Software Alternatives & Startups

Materialize CSS VS Element UI

Compare Materialize CSS VS Element UI and see what are their differences

Materialize CSS

A modern responsive front-end framework based on Material Design

Rating
0 reviews
Pricing
Open source
Element UI

A Desktop UI Library. Element, a Vue 2.0 based component library for developers, designers and product managers.

Rating
0 reviews
Pricing
Open source

Which is more popular?

Based on our record, Materialize CSS seems to be a lot more popular than Element UI. While we know about 28 links to Materialize CSS, we've tracked only 2 mentions of Element UI.

social mentions
28 vs 2
Design Tools popularity
78% vs 22%
alternatives listed
240+ vs 199

Base details

Website, pricing, platforms and company facts side by side.

Materialize CSS
Element UI
Website materializecss.com element.eleme.io
Pricing
Open source
Open source
Listed in

Features and specs

What each product offers, as listed by its team.

Materialize CSS 5 features
Element UI 6 features
  • Responsive Design
    Materialize CSS provides a responsive grid system, making it easier to create layouts that work well on various screen sizes and devices.
  • Material Design
    Adheres to Google's Material Design principles, offering a modern and professional look that is consistent across web applications.
  • Component Variety
    Offers a wide range of pre-built components, including forms, buttons, cards, and navigation bars, which helps speed up development.
  • Customization
    Provides options to customize components using Sass, making it flexible for specific design needs.
  • Built-in JavaScript
    Includes built-in JavaScript components like modals, carousels, and tabs, which enhance functionality without requiring additional libraries.

Possible disadvantages

  • Learning Curve
    Although it follows Material Design guidelines, there is a learning curve associated with understanding and implementing its various components and classes.
  • File Size
    Including the full library can make your project heavier, affecting load times, especially for users on slower connections.
  • Customization Complexity
    While customizable, deeply customizing or overriding default styles can sometimes be complicated and time-consuming.
  • Dependency on jQuery
    Some components still rely on jQuery, adding to the library size and potentially conflicting with modern JavaScript practices.
  • Community Support
    Compared to larger frameworks like Bootstrap, Materialize CSS has a smaller community, which can result in fewer third-party resources and plugins.
  • Comprehensive Component Library
    Element UI offers a wide range of well-designed components that cover most use cases, making it easier to develop complex interfaces.
  • Consistency
    The UI components maintain a consistent look and feel throughout the application, providing a professional and unified user experience.
  • Customization
    Element UI is highly customizable, allowing developers to easily modify the appearance and behavior of components to match their design requirements.
  • Documentation
    The library comes with comprehensive documentation, which includes examples and detailed guides to help developers quickly get up to speed.
  • Active Community
    It has an active community and regular updates, which means that any issues are quickly addressed, and new features are frequently added.
  • Integration with Vue.js
    Element UI is specifically designed for Vue.js, providing seamless integration and making it a go-to choice for Vue developers.

Possible disadvantages

  • Bundle Size
    The complete library can be quite large, which may impact the performance and loading times of your application if not handled properly.
  • Limited to Vue.js
    Element UI is built specifically for Vue.js and is not easily compatible with other JavaScript frameworks, limiting its versatility.
  • Customizability Limitations
    While it is possible to customize the components, doing so can sometimes be complex and may require deep knowledge of the library and Vue.js.
  • Learning Curve
    For developers who are not familiar with Vue.js, there is a learning curve associated with both the framework and the Element UI components.
  • Dependency Management
    Managing dependencies and ensuring compatibility between different versions of Vue.js and Element UI can be challenging.
  • Scoped Stylings
    The styling of components may sometimes conflict with the scoped styles in your application, requiring additional adjustments.

Analysis

An editorial look at what each product does well and who it suits.

Materialize CSS
Element UI

Overall verdict

  • Materialize CSS is a good choice if you're looking for a framework that emphasizes Material Design and comes with a sleek, modern interface. It's particularly useful for developers who want to quickly integrate Google's design philosophy without delving into custom styling or layout creation.

Why this product is good

  • Materialize CSS is a front-end framework based on Material Design principles developed by Google. It provides a comprehensive set of UI components that help developers create visually appealing and responsive web applications quickly. The framework includes a variety of pre-styled components like buttons, forms, cards, and much more, which adhere to the Material Design guidelines. This consistency in design components helps ensure a cohesive and professional look across web applications. Additionally, it simplifies responsive design with a grid system that's easy to implement, and it comes with excellent documentation and a supportive community.

Recommended for

    Materialize CSS is recommended for teams and developers who prefer Google's Material Design aesthetic, are building applications with a focus on rapid UI development, and value consistency and ease of use. It's also great for projects where a pre-existing UI library speeds up the development process, such as prototypes, admin dashboards, or smaller web applications. However, for highly customized UI components or non-Material Design projects, other frameworks might be more suitable.

Overall verdict

  • Yes, Element UI is considered to be a good choice for Vue.js applications, particularly for those who need a robust and mature set of UI components.

Why this product is good

  • Element UI is a popular UI library for Vue.js because it provides a comprehensive set of components that are both aesthetically pleasing and highly functional. It has a well-documented API and a wide range of customizable options, making it easy for developers to create professional-looking applications quickly. The active community and frequent updates ensure that it remains compatible with the latest versions of Vue.js and incorporates feedback from its users.

Recommended for

    Element UI is recommended for developers and teams building web applications with Vue.js who need a wide array of ready-to-use components, value a clean design, and appreciate a component library maintained by an active community.

Videos

Walkthroughs and reviews on video.

Materialize CSS 1 video + Add
Element UI 2 videos + Add

Build A Travel Agency Theme With Materialize CSS 1.0.0

Vue.js Element UI Component Library | Demo & Review

More videos

  • - Element UI Vue Introduction (Component Framework) On Basics (First Look)

Category popularity

How often each product is chosen within a category, 0–100% relative to the other.

Score bands 0–20 21–40 41–50 51–60 61–100
Materialize CSS
Element UI
78% 78%
22% 22%
88% 88%
12% 12%
87% 87%
13% 13%
69% 69%
31% 31%

User comments

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Reviews and articles

External articles and on-site reviews we used to compare the two products.

Materialize CSS no reviews yet
Element UI no reviews yet

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Social recommendations and mentions

Recommendations tracked on public social media and blogs since March 2021.

Materialize CSS 28 mentions
Element UI 2 mentions
  • JavaScript Awesome Package
    Materialize - Responsive front-end framework based on Material Design. - Source: dev.to / 8 months ago
  • Mistakes Were Made
    Sure, why not use Blazor? It makes life easier for the developers who are primarily backend, to work on the frontend as well. Seems like the better choice. So what's next? The UI library. No shade to the long-time standing Bootstrap, but... - Source: dev.to / 12 months ago
  • Top 5 Best CSS Frameworks for Responsive Web Design in 2024
    Materialize is a modern CSS framework based on Google’s Material Design. It was created and designed by Google to provide a unified and consistent user interface across all its products. Materialize is focused on user experience as it... - Source: dev.to / about 2 years ago

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Alternatives to Materialize CSS and Element UI

When comparing Materialize CSS and Element UI, you can also consider the following products.