CSS Layouts: 40+ Tutorials, Tips, Demos and Best Practices

Jul 28

CSS Layouts: 40+ Tutorials, Tips, Demos and Best Practices

Posted in: CSS, Tutorial | Leave a Comment | 91 Comments

The main idea behind CSS-based layouts is offering more flexibility and enhancing the visual experience of visitors. Some important tips and related key-factors can help to learn basics and keep essential techniques in mind. And this is what this article is all about. Finding the perfect Layout that have Total Flexibility, Equal Height Columns and just works fine.

So we’ve decided to take a deep look at articles about CSS-based layouts and the result was a list of 40 tutorials, resources and best practices offering gorgeous and valid CSS-based Layouts.

You might be interested to check other CSS related posts:

CSS Layout Tutorials

1-Three column fixed layout structure using CSS- This post explains how to realize an HTML/CSS basic structure to design a simple three column fixed page layout with standard elements (logo top bar, navigation bar, text stage, center column for post categories and right column to insert Google AdSense 120X600 ads), to use in your projects.

2-Design page layout using CSS- How to design page’s layout for your site using a css file.

3-How To Create a Horizontally Scrolling Site- Different techniques for creating horizontally scrolling layouts.

Live Example View it Here | Download

4-Super Simple Two Column Layout- Different techniques for creating horizontally scrolling layouts.

Live Example View it Here | Download

5-Simple 2 column CSS layout- This is a tutorial on how to use CSS to create a simple two column layout. The layout consists of a header, a horizontal navigation bar, a main content column, a sidebar, and a footer. It is also horizontally centered in the browser window.

Live Example View it Here

6-The holy grail layout - 3 columns and a lot less problems - This is a article discuss the three columns – two fixed-width sidebars and a fluid center column, all while keeping the markup clean and semantic, and most importantly well structured.

Live Example View it Here

7-CSS Centering 101- How to center a fixed-width layout using CSS

<body>
  <div id="container">
    ...entire layout goes here...
  </div>
</body>

Using CSS, the following two rules force whatever is contained within #container to be centered:

body {
  text-align: center;
  }
#container {
  margin: 0 auto;
  width: xxxpx;
  text-align: left;
  }

8-Creating a CSS layout from scratch- This guide will attempt to take you step by step, through the process of creating a fully functioning CSS layout.

9-Multi-Column Layouts Climb Out of the Box- Multiple columns, equal column heights, fixed or liquid center column, clean markup, and CSS.

Live Example View it Here

10- In search of the One True Layout- Total Layout Flexibility, Equal Height Columns, Vertical placement of elements across grids/columns. This article shows how to achieve each of these goals, and then how to combine them, creating what could be called the One True Layout

Live Example View it Here

11-From PSD to HTML, Building a Set of Website Designs Step by Step-The entire process of getting from Photoshop to completed HTML.

Live Example View it Here | Download files

12- 5 Tips for coding xhtml/css layouts- These are few tips that could help you out in the transition from table-based web design to standards compliant css based layouts.

13-Designing a CSS based template- This is the start of a step-by-step based tutorial about how to create a CSS based template page. This will be a tutorial consisting of several parts: part 1 covers the creation of the navigation buttons in Photoshop CS*, the 2nd part will be the creation of the background, next on the list is the header and layout of the page and the final part will be the implementation in CSS and XHTML.

Download a QuickTime movie to see how this is done.

14-Breaking Out of the Box With CSS Layouts- If you understand how the grid works, you can fracture or abstract that grid to make your layout more dynamic and interesting. In achieving this goal (while supporting flexibility and maintainability), CSS designs have so much more to offer than table-based layouts. Jina Bolton explains how to acheive this goal.

15-Advanced CSS Layouts: Step by Step- The ultimate goal of this tutorial is to create a CSS layout that exactly resembles the WebReference.com layout made with tables and also behaves well with small window sizes and large fonts.

16-6 Keys to Understanding Modern CSS-based Layouts-
These are the six things that will help people understand CSS-based layouts: Box Model, Floated Columns, Sizing Using Ems, Image Replacement, Floated Navigation and Sprites.

17-Are you making these common blog layout mistakes?-
Discussing 4 mistakes in basic blog layout are all too common and all too easy to fix.

18-Page Layout-
A practical guide for positioing and floating elements in a CSS page layout.

For Live Examples, you can check these layouts: Absolute Position within a relative box, two floated boxes and using a border to provide the background for a column.

19-Site in an Hour- Making Simple Work of Complex CSS Layouts

The best Layouts Resources

Most of these demonstrations can be used without asking for permission. However, some will require email approval first. Just check each site for the copyright requirements before use.

20-Sample CSS Page Layouts- Here are a range of CSS page layouts, including 2 column and 3 column layouts.

For Live Examples, you can check these layouts: Liquid three column layout, Left aligned, set width and Liquid insanity.

21-The Perfect 3 Column Liquid Layout (Percentage widths)- No CSS hacks. SEO friendly. No Images. No JavaScript. Cross-browser & iPhone compatible.

For Live Examples, you can check these layouts: Liquid three column layout, Left aligned, set width and Liquid insanity.

22-CSS TEMPLATES AND SAMPLES

For Live Examples, you can check these layouts: 3 columns fixed
centered, fixed Box totally
centered and 3 columns, all
dynamic.

23-IM Layouts- IM Layouts is a simple CSS layout system. IM Layouts offer full Grade-A browser support.

For Live Examples, you can also check these layouts: The Holy Grail 3 Column Layout, The Classic Blog Layout and The Multi Column Layout.

24-CSSplay - CSS Layout Listing

For Live Examples, you can check these layouts: Cross browser FIXED, Three columns and CSS Frame - The Holy Grill.

25-Layoutgala - Getting the maximum number of layouts based on the same markup, each with valid CSS and HTML, without hacks nor workaround and a good cross-browser compatibility. The result is a set of 40 layouts.

For Live Examples, you can check these layouts: Three fixed Columns, Three percentage columns and Liquid, three columns, hybrid widths .

26-Glish- Many useful cross-browser CSS layout techniques

For Live Examples, you can check these layouts: 3 columns, the holy grail, 2 columns, ALA style and 3 columns, all fluid .

27-Thenoodleincident- CSS Boxes going from a simple single box, through 3 columns with a full width top box, all with variations.

28-The Layout Reservoir- Many useful CSS layout techniques

For Live Examples, you can check these layouts: 2 columns - left menu, 3 columns - flanking menus and Auto-width Margins .

29-The only CSS layout you need- In this article you are presented to ten different layouts with example pages, all based on the same HTML.

For Live Examples, you can check these layouts: Three column CSS layout - left and right menu, Two column CSS layout - top and left menu and Three column CSS fluid layout: 100% width.

30-Yet Another Multicolumn Layout- is an (X)HTML/CSS framework for creating modern and flexible floated layouts. The structure is extremely versatile in its programming and absolutely accessible for end users.

Download YAML here.

31-Liquid Designs- Liquid Designs is a gallery of websites designed with liquid layouts using XHTML and CSS

Best Practices

Also if you are looking for inspiration for CSS-based layout designs, you will find a nice collection of websites below. These sites show how css layouts can be applied on various type of sites. Check out how the layout can be divided into 2 columns, 3 columns, a mixture of narrow and wide columns.

32-Helldesign