 'ko' ? 'en' : 'ko'; paint(); }, 2400);

Microcopy rarely gets noticed the way a headline does, but it makes up most of the actual experience — the hint under a field, the verb on a button, the one line an empty list shows.

Good microcopy answers "what, when, why" in a few words. "Enter text" answers none of them; "8+ characters — we'll save automatically" answers all three. The bar is information density, not length.

Watch the helper text in the demo: ✕ just restates what's already obvious (this is a text field), while ✓ tells you what happens next.

When to use

Every time you write helper text, a button, or an empty-state line, ask first whether this one line actually carries information.