Chakra UI vs. Mantine
By SW Habitation
Chakra UI
Mantine
You know how building a website can feel like a lot, especially when you’re trying to style every little thing yourself? Buttons, forms, layouts… it adds up fast. That’s where UI frameworks really save the day. They give you a bunch of premade design elements that you can just drop in and go. It’s like having a design starter pack that helps your site look clean and professional, without spending forever tweaking the details.
What is Chakra UI ?
Chakra UI is a popular React component library that lets you build accessible, responsive UIs with ease. It provides a collection of components with built-in ARIA attributes, theme support, and responsive design via style props.
It’s ideal for devs who want plug-and-play components with built-in styling and dark mode.
Key Features of Chakra UI
- Component-rich: Inputs, modals, alerts, menus, tooltips, accordions, etc.
- Style Props: Apply margin, padding, color, size directly via props.
- Accessibility: ARIA-compliant components out of the box.
- Themeable: Custom themes, variants, dark mode support.
- Emotion CSS-in-JS: Built with Emotion for dynamic styling.
- TypeScript Support: Fully typed and developer-friendly.
Advantages of Chakra UI
- Easy to use with minimal setup.
- Style props eliminate the need for external CSS.
- Great documentation and community support.
- Built-in dark mode and responsive utilities.
- Clean and maintainable code structure.
Disadvantages of Chakra UI
- Limited design flexibility if you want pixel-perfect UI.
- Larger bundle size due to style props and runtime styling.
- Less control over raw DOM/styling.
- Not Tailwind-friendly out of the box.
- Can be verbose for deeply nested component trees.
What is Mantine?
Mantine is a React component library with over 100 UI components and 50+ custom hooks, designed to help developers build modern, accessible, and performant UIs. It supports RTL layouts, dark mode, and complete theme customization, all while staying lightweight.
Mantine doesn’t force you into a predefined design system. You build your own style while enjoying great developer experience, full TypeScript support, and zero CSS-in-JS lock-in.
Key Features of Mantine
- 100+ Modular Components: Buttons, modals, tabs, date pickers, accordions, and more.
- 50+ Built-in Hooks: Clipboard, notifications, form validation, hotkeys, modals, etc.
- Full Theming System: Custom colors, fonts, spacing, radii, shadows, etc. with MantineProvider.
- Dark Mode & RTL Support: Native dark mode toggle and right-to-left support out of the box.
- Flexible Styling Options: Use Emotion, CSS Modules, or inline styles — your choice.
- Responsive Design: Built-in Grid and responsive props.
Advantages of Mantine
- Fast Development: Prebuilt components + hooks mean fewer extra dependencies.
- Design Freedom: No locked-in theme or design system — perfect for building your own brand UI.
- Dark Mode + RTL: Native support with easy toggles — no extra setup.
- Hook-Powered: Includes handy hooks like useClipboard, useHotkeys, useForm, etc.
- Lightweight: Optimized and tree-shakable — loads faster with a smaller bundle size.
- Fully Typed: Built with and for TypeScript — no need for custom typings.
Disadvantages of Mantine
- Smaller Community: Limited plugins, templates, and community resources compared to MUI or Bootstrap.
- No Predefined Design System: Offers full freedom but requires extra design effort for polished UIs.
- Still Evolving: Newer framework; some components may lack long-term maturity.
- Lacks Pro-Level Components: No built-in advanced elements like data grids or calendars.
- Low Enterprise Adoption Not yet common in large-scale corporate environments.
Comparison Between Chakra UI vs Mantine
Use Cases of Chakra UI
- MVPs, SaaS apps, portfolios that need speed + simplicity
- Devs who prefer using props for styling
- Teams focused on accessibility and fast prototyping
- Apps where the design doesn’t need to be pixel-perfect
- Projects using Emotion or CSS-in-JS ecosystem
Use Cases of Mantine
- Custom UIs with full design freedom
- Modern dashboards, admin panels
- Lightweight SaaS apps
- RTL and dark-mode web apps
- Startups and solo developers
Other Resources
Conclusion
UI frameworks make building a polished website way easier. Whether you're working on something simple or a big project, they help you get things looking just right without having to stress over every little design decision. With ready-to-use components, responsive layouts, and modern styles, you can build faster and smarter.
So, pick one that works for you, and start creating a site that looks amazing from the get-go.
Frequently asked questions
Is Chakra UI good for accessibility?
Yes! Chakra UI is designed with accessibility (a11y) in mind, following WAI-ARIA standards.
Does Chakra UI support dark mode?
Yes, it has built-in dark mode toggling using the ColorModeProvider.
What styling method does Chakra UI use?
Chakra uses Emotion (a CSS-in-JS library) and style props for inline styling.
Can I create custom themes in Chakra UI?
Definitely. Chakra has a powerful theming system that supports tokens, variants, and full overrides.
Is Chakra UI production-ready?
Yes. It’s widely used in SaaS apps and has a strong developer community.
Is Mantine production-ready?
Yes. Mantine is stable, actively maintained, and used in real-world production apps across various industries.
Does Mantine support dark mode and RTL?
Absolutely. Dark mode and right-to-left (RTL) layout support are built-in and easy to toggle with the theme.
Can I use Mantine without Emotion?
Mantine uses Emotion by default, but you can also style components using inline styles, CSS Modules, or even external CSS.
Does Mantine work with TypeScript?
Yes, Mantine is built with full TypeScript support, including auto-complete, prop types, and IDE hints.
How does Mantine compare to MUI or Chakra UI?
Mantine is more flexible with fewer design constraints. It offers built-in hooks and modern developer experience, while MUI and Chakra follow stricter design systems.