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  1. Stackups
  2. Application & Data
  3. Frameworks
  4. Front End Frameworks
  5. Pure vs Tailwind CSS

Pure vs Tailwind CSS

OverviewDecisionsComparisonAlternatives

Overview

Pure
Pure
Stacks36
Followers120
Votes61
Tailwind CSS
Tailwind CSS
Stacks4.8K
Followers3.1K
Votes245

Pure vs Tailwind CSS: What are the differences?

CSS frameworks are a popular choice for web developers as they provide pre-written CSS code that can be easily applied to a website. Two such frameworks are Pure CSS and Tailwind CSS. Although both frameworks serve the same purpose, there are several key differences between them.
  1. Flexibility: Pure CSS offers a more flexible approach as it provides a set of CSS modules that can be included individually based on the developer's requirements. On the other hand, Tailwind CSS follows a utility-first approach, where the framework provides a comprehensive set of utility classes that can be used to create complex layouts quickly. This makes Tailwind CSS less flexible but more efficient in terms of development speed.

  2. Customizability: Pure CSS allows developers to customize and override any CSS rules provided by the framework to match their design requirements. It provides a set of variables and mixins that can be used to customize the styles. In contrast, Tailwind CSS does not allow direct customization of the provided utility classes. Instead, it encourages developers to extend or configure the framework to create custom utility classes.

  3. File Size: Pure CSS has a smaller file size compared to Tailwind CSS as it only includes the CSS modules that are required for a specific project. This results in faster loading times for webpages that use Pure CSS. On the other hand, Tailwind CSS comes with a larger file size due to the inclusion of all utility classes, resulting in slightly slower loading times.

  4. Learning Curve: Pure CSS has a relatively steeper learning curve as developers need to familiarize themselves with the various CSS modules and understand how they work together. Tailwind CSS, on the other hand, has a lower learning curve as it follows a simple utility-based approach where developers can apply classes directly in the HTML markup.

  5. Design Consistency: Pure CSS provides a consistent design language throughout the project as developers use the same set of CSS modules. This ensures a unified visual style across the entire website. In contrast, Tailwind CSS allows more flexibility in terms of design choices as developers can combine utility classes in various ways. This may result in a less consistent design compared to Pure CSS.

  6. Community Support: Pure CSS has been around for a longer time and has a larger community of developers. This means that there are more resources and tutorials available for beginners to learn from. Tailwind CSS, although gaining popularity rapidly, has a smaller community compared to Pure CSS.

In Summary, Pure CSS offers more flexibility, customization options, and a smaller file size compared to Tailwind CSS, while Tailwind CSS provides faster development speed, a simpler learning curve, and more design choices at the cost of some design consistency and community support.

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Advice on Pure, Tailwind CSS

Bridget
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
Syed
Syed

Jul 16, 2020

Needs adviceonBootstrapBootstrapTailwind CSSTailwind 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
Xinyi
Xinyi

Software Developer at DCSIL

Oct 9, 2020

Decided

As our team will be building a web application, HTML5 and CSS3 are one of the standardized combinations to implement the structure and the styling of a webpage. Material-UI comes with all sorts of predesigned web components such as buttons and dropdowns that will save us tons of development time. Since it is a component library designed for React, it suits our needs. However, we do acknowledge that predesigned components may sometimes cause pains especially when it comes to custom styling. To make our life even easier, we also adopted Tailwind CSS. It is a CSS framework providing low-level utility classes that will act as building blocks when we create custom designs.

359k views359k
Comments

Detailed Comparison

Pure
Pure
Tailwind CSS
Tailwind CSS

Pure is meant to be a starting point for every website or web app. We take care of all the CSS work that every site needs, without making it look cookie-cutter.

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.

A responsive grid that can be customized to your needs;A solid base built on Normalize.css to fix cross-browser compatibility issues;Consistently styled buttons that work with <a> and <button> elements;Styles for vertical and horizontal menus, including support for dropdown menus;Useful form alignments that look great on all screen sizes;Various common table styles;An extremely minimalist look that is super-easy to customize;Responsive by default, with a non-responsive option;Easy one-click customization with the Skin Builder;Extremely small file size: 4.5KB minified + gzip
No default theme; No build-in UI components; No opinion about how your site should look; Doesn't impose design decisions that you have to fight to undo; Comes with a menu of predesigned widgets to build your site with; Or offers a head start implementing a custom design with its own identity
Statistics
Stacks
36
Stacks
4.8K
Followers
120
Followers
3.1K
Votes
61
Votes
245
Pros & Cons
Pros
  • 14
    Lightweight
  • 10
    Simple
  • 10
    Responsive
  • 9
    Minimalist
  • 4
    Pure
Pros
  • 44
    Highly customizable
  • 33
    Quick setup
  • 30
    Utility first styles, its amazing
  • 24
    Versatile
  • 23
    Great docs
Cons
  • 14
    Priced
  • 5
    Cluttered html structure

What are some alternatives to Pure, Tailwind CSS?

Bootstrap

Bootstrap

Bootstrap is the most popular HTML, CSS, and JS framework for developing responsive, mobile first projects on the web.

Foundation

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 UI

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

Materialize

Materialize

A CSS Framework based on material design.

Material Design for Angular

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

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

Blazor

Blazor

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

Quasar Framework

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

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

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

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