Until today, improvisations have been constant when creating layouts with CSS. This is because, until now, there was nothing specific for this function. In the beginning, it was necessary to use a table as a way to facilitate the creation of layouts, which gave rise to several problems.
Next, it was necessary to use float instead of tables — which was a facilitator, as it is a more flexible resource and requires less HTML . However, as it was limited and not appropriate for this function, it was not the best solution.
Thus, came the CSS flexbox layout or, simply, flexbox, which came to align and distribute spaces between items in a container, whose main idea is to give the ability to change the width, height and order of elements to promote a better filling of the available space, mainly for the purpose of talking to all types of devices and screen sizes .
However, the glorious flexbox was not designed to solve all problems, even more so when it comes to the most complex interfaces Phone Number List Considering that, today, we are breaking the barriers of existing technological standards, we can count on a new “gadget”: the CSS grid layout. So what is the main point of distinction between one feature and another?
Flexbox is used to design simplified, one-dimensional layouts with a straight-line arrangement and is best suited for application components and small-scale layouts. The CSS grid is intended for creating two-dimensional layouts of greater complexity — it is ideal for organizing the structure of a scheme with higher-level elements, such as headers, footers, sections and sidebars.
Therefore, the essential difference observed between the two is in the distribution of the items. It is worth mentioning that CSS is considered the first module developed especially to solve old layout design problems from the past. However, it is a mistake to think that it has arrived to take the place of the flexbox.
The two resources can complement each other — since one does what the other does not, both can work together. Some things can be done with both, but one performs each type of work more simply and better. Check out, in the next topic, in which situations each of them works best.
When to use flexbox?
It can also be used to work with elements in a two-dimensional way, but flexbox works best when working with items in just one dimension, that is, in a column or row.
An easy-to-visualize example is the menu positioned horizontally or vertically, which indicates how good it is at promoting alignments, regardless of the direction, not even the number of elements arranged.
When to use the grid?
The grid can be used to work with items in a single dimension; however, it is perfect for arranging elements in two dimensions, especially when you need to define the structure of a page (which would be complicated with flexbox).
With the grid, you indicate the point where an element begins and ends within your grid, which provides a lot of flexibility. It is also possible to name areas of your grid and, from there, indicate an element belonging to that area, making the code much more readable and easier to maintain.
Therefore, if the layout has a certain number of columns and rows, the grid is likely to be a better option than flexbox for the function. Furthermore, you may need to write fewer media queries, as you can take advantage of features such as autolayout, minmax, auto-fill and repeat.