What it is

Chatter Position adds a small toggle button to every chatter topbar that switches the chatter between two layouts: side (form left, chatter right) and bottom (full-width chatter under the form sheet). In side mode, a draggable splitter lets the user resize the form and chatter panes in real time.

By default Odoo chooses the layout for you based on the viewport width: side on very wide screens, bottom otherwise. That breakpoint is fixed and rarely matches what users actually want. This module hands the choice back to the user, on any screen size, with zero database changes.

Key features

Three things people use it for

1. Side chatter on small laptops. Native Odoo collapses the chatter to the bottom below the XXL breakpoint, even when a 13" or 14" laptop has plenty of horizontal room. This module lets users keep the side layout regardless of screen size.
2. Bottom chatter on ultra-wide monitors. On 27"+ screens the side chatter eats real estate that the form could use. Power users who prefer a wide form sheet flip the chatter to the bottom permanently.
3. Per-user layout preferences. Two colleagues sharing the same database get to keep their own preferred layout without arguing about CSS overrides — each browser stores its own setting.

How to use it

1. Install the module — no setup or configuration screen.
2. Open any record with a chatter (a contact, an order, an invoice…).
3. Look at the chatter topbar: a new toggle icon appears next to the search button.
4. Click it once to flip the chatter to the bottom. Click it again to flip back to the side.
5. In side mode, drag the vertical splitter to resize the form and chatter panes.
6. Double-click the splitter to reset to 60/40.

The choice and the ratio are stored in localStorage under the keys chatter_position and chatter_split_ratio. Clearing site data resets the preferences to default (side, 60/40).

For developers

The module exposes a public service registered as chatterPosition. Any OWL component can read the current layout or toggle it programmatically:

/** @odoo-module **/
import { Component } from "@odoo/owl";
import { useService } from "@web/core/utils/hooks";

class MyComponent extends Component {
    setup() {
        this.chatterPosition = useService("chatterPosition");
    }
    isSided() {
        return this.chatterPosition.getPosition() === "sided";
    }
    flip() {
        this.chatterPosition.toggle();
    }
}

The module patches FormController and FormRenderer to override Odoo's native layout choice. No models, no controllers, no migrations — everything lives in static/src/js/chatter_position.js and static/src/css/chatter_position.css.

Technical notes

About the author

Chatter Position is built and maintained by Kameos, an Odoo integrator based in Belgium. We work with SMEs and non-profits on Odoo Enterprise integrations, custom module development, and Flutter mobile apps connected to Odoo.

Found a bug or missing a feature? Send us a message — we usually reply within one business day.