According to Wikipedia, CSS frameworks are pre-prepared libraries that are meant to allow for easier, more standards-compliant styling of web pages using the Cascading Style Sheets language. In this article we have gathered ready-to-use frameworks which will enable you to reduce your task flow and code LESS. We hope you will find the list handy and useful for your development needs. If you know any other CSS frameworks which are handy and useful, give your opinion in comment box, we would love to hear from you. Enjoy !
1. Pure : CSS Framework
Pure is a fresh one that is created by Yahoo!. It uses Normalize.CSS and doesn’t use any JavaScript but only HTML-CSS. The framework is built with responsive layouts in mind and has styles for typography, grids, forms, buttons, tables and navigation. Markup used is very simple and the whole framework is pretty lightweight(5.7KB minified and gzipped).
2. Fitgrd : Responsive Grid System
Fitgrd is not a framework. It’s a solid foundation to build up your own responsive website. It is designed for rapid prototyping, but also runs well in production environments. This grid system is perfect for advanced web designers who don’t want to have their pages look like “bootstraped”. Everything but the grid is up to you and gives you the ability to save a lot of dispensable code.
3. Fries
Fries is a solid HTML-CSS-JS framework for creating Android-like UIs both for real-world usage and prototyping. The framework has all the major components like forms, action bars, lists, buttons, spinners or tabs. It is also optimized for PhoneGap and can be easily converted to a native app.
4. Markup Framework
Markup Framework, a fresh one, is a collection of layouts, widgets, typographic styles and other UI components which can be used as a base for any web project. It is mostly HTML-CSS with very few JavaScript and focuses on providing the base/skeleton rather than the look/design. The framework includes multiple style choices for typography, forms and UI widgets. Also, there are many ready-to-use layouts (with mobile-first approach), a flexible grid and CSS reset.
4. Maxmertkit
Maxmertkit is a fresh one that looks/feels a bit like Bootstrap but has different things to offer. It uses SASS for the CSS part and includes styles for all major stuff like grid, typography, forms, tables, buttons and lists. There are various widgets like buttons, tabs, grouped elements, badges, dropdowns, tooltips, menus and more. And, some handy JavaScript components exist for notifications, carousel, buttons, modals, etc.
5. Metro UI CSS
Metro UI CSS is a set of styles for creating such interfaces. It is a self-contained solution but can also be used side-by-side with any other frameworks. There are styles for the popular tiles, images, notices, forms, buttons and typography. The framework is also a “work in progress” and is mentioned to be enriched with more layout options + features.
6. Zoey : For Creating Mobile Apps
It is a HTML5-CSS3-powered framework for creating mobile apps, built on top of Zepto.js and weights only 6kb (gzipped). Zoey has the UI components like navigation, lists, buttons, control groups, forms and grids. The framework is compatible with iOS + Android and comes with an app skeleton that covers all the features.
7. Microjs : Tiny JS Framework
Microjs is a website which is a directory of such tiny (less than 5kb) JavaScript libraries and frameworks. From a list of options, you can select the feature you need like: a base framework, CSS animation, data manipulation, etc. and it’ll present you the resources that can meet your requirements. Although getting used to new frameworks may seem like a “loss of time”, it’ll probably pay back in load times (specially for the mobile).
8. Lime JS
It is a HTML5 game framework for building games that’ll feel native and work fast in modern touchscreens and desktop browsers. LimeJS is created with Closure Library built by Google and comes with functions/classes to control the timeline, events, shapes and animations. Also, the framework has full support of sprite sheets (you can collect all images inside a single file).
9. 52 Framework
52framework is a CSS framework which provides an easy way to build websites using HTML5 & CSS3 while still supporting all modern browsers (including ie6). It uses HTML5 tags like header, nav, section, article, footer or new input field types like url, email, etc. The framework also has a HTML5 compatible reset stylesheet.
10. Baseline
Baseline is a CSS framework, built with typographic standards in mind, that aims to simplify developing a website with a pleasing grid and good typography. With the help of reset.css & base.css files, Baseline clears the default behavior of your browser & builds a basic typographic layout to start with.
11. Less : HTML Powered CSS Framework
Less Framework is a lightweight CSS framework that enables you to build flexible multi-column website layouts. It contains an eight-column grid optimized for a line-height of 24px & a set of typography presets based on the golden ratio which is parallel to the grid’s vertical rhythm.
12. Gumby 2 : Responsive CSS Framework
Gumby is a responsive and 960px-grid CSS grid framework that can be customized to work in every resolution, it is quite similar to Twitter Bootstrap, it comes with a web UI Kit of good looking buttons, forms, navigation + tabs and a tiny JavaScript file that brings these components to life.
13. Formee : CSS Form Framework
Formee is a CSS framework that helps you to easily create cross-browser web forms. It works with the technique provided by Fluid 960 Grid System to compose the form’s layout, allowing total flexibility to put it in any website or web system. –
14. Golden Grid System
Golden grid a web grid system that is totally focused on grid-based designs (not a complete CSS framework). Golden Grid uses float:left approach for building grids rather than positions. It is a 6/12 column grid system with a 970px main width.
15. Twitter Bootstrap : CSS Toolkit by Twitter
Twitter Bootstrap is a toolkit created by Twitter for kickstarting CSS when developing websites. It is built with Less and consists of base CSS + HTML for typography, forms, buttons, tables, grids, navigation, and some more. The grid provided is 940px wide 16-column and, for the layouts, there are solutions for both fixed + fluid ones. Twitter Bootstrap’s HTML elements have a plain-yet-elegant style where form inputs get a nice box-shadow on focus or table rows being highlighted. The kit also includes other stuff like popovers, alerts, tabs and pagination which all use semantic XHTML.
16. 960 GS
A CSS framework that is better known for helping you to organize your work flow as far as your website development is concerned is none other than the 960GS framework. Most importantly, the 960GS framework is known for offering you two diverse packages of twelve as well as sixteen columns that can either be used on its own or in accordance with one another. Secondly, the 960GS framework also makes available an overlay tool.
17. BluePrint
Blueprint refers to a CSS framework that plays an essential role in helping you develop a good deal of typographic grids. Moreover, with the help of this particular framework you can cut down a lot of time that is otherwise required for CSS development.
18. YAML
YAML is a CSS framework that is popularly known as Yet Another Multicolumn Layout. The best part about this particular CSS framework is that it is perfectly compatible with almost all the browsers that are operative in today’s date. Apart from this, the developer of YAML Dirk Jesse has come up with this framework keeping into mind the web standards. In addition, this CSS framework comes complete with a YAML Builder.
