This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Kaif Zaki

When building modern UIs, developers often face a choice: write custom CSS or use a framework. Tailwind CSS takes a different approach — it’s a utility-first CSS framework that gives you small, reusable classes to style your components directly in your HTML/JSX.

What Does “Utility-First” Mean?

In traditional CSS frameworks (like Bootstrap), you get pre-designed components. Tailwind instead provides low-level utility classes that you can combine to build custom designs.

For example, instead of writing this:

/* custom CSS */
.btn {
background-color: #3b82f6;
color: white;
padding: 0.5rem 1rem;
border-radius: 0.375rem;
}

And then using it like:

Click Me

With Tailwind, you can do it directly:

Click Me

No separate CSS file required .

Benefits of the Utility-First Approach

Speed — You style as you go, no switching between HTML and CSS.

Consistency — Classes are standardized (e.g., px-4, text-lg).

Customization — You can extend colors, spacing, and themes easily.

Responsive by Default — Mobile-first classes like md:, lg: make it simple.

Example:

Responsive Box

This box changes padding and font size based on screen width.

A Real Example with React + Tailwind
export default function Card() {
return (

Tailwind Card

This card is styled entirely with Tailwind’s utility classes. No custom
CSS needed.

Learn More


);
}

Clean, reusable, and fully responsive.

Customizing Tailwind

Tailwind is not just utilities — you can customize it in tailwind.config.js:

export default {
theme: {
extend: {
colors: {
brand: “#4ade80”, // your brand green
},
},
},
};

Then use it like:

Brand Button

Final Thoughts

Tailwind CSS shifts the way we think about styling:

Instead of writing new CSS for each component, you compose with utilities.

It’s faster, more consistent, and scalable for modern apps.

If you haven’t tried it yet, spin up a project with Vite + Tailwind and see how quickly you can build beautiful UIs.

Do you prefer utility-first (Tailwind) or component-first (like Bootstrap/Material UI)? Drop your thoughts in the comments!

This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Kaif Zaki