---
title: "jQuery Timeline Custom Range Picker View Example | Mobiscroll"
component: "Timeline"
framework: "jQuery"
library_version: "6.2.0"
url: "https://demo.mobiscroll.com/jquery/timeline/custom-range-view"
---

# Custom Range Picker View - jQuery Timeline demo

Replace the jQuery Timeline's default header navigation with a range picker — let users set any custom date range, synced two-way with the timeline.

- [Live demo](https://demo.mobiscroll.com/jquery/timeline/custom-range-view)
- [View code on GitHub](https://github.com/acidb/mobiscroll-demos-jquery/tree/main/src/demos/eventcalendar/timeline/custom-range-view)
- This demo in other frameworks: [JavaScript](https://demo.mobiscroll.com/timeline/custom-range-view.md), [Angular](https://demo.mobiscroll.com/angular/timeline/custom-range-view.md), [React](https://demo.mobiscroll.com/react/timeline/custom-range-view.md), [Vue](https://demo.mobiscroll.com/vue/timeline/custom-range-view.md)

## Description

The timeline comes with [built-in support for day, week, month and year views](https://demo.mobiscroll.com/jquery/timeline/multiple-days-weeks-months-quarters-years-variable-resolution). For those situations where a custom range makes more sense, it is possible to override the calendar navigation component with a [range picker](https://demo.mobiscroll.com/jquery/range/date-filtering-with-predefined-ranges).

The calendar header can be easily customized and a two-way synchronization needs to be kept between the timeline and range picker.

## What this demo shows

- A desktop timeline layout with a custom date range arranged horizontally and resources arranged vertically on the left.
- **Header** The header shows the selected custom date range on the left. Clicking the displayed range opens an anchored range picker for choosing a custom range instead of relying only on fixed day, week, month, or year views.
- **Header navigation** The previous and next controls and the Today button move the timeline range backward, forward, or back to the current day.
- **Custom range view** The fixed strip below the header displays the days in the selected range, with the current date highlighted.
- **Resources** Multiple resources are shown vertically on the left side of the timeline as individual rows.
- **Event labels** Events are rendered as colored labels inside the day cells, with the event title shown in bold.
- **Date positioning** Events are positioned according to both their assigned resource and their exact date range.
- **Event interaction** Events are highlighted on hover and show drag and resize handles for repositioning or changing duration.
- **Event selection** Clicking an event selects and highlights it.
- **Event creation** Users can create a new event by double-clicking the timeline or by clicking and dragging across it.
- **Scrolling** The timeline supports horizontal and vertical scrolling for navigating through time and resources.

## Best for

- **Conference and event planning** Coordinate multi-day conferences, trade shows, workshops, festivals, corporate events, meetings, and sessions.
- **Project and program management** Track project phases, milestones, launches, deadlines, and team activities across several weeks in one timeline view.
- **Business travel and itineraries** Plan business trips, tours, client visits, training programs, and travel schedules while keeping appointments visible.
- **Marketing and campaign planning** Manage campaigns, content schedules, product launches, promotional events, and key milestones over extended periods.

## API used in this demo

- [`theme`](https://mobiscroll.com/docs/jquery/eventcalendar/api#opt-theme) - option
- [`themeVariant`](https://mobiscroll.com/docs/jquery/eventcalendar/api#opt-themeVariant) - option
- [`clickToCreate`](https://mobiscroll.com/docs/jquery/eventcalendar/api#opt-clickToCreate) - option
- [`dragToCreate`](https://mobiscroll.com/docs/jquery/eventcalendar/api#opt-dragToCreate) - option
- [`dragToMove`](https://mobiscroll.com/docs/jquery/eventcalendar/api#opt-dragToMove) - option
- [`dragToResize`](https://mobiscroll.com/docs/jquery/eventcalendar/api#opt-dragToResize) - option
- [`eventDelete`](https://mobiscroll.com/docs/jquery/eventcalendar/api#opt-eventDelete) - option
- [`resources`](https://mobiscroll.com/docs/jquery/eventcalendar/api#opt-resources) - option
- [`view`](https://mobiscroll.com/docs/jquery/eventcalendar/api#opt-view) - option
- [`renderHeader`](https://mobiscroll.com/docs/jquery/eventcalendar/api#renderer-renderHeader) - renderer
- [`onPageLoaded`](https://mobiscroll.com/docs/jquery/eventcalendar/api#event-onPageLoaded) - event
- [`select`](https://mobiscroll.com/docs/jquery/datepicker/api#opt-select) - option
- [`display`](https://mobiscroll.com/docs/jquery/datepicker/api#opt-display) - option
- [`showOverlay`](https://mobiscroll.com/docs/jquery/datepicker/api#opt-showOverlay) - option
- [`touchUi`](https://mobiscroll.com/docs/jquery/datepicker/api#opt-touchUi) - option
- [`buttons`](https://mobiscroll.com/docs/jquery/datepicker/api#opt-buttons) - option
- [`onClose`](https://mobiscroll.com/docs/jquery/datepicker/api#event-onClose) - event
- [`navigate`](https://mobiscroll.com/docs/jquery/eventcalendar/api#method-navigate) - method
- [`setOptions`](https://mobiscroll.com/docs/jquery/eventcalendar/api#method-setOptions) - method
- [`refDate`](https://mobiscroll.com/docs/jquery/eventcalendar/api#opt-refDate) - option
- [`setEvents`](https://mobiscroll.com/docs/jquery/eventcalendar/api#method-setEvents) - method

## Code

### JS

```js
mobiscroll.setOptions({
  theme: 'ios',
  themeVariant: 'light'
});

$(function () {
  var formatDate = mobiscroll.formatDate;
  var startDate;
  var endDate;

  var myCalendar = $('#demo-custom-range-view')
    .mobiscroll()
    .eventcalendar({
      clickToCreate: true,
      dragToCreate: true,
      dragToMove: true,
      dragToResize: true,
      eventDelete: true,
      resources: [
        { id: 1, name: 'Resource A', color: '#e20000' },
        { id: 2, name: 'Resource B', color: '#76e083' },
        { id: 3, name: 'Resource C', color: '#4981d6' },
        { id: 4, name: 'Resource D', color: '#e25dd2' },
        { id: 5, name: 'Resource E', color: '#1dab2f' },
        { id: 6, name: 'Resource F', color: '#d6d145' },
      ],
      view: {
        timeline: {
          type: 'day',
          size: 14,
          eventDisplay: 'fill',
        },
      },
      renderHeader: function () {
        return (
          '<div id="custom-date-range"><button mbsc-button data-variant="flat" class="mbsc-calendar-button">' +
          '<span id="custom-date-range-text" class="mbsc-calendar-title">Button' +
          '</span></button></div>' +
          '<div class="md-custom-range-view-controls">' +
          '<div mbsc-calendar-prev></div>' +
          '<div mbsc-calendar-today></div>' +
          '<div mbsc-calendar-next></div>' +
          '</div>'
        );
      },
      onPageLoaded: function (args) {
        var end = args.lastDay;
        startDate = args.firstDay;
        endDate = new Date(end.getFullYear(), end.getMonth(), end.getDate() - 1, 0);
        // Set button text
        $rangeButton.text(getFormattedRange(startDate, endDate));
        // Set range value
        myRange.setVal([startDate, endDate]);
      },
    })
    .mobiscroll('getInst');

  var myRange = $('#custom-date-range')
    .mobiscroll()
    .datepicker({
      select: 'range',
      display: 'anchored',
      showOverlay: false,
      touchUi: true,
      buttons: [],
      onClose: function (args, inst) {
        var date = inst.getVal();
        if (date[0] && date[1]) {
          if (date[0].getTime() !== startDate.getTime()) {
            // Navigate the calendar
            setTimeout(function () {
              myCalendar.navigate(date[0]);
            }, 100);
          }
          startDate = date[0];
          endDate = date[1];
          // Set calendar view
          myCalendar.setOptions({
            refDate: startDate,
            view: {
              timeline: {
                type: 'day',
                size: getNrDays(startDate, endDate),
                eventDisplay: 'fill',
              },
            },
          });
        } else {
          myRange.setVal([startDate, endDate]);
        }
      },
    })
    .mobiscroll('getInst');

  var $rangeButton = $('#custom-date-range-text');

  // Returns the formatted date
  function getFormattedRange(start, end) {
    return (
      formatDate('MMM D, YYYY', new Date(start)) +
      (end && getNrDays(start, end) > 1 ? ' - ' + formatDate('MMM D, YYYY', new Date(end)) : '')
    );
  }

  // Returns the number of days between two dates
  function getNrDays(start, end) {
    return Math.round(Math.abs((end.setHours(0) - start.setHours(0)) / (24 * 60 * 60 * 1000))) + 1;
  }

  $.getJSON(
    'https://trial.mobiscroll.com/timeline-events/?callback=?',
    function (events) {
      myCalendar.setEvents(events);
    },
    'jsonp',
  );
});
```

### HTML

```html
<div id="demo-custom-range-view"></div>
```

### CSS

```css
.md-custom-range-view-controls {
  display: flex;
  flex: 1 0 auto;
  justify-content: end;
  align-items: center;
}
```

## Implementation notes

- Start with `timeline: { type: 'day', size: 14, eventDisplay: 'fill' }` as the default view - a 14-day rolling window with events filling their cells. Store the view config in state so it can be replaced when the user picks a new range.
- Use `renderHeader` (Angular: `headerTemplate`, Vue: `#header` slot) to replace the default navigation with two elements: a `Button` that shows the current date range label and opens the range picker, and a group of `CalendarPrev`, `CalendarToday`, `CalendarNext` controls aligned to the right.
- Render a `Datepicker` in `select: 'range'`, `display: 'anchored'`, `showOverlay: false`, `touchUi: true`, `buttons: []` mode as the range picker. In React, pass it directly as `inputComponent={Button}` with `inputProps` containing the label text as children. In Vue/Angular, keep the picker hidden (hidden input or no visible input) and call `.open()` on the instance from the button's click handler, passing the button element as the anchor.
- In the Datepicker `onChange` handler, store the selected `[start, end]` pair in a ref/variable (not yet applied to the calendar - wait for close).
- In the Datepicker `onClose` handler, compute `size = getNrDays(start, end)` and update the timeline view to `{ timeline: { type: 'day', size, eventDisplay: 'fill' } }`. Also set `refDate` to the start date and update `selectedDate` to navigate the calendar to the start.
- In the `onPageLoaded` event, read `args.firstDay` as the range start. The `args.lastDay` is exclusive (one day past the last visible day), so compute the actual end as `new Date(lastDay.getFullYear(), lastDay.getMonth(), lastDay.getDate() - 1)`. Use both to update the button label text and the range picker's value - this keeps the picker in sync when the user navigates with the prev/next buttons.
- Implement a `getNrDays(start, end)` helper: `Math.round(Math.abs((end.setHours(0) - start.setHours(0)) / 86400000)) + 1`. Use `formatDate('MMM D, YYYY', date)` from Mobiscroll to build the label string; show a single date when the range spans one day, or "Start - End" for multiple days.
- Define 6 generic resources with `id`, `name`, and `color`. Load events from a remote endpoint using `getJson` and pass them to `data`.

## Run it in your project

1. If not signed up yet, or don't own a license, you can [start a free trial](https://mobiscroll.com/starttrial).

2. Clone the repository:

   ```
   git clone https://github.com/acidb/mobiscroll-demos-jquery.git
   ```

3. If not installed yet, install the Mobiscroll CLI from NPM:

   ```
   npm install -g @mobiscroll/cli
   ```

4. Config Mobiscroll - open a terminal window in the root directory and run:

   ```
   mobiscroll config jquery
   ```

5. Install dependencies - open a terminal window in the root directory and run:

   ```
   npm install
   ```

6. Run the project:

   ```
   npm run dev
   ```

On a trial, add `--trial` to the config command: `mobiscroll config jquery --trial`.

Running a demo locally requires a Mobiscroll trial or a license; setup is per framework at https://mobiscroll.com/docs/jquery/getting-started/installation

## Related demos

- Previous: [Event Buffer Time](https://demo.mobiscroll.com/jquery/timeline/event-buffer.md) - Visualize buffer time on a jQuery Timeline — show travel time, check-in/out, loading/unloading time, or preparation windows around scheduled events.
- Next: [Custom Event Ordering](https://demo.mobiscroll.com/jquery/timeline/custom-event-sort.md) - Set event order in the jQuery Timeline - using a per-event order value or a custom ordering function.