Tailwind Best Practices

When to use

Use this skill when working with Tailwind CSS code. AI agents are trained on Tailwind v3 data and consistently generate outdated patterns - wrong config files, deprecated directives, removed utilities, and verbose class lists. This skill enforces Tailwind CSS v4 patterns.

Critical Rules

1. Use CSS @import Instead of @tailwind Directives

Wrong (agents do this):

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@tailwind base;
@tailwind components;
@tailwind utilities;

Correct:

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@import "tailwindcss";

Why: Tailwind v4 removed @tailwind directives entirely. Use a standard CSS @import statement.

2. Use CSS-First Configuration with @theme

Wrong (agents do this):

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// tailwind.config.js
module.exports = {
  theme: {
    extend: {
      colors: {
        brand: "#3b82f6",
      },
      spacing: {
        18: "4.5rem",
      },
    },
  },
};

Correct:

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@import "tailwindcss";

@theme {
  --color-brand: #3b82f6;
  --spacing-18: 4.5rem;
}

Why: Tailwind v4 uses CSS-first configuration with the @theme directive. No tailwind.config.js needed for most projects.

3. Use @tailwindcss/postcss Plugin

Wrong (agents do this):

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// postcss.config.mjs
export default {
  plugins: {
    "postcss-import": {},
    tailwindcss: {},
    autoprefixer: {},
  },
};

Correct:

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// postcss.config.mjs
export default {
  plugins: {
    "@tailwindcss/postcss": {},
  },
};

Why: In v4, postcss-import and autoprefixer are handled automatically. The plugin is @tailwindcss/postcss, not tailwindcss.

4. Use Modern Opacity Syntax

Wrong (agents do this):

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<div class="bg-red-500 bg-opacity-50">
  <div class="text-blue-600 text-opacity-75"></div>
</div>

Correct:

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<div class="bg-red-500/50">
  <div class="text-blue-600/75"></div>
</div>

Why: The bg-opacity-*, text-opacity-*, border-opacity-*, and placeholder-opacity-* utilities were removed in v4. Use the slash modifier syntax.

5. Use CSS Variables for Custom Colors

Wrong (agents do this):

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<div class="bg-[#3b82f6]"></div>

Correct:

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@theme {
  --color-brand: #3b82f6;
}

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<div class="bg-brand"></div>

Why: Arbitrary values (bg-[#3b82f6]) should be rare. Define custom colors in @theme so they're reusable and consistent.

6. Use Container Queries with @container

Wrong (agents do this):

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<div class="md:flex-row flex-col"></div>

Correct (when sizing should be based on parent, not viewport):

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<div class="@container">
  <div class="flex flex-col @md:flex-row">
    <!-- Responds to container width, not viewport -->
  </div>
</div>

Why: Tailwind v4 has built-in container query support. Use @container on the parent and @sm:, @md:, @lg: variants on children for component-level responsive design.

7. Use @utility for Custom Utilities

Wrong (agents do this):

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@layer utilities {
  .content-auto {
    content-visibility: auto;
  }
}

Correct:

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@utility content-auto {
  content-visibility: auto;
}

Why: Tailwind v4 uses @utility directive instead of @layer utilities for custom utilities.

8. Use Correct Important Modifier

Wrong (agents do this):

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// tailwind.config.js
module.exports = {
  important: true,
};

Correct:

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@import "tailwindcss" important;

Why: The important option moved from config to the CSS import statement in v4.

9. Use Renamed Utilities

Wrong (agents do this):

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<div class="shadow-sm ring-1 ring-gray-900/5">
  <div class="blur-sm">
    <div class="rounded-sm"></div>
  </div>
</div>

Correct:

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<div class="shadow-xs ring-1 ring-gray-900/5">
  <div class="blur-xs">
    <div class="rounded-xs"></div>
  </div>
</div>

Why: In v4, shadow-sm was renamed to shadow-xs, shadow to shadow-sm, blur-sm to blur-xs, rounded-sm to rounded-xs, etc. The old -sm values now map to what was previously the default.

10. Use Modern Gradient Syntax

Wrong (agents do this):

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<div class="bg-gradient-to-r from-blue-500 to-purple-500"></div>

Correct:

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<div class="bg-linear-to-r from-blue-500 to-purple-500"></div>

Why: Tailwind v4 renamed bg-gradient-to-* to bg-linear-to-* and added support for other gradient types like bg-conic-* and bg-radial-*.

11. Use not-* Variant for Negation

Wrong (agents do this):

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<div class="hover:bg-blue-500">
  <!-- No way to style non-hovered state specifically -->
</div>

Correct:

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<div class="not-hover:opacity-75 hover:opacity-100"></div>

Why: Tailwind v4 added the not-* variant for styling elements that do NOT match a condition.

12. Use @starting-style for Entry Animations

Wrong (agents do this):

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.modal {
  opacity: 0;
  transition: opacity 0.3s;
}
.modal.open {
  opacity: 1;
}

Correct:

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<div class="starting:opacity-0 opacity-100 transition-opacity duration-300"></div>

Why: Tailwind v4 supports @starting-style via the starting: variant for CSS-only entry animations without JavaScript.

Patterns

• Define all custom design tokens in @theme blocks
• Use @import "tailwindcss" as the single entry point
• Use container queries (@container + @md:) for component-level responsive design
• Use the slash modifier for opacity: bg-blue-500/50, text-gray-900/75
• Use @utility for custom utilities, @variant for custom variants
• Use bg-linear-to-* for gradients (not bg-gradient-to-*)

Anti-Patterns

• NEVER create a tailwind.config.js unless you need JavaScript-based dynamic config
• NEVER use @tailwind base/components/utilities - use @import "tailwindcss"
• NEVER use bg-opacity-*, text-opacity-* - use slash modifier syntax
• NEVER use @layer utilities for custom utilities - use @utility
• NEVER use bg-gradient-to-* - use bg-linear-to-*
• NEVER use postcss-import or autoprefixer with v4 - they're built in
• NEVER use shadow-sm when you mean the smallest shadow - it's now shadow-xs