CSS Flexbox vs Grid: When to Use Which?

Flexbox and CSS Grid are the two modern layout systems in CSS. While they overlap in capabilities, each excels at different types of layouts.

Flexbox: One-Dimensional Layout

Flexbox arranges items in a single row or column. It excels at distributing space along one axis, centering items, and creating flexible navigation bars. Flexbox is ideal for components where the number of items or their sizes are unknown.

CSS Grid: Two-Dimensional Layout

CSS Grid arranges items in rows and columns simultaneously. It excels at page-level layouts where you need precise control over both dimensions. Grid is ideal for magazine-like layouts, dashboard designs, and complex responsive grids.

When to Use Flexbox

Use Flexbox for navigation bars, centering content both horizontally and vertically, distributing space between items in a row, aligning items in a single row or column, and card layouts where cards wrap naturally. Flexbox is also better for dynamic content where the number of items changes.

When to Use CSS Grid

Use CSS Grid for full-page layouts with headers, sidebars, and footers; image galleries with precise rows and columns; dashboard layouts with multiple panels; placing items in specific grid cells; and overlapping elements using grid areas.

Using Grid and Flexbox Together

The best layouts often combine both: use Grid for the overall page structure and Flexbox for components within each grid cell. For example, a Grid layout defines the main sections, and Flexbox arranges items within a navigation bar section.

Browser Support in 2026

Both Flexbox and Grid have over 99% browser support globally. Flexbox has better support for older browsers (IE 10-11 with prefixes). Grid is fully supported in all modern browsers. Subgrid for nested grid layouts is now supported in Chrome, Firefox, and Safari.