Overview

Bootstrap

Stacks55.5K

Followers13.2K

Votes7.7K

GitHub Stars173.6K

Forks79.2K

Thymeleaf

Stacks212

Followers296

Votes4

Bootstrap vs Thymeleaf: What are the differences?

Introduction

In this article, we will discuss the key differences between Bootstrap and Thymeleaf. Both Bootstrap and Thymeleaf are popular technologies used in web development, but they have distinct differences that set them apart.

Integration with HTML: Bootstrap is primarily a CSS framework that provides pre-defined classes and components to style web pages. It is designed to work with any HTML document and can be easily added to an existing project. On the other hand, Thymeleaf is a server-side Java templating engine that integrates with HTML to generate dynamic content. It allows developers to write dynamic server-side code directly in the HTML template.
Responsiveness: Bootstrap offers built-in support for creating responsive web designs. It provides a responsive grid system, responsive utilities, and responsive components that automatically adapt to different screen sizes. Thymeleaf, being a server-side templating engine, does not provide built-in responsiveness features. However, developers can still achieve responsiveness by using CSS or JavaScript libraries along with Thymeleaf.
UI Components: Bootstrap provides a rich set of UI components, such as buttons, forms, navbars, modals, and more. These components are ready-to-use and can be easily customized using Bootstrap classes. Thymeleaf, on the other hand, does not provide pre-built UI components like Bootstrap. It focuses more on the server-side processing of data and generating dynamic content.
Server-side vs Client-side Rendering: Thymeleaf performs server-side rendering, where the server generates the complete HTML page and sends it to the client. This approach can help improve search engine optimization (SEO) and make the application more secure. Bootstrap, on the other hand, does not handle server-side rendering as it is mainly a CSS framework. It relies on client-side rendering using JavaScript frameworks or libraries.
Back-end Language: Bootstrap can be used with any back-end language as it is primarily a CSS framework. It does not have any specific dependencies on a particular programming language. Thymeleaf, on the other hand, is tightly integrated with the Java ecosystem. It is often used with Java Spring Framework to generate HTML templates dynamically.
Development Speed: Bootstrap enables rapid prototyping and development by offering a wide range of ready-to-use components and styles. Developers can quickly build a responsive website by utilizing the pre-built features of Bootstrap. Thymeleaf, being a templating engine, requires more effort and time for integrating server-side code with HTML templates. It is more suitable for projects that require server-side rendering and dynamic content generation.

In Summary, Bootstrap is a CSS framework that focuses on providing ready-to-use styles and components for web development, while Thymeleaf is a server-side Java templating engine that integrates with HTML to generate dynamic content. Bootstrap offers built-in responsiveness, UI components, and rapid development capabilities. Thymeleaf, on the other hand, supports server-side rendering and is tightly integrated with the Java ecosystem.

Advice on Bootstrap, Thymeleaf

Bridget

Full Stack Developer at Bridget Sarah

May 29, 2020

Decided

I do prefer to write things from scratch however when it came to wanting to jump-start the frontend, I found that it was taking me a lot longer hence why needing to use something very fast.

Bootstrap was the boom when it came out, I didn't like it, to be honest, set in its way and a pain to over-ride and in addition, you can tell from a distance if you're using boostrap and as everything looks the same.

I came across Tailwind CSS as I wanted more dynamic features, you could say, I've been now doing it for a few days and I love it a lot. I've been practising with the full stack part installed but I an't we wait until I do a new project, and I'll e able to select exactly what I want. Much faster.

681k views681k

Comments

Daniel

Frontend Developer at atSistemas

Jun 10, 2020

Needs adviceon

New Relic

Next.js

React

I'm building, from scratch, a webapp. It's going to be a dashboard to check on our apps in New Relic and update the Apdex from the webapp. I have just chosen Next.js as our framework because we use React already, and after going through the tutorial, I just loved the latest changes they have implemented.

But we have to decide on a CSS framework for the UI. I'm partial to Bulma because I love that it's all about CSS (and you can use SCSS from the start), that it's rather lightweight and that it doesn't come with JavaScript clutter. One of the things I hate about Bootstrap is that you depend on jQuery to use the JavaScript part. My boss loves UIkIt, but when I've used it in the past, I didn't like it.

What do you think we should use? Maybe you have another suggestion?

1.07M views1.07M

Comments

Syed

Jul 16, 2020

Needs adviceon

Bootstrap

Tailwind CSS

I am planning to redesign my entire application, which is currently in Bootstrap. I heard about Tailwind CSS, and I think its really cool to work with. Is it okay if I use Bootstrap and Tailwind together? I can't remove Bootstrap altogether, as my application is using the js dependencies of Bootstrap, which I don't want to disturb.

739k views739k

Comments

Detailed Comparison

Bootstrap	Thymeleaf
Bootstrap is the most popular HTML, CSS, and JS framework for developing responsive, mobile first projects on the web.	It is a modern server-side Java template engine for both web and standalone environments. It is aimed at creating elegant web code while adding powerful features and retaining prototyping abilities.
Preprocessors: Bootstrap ships with vanilla CSS, but its source code utilizes the two most popular CSS preprocessors, Less and Sass. Quickly get started with precompiled CSS or build on the source.;One framework, every device: Bootstrap easily and efficiently scales your websites and applications with a single code base, from phones to tablets to desktops with CSS media queries.;Full of features: With Bootstrap, you get extensive and beautiful documentation for common HTML elements, dozens of custom HTML and CSS components, and awesome jQuery plugins.	-
Statistics
GitHub Stars 173.6K	GitHub Stars -
GitHub Forks 79.2K	GitHub Forks -
Stacks 55.5K	Stacks 212
Followers 13.2K	Followers 296
Votes 7.7K	Votes 4
Pros & Cons
Pros 1582 Responsiveness 1193 UI components 943 Consistent 779 Great docs 677 Flexible Cons 26 Javascript is tied to jquery 16 Every site uses the defaults 15 Grid system break points aren't ideal 14 Too much heavy decoration in default look 8 Verbose styles	Pros 4 Its delicous

What are some alternatives to Bootstrap, Thymeleaf?

Foundation

Foundation is the most advanced responsive front-end framework in the world. You can quickly prototype and build sites or apps that work on any kind of device with Foundation, which includes layout constructs (like a fully responsive grid), elements and best practices.

Semantic UI

Semantic empowers designers and developers by creating a shared vocabulary for UI.

Materialize

A CSS Framework based on material design.

Material Design for Angular

Material Design is a specification for a unified system of visual, motion, and interaction design that adapts across different devices. Our goal is to deliver a lean, lightweight set of AngularJS-native UI elements that implement the material design system for use in Angular SPAs.

Material-UI

Material UI is a library of React UI components that implements Google's Material Design.

Blazor

Blazor is a .NET web framework that runs in any browser. You author Blazor apps using C#/Razor and HTML.

Quasar Framework

Build responsive Single Page Apps, SSR Apps, PWAs, Hybrid Mobile Apps and Electron Apps, all using the same codebase!, powered with Vue.

Nuxt.js

Nuxt.js presets all the configuration needed to make your development of a Vue.js application enjoyable. You can use Nuxt.js for SSR, SPA, Static Generated, PWA and more.

UIkIt

UIkit gives you a comprehensive collection of HTML, CSS, and JS components which is simple to use, easy to customize and extendable.

Tailwind CSS

Tailwind is different from frameworks like Bootstrap, Foundation, or Bulma in that it's not a UI kit. It doesn't have a default theme, and there are no build-in UI components. It comes with a menu of predesigned widgets to build your site with, but doesn't impose design decisions that are difficult to undo.