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Hamza Khan
Hamza Khan

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🌟 Top 10 CSS Frameworks to Use in React/Next.js Apps in 2024 🎨

#nextjs #react #javascript #webdev

When building modern web applications with React or Next.js, using a robust CSS framework can drastically speed up development and enhance your app's design. Here’s a rundown of the top 10 CSS frameworks that will work seamlessly with React and Next.js in 2024, along with code examples to get you started. 🚀

1. Tailwind CSS 💨

Tailwind CSS is a popular utility-first CSS framework. It provides low-level utility classes that allow you to design directly in your HTML/JSX.

Installation: 

npm install tailwindcss
npx tailwindcss init
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Add Tailwind to your globals.css:

@tailwind base;
@tailwind components;
@tailwind utilities;
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Usage in a React Component: 

function Button() {
    return <button className="bg-blue-500 text-white p-2 rounded">Click Me!</button>;
}
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Tailwind offers highly customizable styles, allowing developers to rapidly prototype and create responsive designs.

2. Chakra UI ⚡

Chakra UI provides a simple, modular, and accessible component library for building React applications. It’s easy to style, theme, and customize.

Installation: 

npm install @chakra-ui/react @emotion/react @emotion/styled framer-motion
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Usage in a React Component: 

import { Button } from "@chakra-ui/react";

function App() {
    return <Button colorScheme="blue">Click Me</Button>;
}
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Chakra’s predefined components make it ideal for projects where speed and design consistency are important.

3. Material UI (MUI) 🎨

Material UI is Google’s Material Design implemented for React. It provides prebuilt components that follow Material Design guidelines.

Installation: 

npm install @mui/material @emotion/react @emotion/styled
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Usage in a React Component: 

import { Button } from "@mui/material";

function App() {
    return <Button variant="contained" color="primary">Click Me</Button>;
}
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Material UI is perfect for apps that want a professional, modern look with minimal setup.

4. Ant Design 🐜

Ant Design is a design system with a large library of components and design guidelines, primarily used in enterprise applications.

Installation: 

npm install antd
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Usage in a React Component: 

import { Button } from "antd";

function App() {
    return <Button type="primary">Click Me</Button>;
}
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Ant Design's extensive collection of components and ease of use make it a go-to for business apps.

5. Bootstrap 🅱️

Bootstrap is one of the most widely-used CSS frameworks. It has a large community and offers ready-to-use responsive components.

Installation: 

npm install bootstrap
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Include it in your project (in pages/_app.js or index.js):

import 'bootstrap/dist/css/bootstrap.min.css';
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Usage in a React Component: 

function App() {
    return <button className="btn btn-primary">Click Me</button>;
}
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Bootstrap is great for rapid development with a classic, responsive design.

6. Bulma 💼

Bulma is a lightweight, flexbox-based framework. It’s easy to learn, and it provides responsive grids and modern components.

Installation: 

npm install bulma
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Include Bulma in your project (in pages/_app.js or index.js):

import 'bulma/css/bulma.min.css';
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Usage in a React Component: 

function App() {
    return <button className="button is-primary">Click Me</button>;
}
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Bulma is simple and efficient for building modern web apps with minimal CSS.

7. Foundation 🏗️

Foundation is another responsive front-end framework that is flexible and powerful for building responsive, mobile-first web apps.

Installation: 

npm install foundation-sites
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Include Foundation in your project:

import 'foundation-sites/dist/css/foundation.min.css';
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Usage in a React Component: 

function App() {
    return <button className="button">Click Me</button>;
}
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Foundation is best known for its flexibility and advanced grid system.

8. Semantic UI 🏛️

Semantic UI focuses on creating beautiful, responsive layouts using human-friendly HTML.

Installation: 

npm install semantic-ui-css semantic-ui-react
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Include Semantic UI in your project:

import 'semantic-ui-css/semantic.min.css';
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Usage in a React Component: 

import { Button } from "semantic-ui-react";

function App() {
    return <Button primary>Click Me</Button>;
}
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Semantic UI is intuitive, and the class names make sense, which can boost productivity.

9. PrimeReact 🌿

PrimeReact is a comprehensive collection of UI components for React, with a rich feature set.

Installation: 

npm install primereact primeicons
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Include PrimeReact styles:

import 'primereact/resources/themes/saga-blue/theme.css';
import 'primereact/resources/primereact.min.css';
import 'primeicons/primeicons.css';
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Usage in a React Component: 

import { Button } from "primereact/button";

function App() {
    return <Button label="Click Me" icon="pi pi-check" />;
}
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PrimeReact is perfect for creating feature-rich apps with an extensive component library.

10. UIkit 🔷

UIkit is a modular, lightweight front-end framework for building fast and powerful web interfaces.

Installation: 

npm install uikit
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Include UIkit in your project:

import 'uikit/dist/css/uikit.min.css';
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Usage in a React Component: 

function App() {
    return <button className="uk-button uk-button-primary">Click Me</button>;
}
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UIkit provides simplicity with flexibility, ideal for rapid web development.

🏁 Conclusion

Choosing the right CSS framework for your React or Next.js app depends on your project's needs. Whether you prefer utility-first frameworks like Tailwind CSS or component-based libraries like Chakra UI, these CSS frameworks will boost your productivity and help you create responsive, beautiful web applications in 2024. 🌟

What’s your go-to CSS framework for React or Next.js projects? Let me know in the comments! 🚀

🔗 Additional Resources:

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