Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Purgecss VS rollup.js

Compare Purgecss VS rollup.js and see what are their differences

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Purgecss logo Purgecss

Easily remove unused CSS

rollup.js logo rollup.js

Rollup is a module bundler for JavaScript which compiles small pieces of code into a larger piece such as application.
  • Purgecss Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-03-28
  • rollup.js Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-02-09

Purgecss features and specs

  • Reduced File Size
    PurgeCSS analyzes your CSS files and removes unused selectors, significantly reducing the size of your CSS files, leading to faster load times.
  • Performance Improvement
    By eliminating unnecessary CSS, PurgeCSS can improve the performance of your website, as there is less CSS for the browser to parse and execute.
  • Enhanced Maintainability
    With PurgeCSS, your CSS becomes cleaner and more manageable, making it easier for developers to maintain and update.
  • Integration
    PurgeCSS can be easily integrated into build tools like Webpack, Gulp, and Grunt, allowing seamless automation in the development workflow.
  • Customizability
    PurgeCSS offers configuration options that allow developers to specify content sources, safelisting of selectors, and more, making it highly customizable.

Possible disadvantages of Purgecss

  • Configuration Complexity
    Setting up PurgeCSS may require a detailed configuration to correctly identify which CSS selectors are in use, which can be complex for larger projects.
  • Potential Removal of Used Styles
    If not configured properly, PurgeCSS might accidentally remove dynamic classes generated by JavaScript or conditional rendering, affecting the functionality of the site.
  • Initial Setup Time
    The initial setup and integration process can be time-consuming, especially for projects with a large codebase or complex structure.
  • Limited Dynamic Content Handling
    PurgeCSS may struggle with highly dynamic sites where CSS classes are generated at runtime, requiring careful management or additional tools to ensure accuracy.
  • Learning Curve
    Developers may need to spend additional time learning how to effectively use PurgeCSS, especially if they are new to the tool or similar CSS management solutions.

rollup.js features and specs

  • Tree Shaking
    Rollup.js performs treeshaking to eliminate dead code, resulting in smaller bundle sizes. It analyzes the dependency tree and includes only the parts of the code that are actually used.
  • Output Formats
    Supports multiple output formats including ES modules, CommonJS, AMD, UMD, and IIFE. This makes it versatile for different use cases.
  • Plugins
    Rollup.js has a rich ecosystem of plugins that extend its functionality, such as code transformation, minification, and support for various types of modules.
  • Code Splitting
    Supports code splitting, allowing you to break your code into smaller chunks that can be loaded on demand. This improves performance for larger projects.
  • Efficient Bundling
    Offers efficient bundling by removing duplicates and ensuring that each module gets included only once, which contributes to reduced bundle size.
  • Minimal Configuration
    Generally requires minimal configuration to get started, focusing on simplicity and ease of use.

Possible disadvantages of rollup.js

  • Learning Curve
    Although relatively simple to use, there is still a learning curve associated with understanding its configuration and the plugin system.
  • Initial Build Time
    The initial build time can be slower compared to some other bundlers, particularly for larger projects.
  • Limited Built-in Features
    Rollup.js focuses on being a minimalist tool, so it lacks some of the built-in features that other bundlers may have. Often, additional functionality needs to be added via plugins.
  • Plugin Compatibility
    Not all plugins work seamlessly with Rollup.js, and there may be occasional compatibility issues, especially with plugins originally designed for other bundlers.
  • Node.js Ecosystem
    While Rollup.js excels in bundling for browsers, it is not as commonly used for Node.js applications compared to other tools like Webpack.
  • Community Size
    The community size is smaller compared to other bundling tools like Webpack, which can sometimes make finding solutions to issues more challenging.

Analysis of Purgecss

Overall verdict

  • Purgecss is a valuable tool for developers looking to optimize their CSS for production environments. It is especially useful for projects where CSS can become bloated due to unused styles. However, users should be cautious when configuring Purgecss to ensure that essential styles are not accidentally removed.

Why this product is good

  • Purgecss is designed to remove unused CSS, which can reduce the file size of your stylesheets, improve loading times, and ensure more efficient use of resources. It scans your HTML, JavaScript, and other files to determine which CSS classes are actually used, and eliminates the rest. This is particularly beneficial in large projects or when using CSS frameworks that include many utility classes.

Recommended for

    Purgecss is recommended for web developers working on projects with significant CSS codebases, especially when using CSS frameworks like Bootstrap or Tailwind CSS. It's also ideal for teams focused on performance optimization and efficient resource management in web applications.

Analysis of rollup.js

Overall verdict

  • Rollup.js is a highly recommended choice for projects where ES6 modules are extensively used, and the goal is to produce compact and clean output. It's particularly beneficial for library authors aiming to provide their libraries in multiple formats.

Why this product is good

  • Rollup.js is good due to its efficient bundling process that helps in creating smaller and faster JavaScript files. It uses ES6 modules which enable better tree shaking and helps in removing unused code, leading to cleaner and more optimized builds. Additionally, Rollup has a simple and modular architecture that can be extended with plugins to support various build processes and features.

Recommended for

  • JavaScript library authors
  • Developers prioritizing ES6 module syntax
  • Projects that require efficient tree shaking
  • Those needing a customizable and streamlined bundling process

Purgecss videos

How to use PurgeCSS to Remove Unused CSS Classes from Tailwind CSS, Bootstrap, and more!

More videos:

  • Review - Gatsby.js with Tailwind CSS and PurgeCSS

rollup.js videos

No rollup.js videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

Add video

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Purgecss and rollup.js)
Developer Tools
69 69%
31% 31
Web Application Bundler
0 0%
100% 100
Design Tools
100 100%
0% 0
JS Build Tools
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Purgecss and rollup.js

Purgecss Reviews

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rollup.js Reviews

Rollup v. Webpack v. Parcel
Rollup provides much simpler configuration over webpack 4 and has a host of pre-configured plugins that are a breeze to incorporate into your project. Rollup's also the fastest of the build tools period.
Source: x-team.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, rollup.js should be more popular than Purgecss. It has been mentiond 62 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Purgecss mentions (36)

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rollup.js mentions (62)

  • JavaScript is so redundant
    Why are there so many JavaScript build tools? Gulp, Grunt, Webpack, Laravel Mix, Rollup.js, and now Vite. And these are just the ones that I've worked with. Haven't we solved this problem? And why build a new tool? Why not improve existing tools? - Source: dev.to / 16 days ago
  • ⚔️ Vite vs. Turbopack in 2025: Which One to Choose?
    Vite (pronounced veet) was created by Evan You (Vue's creator) and launched in 2020. It uses native ES modules in the browser and esbuild for lightning-fast dev servers and Rollup for optimized production builds. - Source: dev.to / 20 days ago
  • Valentine’s Day Breakup: React Dumps Create React App
    Vite is a modern frontend build tool used to develop fast and super efficient web applications. It serves files instantly and ensures that changes are updated immediately after they are implemented. It makes use of Rollup for optimized builds and has support for when you want to build a Javascript library (instead of a full app). - Source: dev.to / 3 months ago
  • Advanced Guide to Using Vite with React in 2025
    In 2025, mastering Vite for your React projects means leveraging powerful configurations, intelligent optimizations, and a robust plugin ecosystem. By understanding Vite’s modern architecture—native ES modules (ESM) during development and optimized Rollup bundling for production—you can significantly streamline your workflow, improve developer experience, and deliver fast, performant applications at scale. - Source: dev.to / 3 months ago
  • Optimizing React Development with Vite🤩.
    6. Production-Ready Code Vite uses Rollup for production builds, which optimizes the code by bundling it efficiently, performing tree shaking, and minifying JavaScript. This results in smaller, optimized production builds that are ready for deployment. - Source: dev.to / 6 months ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing Purgecss and rollup.js, you can also consider the following products

Tailwind CSS - A utility-first CSS framework for rapidly building custom user interfaces.

Webpack - Webpack is a module bundler. Its main purpose is to bundle JavaScript files for usage in a browser, yet it is also capable of transforming, bundling, or packaging just about any resource or asset.

CSS Peeper - Smart CSS viewer tailored for Designers.

Parcel - Blazing fast, zero configuration web application bundler

Unused CSS - Easily find and remove unused CSS rules

npm - npm is a package manager for Node.