What is the Difference Between Bootstrap and CSS

Bootstrap vs CSS

Bootstrap is an immensely popular open-source framework used by millions of developers to build responsive and mobile-first web apps. Bootstrap made it a lot easier for developers to easily and quickly develop layouts for their web apps.

However, the launch of CSS Grid paved the way for a new method for layout creation. Since then, web developers are undecided on which method is the best choice for creating layouts.

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What is CSS

Many web developers claim that the use of CSS grid made the process of layout creation a lot simpler and a cleaner script. Another argument in favor of CSS is the source order independence, which allows you to rearrange the layout without worrying about how HTML was written.

What Is CSS

CSS stands for Cascading Style Sheet. This is used to facilitate the layout of HTML elements.

"Cascading" refers to the section in which we apply the "Style" procedure. The "Style" refers to the elements such as fonts, color, margin, heading, padding, height, width, background images etc. "Sheet" refers to the layout of the web pages. With this file, we can change the look and layout of all the web pages in the entire website by editing just one single CSS file.

An example showing a simple CSS property for the word

Example

<style>
  p {color: green; text-align: right;}
</style >.

What Is Bootstrap

Bootstrap is a framework for the development of responsive and mobile friendly websites. Bootstrap helps with easier and faster web development. It includes various HTML and CSS based design elements for fonts, images, icons, colors, buttons, forms, borders and many more.

Many developers argue that Bootstrap is still the best choice when it comes to layout creation. Both CSS and Bootstrap has their fair share of pros and cons when it comes to creating layouts. Still, we firmly believe that Bootstrap can be the better choice due to the following reasons.

A few Bootstrap 4 examples listed here.

Benefits of Using CSS

• • Complete Control: With CSS, developers have full control over how the website looks and behaves. Customizing the design according to specific needs is entirely possible.
• • Flexibility: CSS allows you to create highly unique and custom web pages. Whether you are designing a basic layout or complex animations, CSS offers the flexibility to implement almost anything.
• • Learning Curve: Learning CSS from scratch can be more challenging, but it allows developers to build strong foundational skills in web design.
• • Performance: Pure CSS is typically faster to load and requires fewer resources than a framework like Bootstrap.

Benefits of Using Bootstrap

• • Pre-built Components: Bootstrap comes with a wide range of components like navigation bars, buttons, modals, and alerts. These elements are ready to use and fully styled, saving time and effort.
• • Responsive by Default: One of the major advantages of Bootstrap is that it automatically adjusts to different screen sizes. This reduces the amount of time needed to make your site mobile-friendly.
• • Consistency: Since Bootstrap offers a consistent design structure, it ensures a uniform look and feel across all pages of the website.
• • Fast Development: By using Bootstrap’s pre-designed components, you can quickly build a website without having to start from scratch.
• • Active Community and Documentation: Bootstrap has an active developer community and extensive documentation, making it easier to find solutions to common problems.

When to Use CSS vs. Bootstrap

Use CSS When:

• You want full control over the design and layout.
• You need a completely unique website that doesn't follow standard design patterns.
• You have specific design requirements that require deep customization.

Use Bootstrap When:

• You need to build a responsive website quickly.
• You want to use pre-designed UI components like buttons, navigation bars, and modals.
• You don’t have time or resources to create custom designs from scratch.
• You prefer a ready-made solution that is simple to implement and easy to customize for basic needs.

Simple Markup

There is an argument that using Bootstrap made HTML markup very complex. This is what encouraged several developers to choose CSS over Bootstrap. However, the reality is that the use of Bootstrap will not complicate your HTML markup. In fact, Bootstrap have eliminated the need to add additional media queries and CSS extensions too.

Flexibility

The grid system of Bootstrap is an integral tool that will help you to arrange layouts for different screen sizes. All you need to do is to use a few built-in tools of Bootstrap, like flex box ordering and responsive column classes for adjusting layouts. In this case also, you will not need to write any additional media queries or CSS class definitions. Since there are 5 grid breakpoints in Bootstrap, you will be able to make layouts that fit across different devices.

Faster Development

Another important benefit is its speed for development. No more coding from scrape. Bootstrap has ready-made coding blocks which help to build your foundation quickly. And with the Cross browser compatibility, which also helps Developers.

Components

With developing any website we use a multitude of component like alert boxes, drop-downs, button groups, navigation bars, breadcrumbs, labels and badges, alerts etc. All these component and more are already pre-styled in bootstrap.

12 Column Limitation Has Been Lifted

The grid system of Bootstrap framework is divided into 12 columns. One of the major issues with the 12-column system was that it was impossible to create columns that do not equally add up to 12. However, this shortcoming was resolved in the latest version of Bootstrap by introducing a unit-less grid system. The standard 12-column system can now be used along with auto-layout columns. This implies that you will be able to create any number of columns you want.

An example of Bootstrap layout might look like this:

<div class="container">
 <div class="row">
  <div class="col-md-6">
   <h1>Bootstrap Example</h1>
  </div>
 </div>
</div>


Bootstrap Eases Updating Older Websites

Most developers will have to work on a number of older websites whose code has been written by others. A major percent of the websites (around 26%) that you see across the web heavily relies on the Bootstrap framework. This means that several older websites that you will have to work on will be probably using Bootstrap. So, if you are knowledgeable with Bootstrap (for a comprehensive tutorial, take a look at Bootstrap 4 tutorial), it will come in handy when you are working on future projects.

Summary

It is evident that Bootstrap will continue to be an integral part of web development for a very long time. Rest assured, Bootstrap will be around for a long time and makes the process of creating layouts for web much easier.

By mastering both, you’ll be well on your way to becoming a skilled web developer, capable of tackling any project with confidence.

RSH Website was written by hand using a combination of Bootstrap and CSS files.

Author Bio: Tadeusz Kehan

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