What is the 'best' CSS framework to use?

To be honest, I still use good ole bootstrap.

Up until recently, I was on the Bulma bandwagon, but as of late, I have switched over to Tailwind CSS. I love how easy it is to build a truly custom look with a framework. So many frameworks cause pages to all look the same.

Tailwind CSS paired with Alpine.js also makes it incredibly easy to build quick HTML/CSS design prototypes.

I just tweeted about this the other day. https://twitter.com/atlchris/status/1279077983668617219?s=21

It depends for what.

I built https://www.colorsandfonts.com with Bulma.

And I sort of regret it in terms of freedom. I would have rather Tailwind.

If you haven't and want to try them.
I sell HTML templates for both of them.

Download the free ones, and try them if you want.

Https://www.wickedtemplates.com

The free ones are Maui,Tailwind and Bristol, Bulma.

Hope it helps

Styled components is the one for me - very React-y with the added power of JS to control CSS with string interpolation

Tailwind is the trend nowadays.

I am currently making my own blog in Theme UI though & copying all the base configuration from Tailwind as they have a designer on their team that makes all the decisions so I don't have to make any. The reason I choose Theme UI is I wanted to have full control over what I make even though Tailwind gives me the whole configuration. Probably once I am totally comfortable with it, I'll switch to Tailwind as it'll allow me for faster prototyping & less keystrokes to type.

There's also Chakra UI which is absolutely great. One thing, it has a limitation is over Dark Mode. You'll see a flicker if you hard refresh your default Light Mode while having a Dark Mode in the local storage. This is a limitation due to SSR provided by Next.js/Gatsby.js & the only way to make it work is by using CSS Variables. You can read more about it at https://joshwcomeau.com/gatsby/dark-mode/

My favorites right now in order are Theme UI, Tailwind UI & Chakra UI :)

I'm usually against CSS frameworks. I like to create my own for the project. However, I have been eyeing Tailwind.

Tailwind and Styled Components are both really good.

I've recently launched an MVP with Chakra UI and while I wouldn't use it in a bigger project due to its endless amount of style props, it was an awesome choice to ship the MVP really fast.

For bigger projects with a budget I'd use styled-components.

For simple stuff I tend to use New.css nowadays (it's very new). If I need something more complex I use Bulma. In the past I used mostly Bootstrap but it's weight is enormous.

Honestly, I really don't like the fact that CSS frameworks clutter your HTML with the crazy amount of classes. That's why I choose to create my own designs and write CSS for them and I'm proud to say that I've learnt to do it pretty efficiently.

Others have mentioned tailwind, I would also recommend good old fashioned bootstrap. It does a lot to get you going.

Another vote for Tailwind CSS. We built out our full site in it and recently updated the main ServerAuth.com website and application using TailwindUI - we were able to do a full UI overhaul in less than a week.

I try to stick to basscss, the reason being it forces me to design the look and feel myself, while having every utility in the lib, extending those utilities is made easy. It's very lightweight, and short naming for all the selectors.

It's quite the opposite of sementicui, which is very verbose, heavyweight and ships with already made visuals.

I tried to compare Bulma, Tailwind & bootstrap to work for my new project, 3sname.com a SaaS name generator.

1. Bootstrap is the all in one framework with ready components. If you want to quickly roll out a MVP by tweaking a theme, bootstrap is good to go. There are plenty of themes to get started. The latest v5 alpha will finally remove jquery dependency.

2. Tailwind css. Good for custom design. The new tailwind components will help you with ready made elements. But the price is a deal breaker for me.

3. Bulma. I just used it for my new project. My project is very simple without the need to a well design theme. I just download a free template from GitHub. Copy and paste the <section> and I can finish the MVP in a short time. The learn curve is flat. Basically, there are a bunch of css classes. The grid system is simpler than bootstrap. It's a lightweight tool