Flutter Development Guidelines

Code style and structure

• Write concise and efficient source code.
• Strive for source code that is easy to read and maintain, and provide accurate examples.
• Avoid duplication of code: modularise widgets and functions into reusable components.
• Use descriptive variable names: use names with auxiliary verbs such as isLoading, hasError.

Directory structure under /lib.

• /lib/models/: data models and type definitions (Models)
• /lib/viewmodels/: state management and business logic (ViewModel)
• /lib/views/widgets/: reusable widgets (View)
• /lib/views/screens/: per-screen widgets (View)
• /lib/services/: service classes for API calls and data access
• /lib/utils/: helper functions and constants

Naming conventions

• Directories and files: use snakeCase (e.g. auth_wizard.dart).
• UpperCamelCase: use for class names/enumerations/typedefs/type parameters, etc.
• LowerCamelCase: used for variables/functions/class members (properties, methods), etc.
• lowercase_with_underscores (snakeCase): for files/directories/packages/libraries, etc.

Import.

• Place imports starting with dart: first (use lowercase_with_underscores for the import prefix).
• Next, import third-party packages (package:).
• Finally, import relative paths and files in the project.

Using Dart.

• Take advantage of type safety: use static typing in all code and utilise type inference wherever possible.

UI and styling.

• Use Material widgets.
• Unify theming: use ThemeData to apply consistent styles.

Performance optimisation.

• Prefer StatelessWidget when state is not required.
• Make use of const constructors: if widgets are immutable, use const to optimise builds.

State management.

• Use riverpod to implement efficient state management.
• Manage state within the ViewModel and link it to the View.

Software architecture

Use MVVM (Model View ViewModel).

Key rules.

• To improve code readability, lines should not exceed 80 characters in length.
• Use braces {} for all flow control structures (if, for, while, etc.).
• Use comment-outs proactively to help understand and maintain code.
• Use single quotes, avoid the use of double quotes and use consistent string literals to improve readability.