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Semantic UI VS Bulma

Compare Semantic UI VS Bulma and see what are their differences

Semantic UI logo Semantic UI

A UI Component library implemented using a set of specifications designed around natural language

Bulma logo Bulma

Bulma is an open source CSS framework based on Flexbox and built with Sass. It's 100% responsive, fully modular, and available for free.
  • Semantic UI Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-10-20
  • Bulma Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-07-14

Semantic UI features and specs

  • Intuitive Class Names
    Semantic UI uses human-readable class names that describe their purpose, making it easy to understand and write code without consulting documentation frequently.
  • Customizability
    Semantic UI allows for deep customizability with its theming, letting developers adjust the default designs to match specific project requirements.
  • Comprehensive Components
    Semantic UI provides a wide range of pre-built components like buttons, forms, and modals, which can significantly speed up development time.
  • Flexibility
    The framework offers flexibility in terms of its modular structure, enabling developers to import only the components they need.
  • Detailed Documentation
    Semantic UI has detailed and well-organized documentation, which helps developers quickly resolve issues and understand how to use various features.

Possible disadvantages of Semantic UI

  • Large File Size
    The framework's comprehensive nature can lead to larger file sizes, which might affect the load times of web applications.
  • Learning Curve
    Despite its intuitive naming conventions, the breadth of components and features can result in a steep learning curve for new developers.
  • Community Support
    Unlike more popular frameworks like Bootstrap, Semantic UI has a smaller community, which can mean fewer third-party plugins and community support.
  • Incomplete Integration
    Some integrations with newer JavaScript frameworks such as React or Vue might require extra effort or third-party libraries, given that Semantic UI is not natively designed for them.
  • Infrequent Updates
    The development and updates to Semantic UI have been less frequent compared to other UI frameworks, potentially leading to compatibility and security issues.

Bulma features and specs

  • Simple and Elegant Design
    Bulma offers a clean, modern aesthetic that looks great out of the box. This eliminates much of the need for extensive customization to achieve a professional look.
  • Responsive Layouts
    Bulma is built with a flexible grid system that ensures your designs are responsive. This makes it straightforward to create web pages that look great on both desktop and mobile devices.
  • Ease of Use
    Bulma has a straightforward class-based syntax that is easy to understand and implement. This simplifies the development process, especially for newcomers.
  • BEM Methodology
    Bulma employs Block Element Modifier (BEM) methodology for CSS, which helps in writing clean, understandable, and scalable code.
  • No JavaScript Dependencies
    Bulma is purely a CSS framework, meaning it doesn't come bundled with JavaScript. This allows you to integrate it with any JavaScript framework of your choice, like React or Vue.js, without any conflicts.
  • Well-Documented
    The official Bulma website has extensive documentation, including examples and code snippets, which makes it easier to learn and implement.
  • Active Community
    Bulma has an active community of developers who contribute to its development and are available for support, which can be helpful when facing issues or needing guidance.

Possible disadvantages of Bulma

  • Limited Customizability
    While Bulma is designed to be easy to use, its simplicity can sometimes limit your ability to customize components as deeply as you might be able to with other frameworks.
  • Lack of Components
    Bulma does not come with as many built-in components as some other CSS frameworks like Bootstrap. You might find yourself needing to create custom components for some features.
  • No JavaScript
    The lack of built-in JavaScript functionality means you will need to write or integrate JavaScript separately for more interactive elements, such as modals or carousels.
  • Performance Overhead
    Like most CSS frameworks, using Bulma can introduce some performance overhead due to unused CSS. You'll need to use a tool like PurgeCSS to remove unused styles for optimal performance.
  • Learning Curve
    Despite its simplicity, there can still be a learning curve for developers who are accustomed to other frameworks like Bootstrap or Tailwind CSS.
  • Small Community compared to Others
    While the community is active, it is smaller compared to more established frameworks like Bootstrap, potentially making it harder to find solutions to less common issues.
  • Semantic Class Names
    Bulma emphasizes semantic class names following the BEM methodology, which can be verbose and may require a change in practice for some developers.

Semantic UI videos

Semantic UI In 60 Minutes

Bulma videos

S.H. Figuarts BULMA Dragon Ball Action Figure Review

More videos:

  • Review - S.H. Figuarts Dragon Ball Adventure Begins Bulma Review
  • Review - Bandai SH Figuarts BULMA Review BR / DiegoHDM

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Semantic UI and Bulma)
Design Tools
34 34%
66% 66
Developer Tools
32 32%
68% 68
CSS Framework
35 35%
65% 65
Development Tools
36 36%
64% 64

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Semantic UI and Bulma

Semantic UI Reviews

22 Best Bootstrap Alternatives & What Each Is Best For
I chose Semantic UI because of its intuitive and accessible approach to design. Its use of human-friendly HTML sets it apart from many other frameworks, making it a more natural choice for developers prioritizing user-friendly designs. From my perspective, Semantic UI is the best tool for creating websites and applications that are easy for both developers and end users to...
Source: thectoclub.com
10 Best Free React UI Libraries in 2023
The styling of Semantic UI React is based on the Semantic UI theme and it's also free from jQuery. Apart from that, there are other useful features like augmentation, shorthand props, auto controlled state, etc.
11 Best Material UI Alternatives
Semantic UI supports theming and customization, allowing developers to customize the appearance of their UI components to align with their project’s branding. With its intuitive syntax and detailed documentation, Semantic UI is a valuable tool for designing and developing modern web interfaces.
Source: www.uxpin.com
Top 10 Best CSS Frameworks for Front-End Developers in 2022
If you’re just starting out with CSS and UI, go for Tacit, Pure, or Skeleton. However, to build more complex elements, you’ll need a more inclusive framework like Foundation, Tailwind, or Bootstrap. You can get an easy learning curve through Bulma or Semantic UI.
Source: hackr.io
15 Best CSS Frameworks: Professional Bootstrap and Foundation Alternatives
If you exclude the fact that Semantic UI doesn’t have the utility classes Bootstrap offers, it is a comprehensive CSS framework that you should try. The best Semantic feature allows you to write HTML code without using BEM methodologies.

Bulma Reviews

22 Best Bootstrap Alternatives & What Each Is Best For
I chose Bulma for its efficient use of Flexbox, a layout model that allows a responsive design with minimal effort. This efficiency sets Bulma apart from many other CSS frameworks. In my judgment, Bulma stands out as the best choice for developers seeking a powerful, Flexbox-based CSS framework for creating flexible and intuitive web designs.
Source: thectoclub.com
15 Top Bootstrap Alternatives For Frontend Developers in 2024
Suppose you want to learn the valuable skill of working with the mobile-first Bulma framework. In that case, we highly recommend taking the "Master Bulma CSS Framework" course by Jeppe Schaumburg Jensen on Udemy. In this course, you will master the latest version of Bulma and create real projects and themes while learning HTML, web design, and coding.
Source: coursesity.com
9 Best Bootstrap Alternatives | Best Frontend Frameworks [2024]
Bulma comes with a beautiful range of colors out-of-the-box, and it won’t be wrong if we call it the most beautiful framework out there in the market. It can be used directly to get really nice-looking websites with the very least effort.
Source: hackr.io
11 Best Material UI Alternatives
Bulma’s simplicity, extensive documentation, and community support make it a popular choice for projects of all sizes. Whether you’re building a landing page, a dashboard, or an eCommerce site, Bulma provides a solid foundation for building aesthetically pleasing and functional interfaces.
Source: www.uxpin.com
Top 10 Best CSS Frameworks for Front-End Developers in 2022
Although new, Bulma has quickly climbed up the list of top 10 CSS frameworks. It has no JavaScript components (no .js) and the most readable CSS classes. To create grids, Bulma has a powerful system known as tiles, making the page elegant and neat. It is highly modular and easy to learn. Although small, Bulma has a community of passionate individuals wanting to change the...
Source: hackr.io

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Bulma should be more popular than Semantic UI. It has been mentiond 115 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.

Semantic UI mentions (19)

  • 100+ Must-Have Web Development Resources
    Semantic UI: A fully semantic front-end development framework. - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
  • Ant Design – the second most popular React UI framework
    Semantic UI[1] was one I used to use, both the plain CSS one as well as the React version of the library. Version 3.0 is coming (eventually), which has left it a bit outdated for a while, but it's still a solid UI library imho. I have been switching away to Tailwind. [1]: https://semantic-ui.com/. - Source: Hacker News / 10 months ago
  • Ask HN: I'm bad at design, which stops me from finishing side projects. Advice?
    What stack are you using? I personally recommend utilizing readily available components: https://ui.shadcn.com/ https://mui.com/ https://semantic-ui.com/ etc.. - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
  • I hate CSS: how can I build UIs?
    Are you cool with JS frameworks? If so, you can use a higher level of abstraction that takes care of the CSS for you. If you just want to mock something up, you can use a pre-built UI system / component framework and just put together UIs declaratively, without having to worry about the underlying CSS or HTML at all. Examples include https://mui.com/ and https://chakra-ui.com/ and https://ant.design/ Really easy... - Source: Hacker News / over 1 year ago
  • Software Design Document - Lite
    Honestly you should build a webpage and use a UI library if you want markdown with some extra pop. Check out semantic ui. Source: over 2 years ago
View more

Bulma mentions (115)

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What are some alternatives?

When comparing Semantic UI and Bulma, you can also consider the following products

Bootstrap - Simple and flexible HTML, CSS, and JS for popular UI components and interactions

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

Materialize CSS - A modern responsive front-end framework based on Material Design

UIKit - A lightweight and modular front-end framework for developing fast and powerful web interfaces

Foundation - The most advanced responsive front-end framework in the world

Material UI - A CSS Framework and a Set of React Components that Implement Google's Material Design