CSS Grid Layout

CSS Grid Layout
Rachel Andrew
Generate, September 2015

Rachel Andrew
http://rachelandrew.co.uk
@rachelandrew
http://grabaperch.com

The trouble with CSS layout
• Floats and clearfix hacks
• Absolute positioning means elements are taken
out of document flow and risk overlaps
• Redundant markup and positioning oddities with
display: table
• White space issues with inline-block

The cost of taming layout methods
• Developer hours spent learning non-obvious
concepts.
• Compromises in terms of document semantics in
order to achieve responsive layouts.
• Needing to lean on frameworks to help with
complex math.
• Adding markup to create grids
• Using preprocessors to abstract layout hacks

https://www.ﬂickr.com/photos/zervas/2810241612
Flexbox?

Seeing Flexbox as the silver bullet for
layout issues is likely to lead us down
another path of layout hacks.

We need a designed for purpose
layout system for the sites and
applications we develop today.

Our HTML consists of a
div with a class of
wrapper and six child
elements.
<div class="wrapper">
<div class="a">A</div>
<div class="b">B</div>
<div class="c">C</div>
<div class="d">D</div>
<div class="e">E</div>
<div class="f">F</div>
</div>

To create a grid we use a
new value of the display
property.
display: grid
.wrapper {
display: grid;
}

We describe the grid using
the new properties:
grid-template-columns
grid-template-rows
.wrapper {
display: grid;
grid-template-columns:
100px 10px 100px 10px 100px;
grid-template-rows:
auto 10px auto;
}

We position items using the
new properties:
grid-column-start 
grid-column-end 
grid-row-start 
grid-row-end
.a {
grid-column-start: 1;
grid-column-end: 2;
grid-row-start: 1;
grid-row-end: 2;
}

To position an item bottom
centre, I start at column
line 3, this is the line after
the gutter track.
.b {
grid-column-end: 4;
grid-row-start: 3;
grid-row-end: 4;
}

To span more tracks we
just change the end row or
column line.
.b {
grid-column-end: 6;
grid-row-start: 3;
grid-row-end: 4;
}

The longhand for line-
based placement means
up to 4 properties to
position each element. .a {
grid-column-end: 2;
grid-row-start: 1;
grid-row-end: 2;
}
.b {
grid-column-end: 4;
grid-row-start: 3;
grid-row-end: 4;
}

Declare start and end
values with grid-column
and grid-row.
Values are separated by a
/ symbol.
.a {
grid-column: 1 / 2;
grid-row: 1 / 2;
}
.b {
grid-column: 3 / 6;
grid-row: 3 / 4;
}

Declare all 4 values using
the grid-area property.
.a {
grid-area: 1 / 1 / 2 / 2;
}
.b {
grid-area: 3 / 3 / 4 / 6;
}

Grid lines relate to writing mode. In
a right to left language such as
Arabic the first column line is the
right-hand line.

Grid Lines
Lines can be horizontal or vertical. They
are referred to by number and can be
named.
Highlighted is Column Line 2.

Grid Track
A Grid Track is the space between two
Grid Lines. Tracks can be horizontal or
vertical (rows or columns).
The highlighted Grid Track is between
Row Lines 2 and 3.

Grid Cell
The smallest unit on our grid, a Grid Cell
is the space between four Grid Lines. It’s
just like a table cell.
The highlighted Grid Cell is between row
lines 2 and 3 and column lines 2 and 3.

Grid Area
Any area of the Grid bound by 4 Grid
Lines. It can contain many Grid Cells.
The highlighted Grid Area is between
row lines 1 and 3, column lines 2 and 4.

All examples can be found at http://gridbyexample.com. Use Chrome. Enable “Experimental Web Platform Features” flag.

http://gridbyexample.com/examples/code/layout9.html

The HTML around my
page content.
The various areas of my
page are child elements
of a div with a class of
wrapper.
<header class="mainheader"></header>
<div class="panel"></div>
<div class="content"></div>
</div>

Declaring a grid on
wrapper.
The grid has three
columns, and four rows.
.wrapper {
width: 100%;
max-width: 960px;
margin: 0 auto;
display: grid;
grid-template-columns: 30% 5% 65%;
grid-template-rows: 40px auto 20px auto;
}

Positioning our elements
using the grid-column and
grid-row shorthand.
This is all we need to do
to create our layout.
.mainheader {
grid-column: 1 / 4;
grid-row: 2 / 3;
}
.panel {
grid-column: 1 / 2;
grid-row: 4 / 5;
}
.content {
grid-column: 3 / 4;
grid-row: 4 / 5;
}

I can add a footer to this
layout.
<header class="mainheader"></header>
<div class="panel"></div>
<div class="content"></div>
<footer class="mainfooter"></footer>
</div>

Positioning the footer
between row lines five
and six.
.mainfooter {
grid-column: 1 / 4;
grid-row: 5 / 6;
}

Our grid only has 5 row
lines specified - yet we
placed an item between
row lines 5 and 6.
Grid creates an implicit
grid line for us.
.wrapper {
display: grid;
grid-template-rows: 40px auto 20px auto;
}
.mainfooter {
grid-column: 1 / 4;
grid-row: 5 / 6;
}

Grid lines can be explicit or implicit
• Explicit grid lines are those specified using grid-
template-rows or grid-template-columns.
• Implicit lines are created when you place
something into a row or column track outside of
the explicit grid.
• You can specify a size with the grid-auto-
columns and grid-auto-rows properties.

Grid is “table like” however …
• Unlike a table for layout Grid does not rely on
your content being a particular order in the
source. 
• Being entirely described in CSS we can move
things around the Grid at different breakpoints,
introduce or redefine a Grid for any breakpoint.

Power and Responsibility
• As with Flexbox you can use your ability to
change how things are ordered for good or evil.
• Good = creating the most accessible source
order and using Grid to get the optimal display
for each device.
• Bad = using Grid as an excuse to forget about
the source.
• Terrible - stripping out semantic elements to
make everything a child of the grid.

Using Grid to order the
page elements in a single
column for narrow screen
widths.
.wrapper {
display: grid;
grid-template-rows:
10px auto 10px auto 10px auto 10px auto;
}
.mainheader {
grid-row: 2 / 3;
}
.content {
grid-row: 4 / 5;
}
.panel {
grid-row: 6 / 7;
}
.mainfooter {
grid-row: 8 / 9;
}

Redefine the Grid at min-
width 550 pixels.
Position items as in the
earlier example.
@media (min-width: 550px) {
.wrapper {
grid-template-rows: 40px auto 20px auto 20px auto;
}
.mainheader {
grid-column: 1 / 4;
grid-row: 2 / 3;
}
.panel {
grid-column: 1 / 2;
grid-row: 4 / 5;
}
.content {
grid-column: 3 / 4;
grid-row: 4 / 5;
}
.mainfooter {
grid-column: 1 / 4;
grid-row: 6 / 7;
}
}

Name lines with the name
in square brackets.
Remember we name grid
lines and not grid tracks.
.wrapper {
display: grid;
grid-template-rows:
10px [row-header-start] auto [row-header-end]
10px [row-content-start] auto [row-content-end]
10px [row-panel-start] auto [row-panel-end]
10px [row-footer-start] auto [row-footer-end];
}

Here we are positioning
based on line numbers.
.mainheader {
grid-row: 2 / 3;
}
.content {
grid-row: 4 / 5;
}
.panel {
grid-row: 6 / 7;
}
.mainfooter {
grid-row: 8 / 9;
}

Here we are positioning
by named lines.
.mainheader {
grid-row: row-header-start / row-header-end ;
}
.content {
grid-row: row-content-start / row-content-end;
}
.panel {
grid-row: row-panel-start / row-panel-end ;
}
.mainfooter {
grid-row: row-footer-start / row-footer-end;
}

We assign a name to the
elements on our page.
I am doing this outside of
any Media Queries.
.mainheader {
grid-area: header;
}
.content {
grid-area: content;
}
.panel {
grid-area: sidebar;
}
.mainfooter {
grid-area: footer;
}

Describe the layout on
the parent element using
the grid-template-areas
property.
A period “.” indicates that
this grid cell is empty.
.wrapper {
display: grid;
grid-template-rows:
10px auto 10px auto 10px auto 10px auto;
grid-template-areas:
"."
"header"
"."
"content"
"."
"sidebar"
"."
"footer";
}

Redefining the template
areas for the wider
layout. @media (min-width: 550px) {
.wrapper {
grid-template-rows:
2em auto 1em auto 1em auto;
". . ."
"header header header"
". . ."
"sidebar . content"
". . ."
"footer footer footer"
}
}

Another syntax change!
The May 15th Editor’s
Draft allows for multiple
full stop characters to be
used to indicate an empty
cell.
This means you can line
up your ascii art more
neatly.
.wrapper {
grid-template-rows:
2em auto 1em auto 1em auto;
"....... ...... ......."
"header header header "
"....... ...... ......."
"sidebar ...... content"
"....... ...... ......."
"footer footer footer "
}
}

Named grid areas create
four implicit named lines.
You can use these in the
same way as lines you
have explicitly named.
.wrapper {
grid-template-rows: 2em auto 1em auto 1em
auto;
grid-template-areas: ". . ."
"header header header"
". . ."
"sidebar . content"
". . ."
"footer footer footer"
}
.test {
z-index: 100;
background-color: red;
grid-column: content-start / content-end;
grid-row: content-start / footer-end;
}

Items on the Grid can be layered
using the z-index property.

The Bootstrap grid, and
those in other
frameworks relies on our
describing the layout in
the markup.

<div class="row">
<div class="col-xs-12 col-md-8">.col-xs-12 .col-md-8</div>
</div>

<div class="row">
</div>

<div class="row">
<div class="col-xs-6">.col-xs-6</div>
<div class="col-xs-6">.col-xs-6</div>
</div>

With CSS Grid Layout we describe the
layout in the CSS and can redefine
that description at any breakpoint.

You can use the repeat
keyword to repeat all or
part of the grid definition.
This would create 4 200
pixel wide tracks,
separated by a 20 pixel
wide gutter track.
grid-template-columns: repeat(4, 200px 20px);

The fr unit is a flexible
length that represents a
fraction of the available
space in the grid
container.
grid-template-columns: 5fr 1fr 10fr 1fr 5fr;

We can give multiple grid
lines the same name.
This means we can use
the span keyword to span
n number of lines, rather
than specifying a specific
grid line.
.wrapper {
repeat(4, [col] 200px [gutter] 20px);
}
.content {
grid-column: col 2 / span gutter 2;
}

The markup used to
create the Grid using the
Skeleton framework.
Like the Bootstrap Grid
and other similar
frameworks it requires
classes that describe the
grid to be added to the
markup.
<div class="container">
<h1>Skeleton Grid</h1>
<div class="example-grid">
<div class="row">
<div class="four columns">Four columns</div>
</div>
<div class="row">
<div class="eight columns">Eight columns</div>
</div>
<div class="row">
<div class="three columns">Three columns</div>
</div>
<div class="row">
<div class="six columns">Six columns</div>
<div class="six columns">Six columns</div>
</div>
</div>

When using CSS Grid
Layout we have no need
to describe our grid in
markup.
<div class="wrapper skeleton">
<h1 class="header">CSS Grid Layout Version</h1>
<div class="box1">Four columns</div>
<div class="box4">Eight columns</div>
<div class="box6">Three columns</div>
<div class="box10">Six columns</div>
<div class="box11">Six columns</div>
</div>

Defining the 12 column
grid.
The repeat keyword
repeats the pattern of
columns or rows the
number of times specified
before the comma.
.wrapper {
display: grid;
repeat(11, [col] 4fr [gutter] 3.5fr ) [col] 4fr [gutter];
grid-template-rows:
auto repeat(4, [row] auto [gutter] 15px);
}

Placing box1 on the grid.
Multiple lines have the
same name. This means we
can use the span keyword.
Here I place box1 starting
at the first line named col,
spanning to the 4th line
named gutter.
In the first row named row,
spanning to the first line
named gutter.
.box1 {
grid-column: col / span gutter 4;
grid-row: row / span gutter;
}

Placing box8 on the grid.
Starting on column line 7,
spanning 3 gutter lines.
In the 3rd row named row,
spanning 1 gutter line.
.box8 {
grid-row: row 3 / span gutter;
}

With Grid Layout we can
easily span rows just like
columns.
.box1b {
grid-row: row / span gutter 2;
}
.box2b {
grid-row: row / span gutter 3;
}

The header and footer
span the full grid.
The content and panel
display side by side.
.mainheader {
grid-row: row /span gutter;
}
.mainfooter {
grid-row: row 3 /span gutter;
}
.content {
}
.panel {
}

I change three values to
make our panel extend to
the foot of the page.
.mainheader {
grid-row: row /span gutter;
}
.mainfooter {
grid-row: row 3 /span gutter;
}
.content {
}
.panel {
grid-row: row 2 / span gutter 2;
}

http://dev.w3.org/csswg/css-grid/#grid-item-placement-algorithm
“The following grid item placement
algorithm resolves automatic positions of
grid items into definite positions, ensuring
that every grid item has a well-defined grid
area to lay out into.”

My markup is an
unordered list with a
class of wrapper.
The first list item
contains text. The rest an
image.
Two list items have a
class of ‘wide’.
<ul class="wrapper">
<li class="text"><p>…</p></li>
<li><img src="../images/balloon1.jpg" alt="hot air balloon" />
<p>Balloons 1</p></li>
<li class="wide"><img src="../images/balloon4.jpg" alt="hot air
balloon" />
<li class="wide"><img src="../images/balloon7.jpg" alt="hot air
balloon" />
</ul>

Narrow screen layout,
before any media queries.
A single column, single
row grid.
Grid layout will create
implicit rows for any
additional list items.
.wrapper {
display: grid;
grid-template-columns: 1fr;
grid-template-rows: auto;
grid-auto-flow: dense;
}

At a 460 pixel breakpoint
we redefine the grid to
have two equal columns.
With grid-auto-flow set
to dense gaps are not left
in the grid if they can be
filled.
.wrapper {
grid-template-columns: 1fr 1fr;
}
.text {
grid-column: 1 / 3;
}
.wide {
grid-column: auto / span 2;
}
}

We move to 4 equal
columns at 660 pixels.
I position the li with a
class of text between
column lines 2 and 4, and
row lines 1 and 3.
.wrapper {
grid-template-columns: 1fr 1fr 1fr 1fr;
}
.text {
grid-column: 2 / 4;
grid-row: 1 / 3;
}
}

The complete CSS for this
grid.
.wrapper {
display: grid;
max-width: 960px;
grid-auto-flow: dense;
}
.wrapper {
}
.text {
grid-column: 1 / 3;
}
.wide {
}
}
.wrapper {
}
.text {
grid-column: 2 / 4;
grid-row: 1 / 3;
}
}

We change the value of
grid-auto-flow to sparse.
.wrapper {
display: grid;
max-width: 960px;
grid-auto-flow: sparse;
}
.wrapper {
}
.text {
grid-column: 1 / 3;
}
.wide {
}
}
.wrapper {
}
.text {
grid-column: 2 / 4;
grid-row: 1 / 3;
}
}

Defining the 12 column
grid.
We define Grid Tracks
that will be used as
columns, preceded by a
line named ‘col’ and those
used as gutters, preceded
by a line named ‘gutter’.
.wrapper {
display: grid;
repeat(11, [col] 4fr [gutter] 3.5fr ) [col] 4fr [gutter];
grid-template-rows:
auto repeat(4, [row] auto [gutter] 15px);
}

Column and Row gaps are now part of
the Level 1 Grid Layout specification.

Specifying gutters as grid
tracks.
.wrapper {
display: grid;
grid-template-columns: repeat(11, [col] 4fr
[gutter] 3.5fr ) [col] 4fr [gutter];
grid-template-rows: auto repeat(4, [row] auto
[gutter] 15px);
}

Specifying gutters with
the new properties:
grid-row-gap
grid-column-gap
.wrapper {
display: grid;
grid-column-gap: 1em;
grid-row-gap: 1em;
grid-template-columns: repeat(12, [col] 4fr );
}

In this markup the boxes
e, f and g are children of
the element with a class
of d.
<div class="box a">A</div>
<div class="box b">B</div>
<div class="box c">C</div>
<div class="box d">
<div class="box e">E</div>
<div class="box f">F</div>
<div class="box g">G</div>
</div>
</div>

To make box d a grid itself
I declare a grid as normal
then position the children
of this element.
They take their grid lines
from the grid declared on
box d.
.d{
grid-row: row 2;
display: grid;
grid-template-columns: 1fr 10px 1fr;
grid-template-rows: auto 10px auto;
}
.e {
grid-column: 1 / 4;
grid-row: 1;
}
.f {
grid-column: 1;
grid-row: 3;
}
.g {
grid-column: 3;
grid-row: 3;
}

http://gridbyexample.com/examples/code/example21.html

In our existing layout we
are creating a completely
new grid on box d.
.d{
grid-row: row 2;
display: grid;
grid-template-columns: 1fr 10px 1fr;
grid-template-rows: auto 10px auto;
}

If we declare that this
grid is a subgrid, we can
then position the children
of this element on the
same grid their parent is
placed on. .d{
grid-row: row 2;
display: grid;
grid-template-columns: subgrid;
grid-template-rows: subgrid;
}

http://dev.w3.org/csswg/css-grid/
“The following features are at-risk, and may
be dropped during the CR period:
the subgrid value of grid-template-columns
and grid-template-rows, and its component
parts individually”

Without subgrid we create the potential for
accessibility problems. Authors may remove
semantic markup in order to use grid layout.

http://fantasai.inkedblade.net/style/discuss/subgrid-markup/

https://rachelandrew.co.uk/archives/2015/07/28/modern-css-layout-power-and-responsibility/

Grid needs your feedback!
Enable Experimental Web Platform Features in Chrome.
Play with my examples and think up ways you would use Grid.
Blog, make examples, point out problems.
Follow the CSS Grid conversation on www-style by searching for
[css-grid].
See the current issues in the Editor’s Draft http://dev.w3.org/
csswg/css-grid/#issues-index

Browser Support
All my examples work in Chrome unprefixed - you need to enable
the Experimental Web Platform Features flag.
You can also use Webkit nightlies, with the -webkit prefix.
The work in Blink and Webkit is being done by Igalia, sponsored by
Bloomberg.
IE10 and up has support for the old syntax, with an -ms prefix.
Grid is on the Edge backlog, marked as High Priority.
Mozilla are currently implementing Grid in Firefox.
There is a Polyfill under active development: https://github.com/
FremyCompany/css-grid-polyfill/

Thank you!
http://rachelandrew.co.uk/presentations/css-grid
@rachelandrew

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