Tailwind CSS

Tailwind CSS is a utility-first CSS framework providing low-level utility classes to build custom designs directly in markup. Adam Wathan created it in 2017. The approach differs fundamentally from component-based frameworks like Bootstrap: instead of prebuilt components, Tailwind offers atomic classes like flex, pt-4, text-center, and rotate-90 that combine into any design.

Version 4, released in early 2025, replaces the JavaScript configuration file with a CSS-first approach using @theme directives, ships a new high-performance engine built on Rust and Lightning CSS, and detects content automatically without manual configuration. The result is significantly faster builds and simpler setup.

Tailwind has become one of the most popular CSS frameworks, especially in the React and Vue ecosystem. The utility-first approach fits naturally with component-based architectures where styles live alongside markup rather than in separate stylesheets. The project is fully open source on GitHub.