avoid_wrapping_in_padding

v0.4.0 Warning Fix Widget Replacement

Flags Padding widgets whose child already supports a padding parameter (such as Container, Card, ListView, etc.). Instead of wrapping in Padding, you should pass padding directly to the child widget.

Why use this rule

Many Flutter widgets accept a padding parameter in their constructor. Wrapping them in a Padding widget adds an unnecessary layer to the widget tree when the same effect can be achieved by passing padding directly to the child. This keeps the tree flatter, reduces nesting, and makes the code easier to read.

See also: Padding | Container | Dart lint: avoid_unnecessary_containers

Don’t

// Container supports padding, no need to wrap in Padding
Padding(
  padding: EdgeInsets.all(16),
  child: Container(child: Text('Hello')),
);

// Card supports padding
Padding(
  padding: EdgeInsets.symmetric(horizontal: 12),
  child: Card(child: Text('Card content')),
);

Do

// Pass padding directly to Container
Container(padding: EdgeInsets.all(16), child: Text('Hello'));

// Padding wrapping a widget that doesn't support padding is fine
Padding(padding: EdgeInsets.all(8), child: Text('Hello'));

// Container already has its own padding set -- wrapping is acceptable
Padding(
  padding: EdgeInsets.all(8),
  child: Container(padding: EdgeInsets.all(4), child: Text('Hello')),
);

Configuration

This rule is in the opinionated preset, so it is on with preset: opinionated, or by name:

many_lints.yaml

rules:
  avoid_wrapping_in_padding: true

To turn it off again:

many_lints.yaml

rules:
  avoid_wrapping_in_padding: false

To keep the rule on but skip certain paths, use per-rule exclude.

Related rules

• prefer_padding_over_container — Use Padding instead of Container when only padding or margin is set.
• avoid_border_all — Use Border.fromBorderSide instead of Border.all for const support.
• avoid_expanded_as_spacer — Use Spacer instead of Expanded with an empty child.
• avoid_incorrect_image_opacity — Use Image’s opacity parameter instead of wrapping in Opacity.