# Primary or Secondary
> One primary action per view. Everything else steps back, and destructive actions look destructive.

## Situation

Which action do most people take next?

## Decision

### Use Primary when

The single most likely next step on this screen. Filled, high contrast, in a predictable place.

- What most people do next
- Moves the task forward
- One per view or dialog
- Labeled with a verb and an object

### Use Secondary when

Everything valid but less common: cancel, back, export, save as draft. Outlined or plain, so it never competes.

- Alternatives and escapes
- Less frequent actions
- Cancel and Back
- Destructive actions get their own style

**The numbers:** Count the filled buttons on the screen. More than one is a decision you haven’t made yet. A destructive action is never primary unless deleting is the whole point of the dialog.

## Why

Most people who open this screen are here to publish, so Publish is the one filled button. Preview and Save draft are still there, just quieter.

## Edge cases

In a ‘Delete project?’ dialog, deleting is the decision. The destructive button can be primary, styled as dangerous and named for the outcome.

Source: https://productfordesigners.com/cards/primary-secondary
Author: Alex Dovhyi