Great React UI libraries
A 2023 list of my preferred React UI libraries
Published on
Creating a design system it’s a job apart. If you are trying to create something quickly something for your customers or yourself with a good UI taste I don’t recommend you go the hard way.
Just use a good library and if you need to replace the components you don’t like.
Here are some that I’ve used or seen lately.
What matters to me?
Some characteristics make a library gain points. They aren’t that many points, but can instantly help me decide if something is worth a try.
- Tailwind
- I’m just too comfortable with it
- Customization
- Some of my clients need in-brand components
- A vibrant community
- «Mmm, it’s always better when we’re together» — Better Together by Jack Johnson
- Number of components available
- To reduce the amount of things I have to create
Top
Shadcn
Beautifully designed components that you can copy and paste into your apps. Accessible. Customizable. Open Source.
I’m using this library right now on a medium size project. It’s good and flexible enough for my current needs.
Also, it’s trendy on X/X right now. So you can say that you are using Shadcn 😂
The only complaint that I have is that it is barebone. For many, it can be a plus, for others a big minus. I needed something lightweight that I could hack.
For future projects, I’ll probably go with the one that comes next in the list.
NextUI
Make beautiful websites regardless of your design experience.
At the moment it’s the best library that I’ve seen. It’s well-curated and the development speed looks good. The amount of components—and related options—is outstanding.
It will be the next I’ll use on a project.
NB: It is not related to Vercel.
Mantine
Build fully functional accessible web applications faster than ever – Mantine includes more than 100 customizable components and 50 hooks to cover you in any situation
Honorable mentions
Chakra
Chakra UI is a simple, modular and accessible component library that gives you the building blocks you need to build your React applications.
I tried it in the past, but unfortunately, it hasn’t resonated with me. Styled components aren’t the best at the moment in my opinion, they can get slow.
Anyway, this is a good library. Really. I’ve had seen a lot of successful products using it.
Mui (Core)
Get a growing list of React components and utilities, ready-to-use, free forever, and with accessibility always in mind. We’ve built the foundational UI blocks for your design system so you don’t have to.
It’s solid and the material design is appreciated. I still don’t know if all the premium things are good. I perceive them as intrusive.
Closing
I’ve chosen the path of Shadcn but I’m evaluating seriously NextUI. It seems to answer all my needs at the cost of some customization potential.
Are you using a UI library? If yes, what are you using?