daisyUI 5

Overview

daisyUI 5 is a CSS component library for Tailwind CSS 4 that provides class names for common UI components. Use it to rapidly build consistent, accessible, and theme-aware web interfaces.

Installation

daisyUI 5 requires Tailwind CSS 4. The tailwind.config.js file is deprecated in Tailwind CSS v4.

Install via npm:

npm i -D daisyui@latest

Add to your CSS file:

@import "tailwindcss";
@plugin "daisyui";

Or use CDN:

<link href="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/daisyui@5" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" />
<script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/@tailwindcss/browser@4"></script>

Configuration

Basic Config

No config needed - use defaults:

@plugin "daisyui";

Light Theme Only

@plugin "daisyui" {
  themes: light --default;
}

With Dark Mode

@plugin "daisyui" {
  themes: light --default, dark --prefersdark;
  root: ":root";
  include: ;
  exclude: ;
  prefix: ;
  logs: true;
}

All Built-in Themes

@plugin "daisyui" {
  themes: light, dark, cupcake, bumblebee --default, emerald, corporate, synthwave --prefersdark, retro, cyberpunk, valentine, halloween, garden, forest, aqua, lofi, pastel, fantasy, wireframe, black, luxury, dracula, cmyk, autumn, business, acid, lemonade, night, coffee, winter, dim, nord, sunset, caramellatte, abyss, silk;
  root: ":root";
  include: ;
  exclude: rootscrollgutter, checkbox;
  prefix: daisy-;
  logs: false;
}

Set theme on HTML element:

<html data-theme="cupcake">

Custom Theme

Use the theme generator at https://daisyui.com/theme-generator/ or create manually:

@plugin "daisyui/theme" {
  name: "mytheme";
  default: true;
  prefersdark: false;
  color-scheme: light;

  --color-base-100: oklch(98% 0.02 240);
  --color-base-200: oklch(95% 0.03 240);
  --color-base-300: oklch(92% 0.04 240);
  --color-base-content: oklch(20% 0.05 240);
  --color-primary: oklch(55% 0.3 240);
  --color-primary-content: oklch(98% 0.01 240);
  --color-secondary: oklch(70% 0.25 200);
  --color-secondary-content: oklch(98% 0.01 200);
  --color-accent: oklch(65% 0.25 160);
  --color-accent-content: oklch(98% 0.01 160);
  --color-neutral: oklch(50% 0.05 240);
  --color-neutral-content: oklch(98% 0.01 240);
  --color-info: oklch(70% 0.2 220);
  --color-info-content: oklch(98% 0.01 220);
  --color-success: oklch(65% 0.25 140);
  --color-success-content: oklch(98% 0.01 140);
  --color-warning: oklch(80% 0.25 80);
  --color-warning-content: oklch(20% 0.05 80);
  --color-error: oklch(65% 0.3 30);
  --color-error-content: oklch(98% 0.01 30);

  --radius-selector: 1rem;
  --radius-field: 0.25rem;
  --radius-box: 0.5rem;
  --size-selector: 0.25rem;
  --size-field: 0.25rem;
  --border: 1px;
  --depth: 1;
  --noise: 0;
}

Usage Rules

Add daisyUI class names to HTML elements (component + part + modifier classes)
Customize with Tailwind utilities (e.g., btn px-10)
Use ! suffix for specificity issues as last resort (e.g., bg-red-500!)
If component doesn't exist, build with Tailwind utilities
Make layouts responsive with Tailwind prefixes (e.g., sm:card-horizontal)
Only use daisyUI class names or Tailwind utility classes
Ideally no custom CSS needed

Additional Guidelines

Use https://picsum.photos/{width}/{height} for placeholder images
Don't add custom fonts unless necessary
Don't add bg-base-100 text-base-content to body unless necessary
For design decisions, follow Refactoring UI book best practices

Class Name Categories

daisyUI class names fall into these categories (reference only, not used in code):

component - Required component class (e.g., btn, card)
part - Child part of component (e.g., card-title, card-body)
style - Specific style (e.g., btn-outline, alert-soft)
behavior - Changes behavior (e.g., btn-active, btn-disabled)
color - Sets color (e.g., btn-primary, alert-error)
size - Sets size (e.g., btn-sm, input-lg)
placement - Sets placement (e.g., dropdown-top, modal-middle)
direction - Sets direction (e.g., tabs-horizontal, carousel-vertical)
modifier - Modifies component (e.g., btn-wide, card-side)
variant - Utility prefixes with syntax variant:utility-class (e.g., is-drawer-open:w-64)

Color System

Semantic Color Names

primary / primary-content - Main brand color
secondary / secondary-content - Secondary brand color
accent / accent-content - Accent color
neutral / neutral-content - Neutral UI elements
base-100 - Base surface color (blank backgrounds)
base-200 - Darker shade for elevations
base-300 - Even darker shade for elevations
base-content - Foreground content color
info / info-content - Informational messages
success / success-content - Success states
warning / warning-content - Warning states
error / error-content - Error states

Color Rules

daisyUI colors are theme-aware and change with theme
No need for dark: prefix with daisyUI colors
Tailwind colors like red-500 stay same on all themes
Avoid Tailwind text colors like text-gray-800 - unreadable on dark themes
*-content colors have good contrast on their associated colors
Use base-* colors for majority of page
Use primary color for important elements

Common Components

Button

<button class="btn btn-primary">Click me</button>
<button class="btn btn-outline btn-secondary">Cancel</button>
<button class="btn btn-sm">Small</button>
<button class="btn btn-lg">Large</button>

Input

<input type="text" placeholder="Type here" class="input input-bordered" />

Card

<div class="card bg-base-100 shadow-sm">
  <figure><img src="https://picsum.photos/400/250" alt="Card image" /></figure>
  <div class="card-body">
    <h2 class="card-title">Title</h2>
    <p>Content</p>
    <div class="card-actions">
      <button class="btn btn-primary">Action</button>
    </div>
  </div>
</div>

Modal

<button onclick="my_modal.showModal()">Open</button>
<dialog id="my_modal" class="modal">
  <div class="modal-box">
    <h3 class="font-bold">Title</h3>
    <p>Content</p>
    <div class="modal-action">
      <form method="dialog">
        <button class="btn">Close</button>
      </form>
    </div>
  </div>
</dialog>

Alert

<div role="alert" class="alert alert-error">
  <svg class="w-6 h-6" fill="none" stroke="currentColor"><path stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" stroke-width="2" d="M12 9v2m0 4h.01m-6.938 4h13.856c1.54 0 2.502-1.667 1.732-3L13.732 4c-.77-1.333-2.694-1.333-3.464 0L3.34 16c-.77 1.333.192 3 1.732 3z"></path></svg>
  <span>Error message</span>
</div>

Navbar

<div class="navbar bg-base-200">
  <div class="navbar-start">Logo</div>
  <div class="navbar-center">Title</div>
  <div class="navbar-end">Menu</div>
</div>

Drawer

<div class="drawer lg:drawer-open">
  <input id="my-drawer" type="checkbox" class="drawer-toggle" />
  <div class="drawer-content">
    <label for="my-drawer" class="btn drawer-button lg:hidden">Open drawer</label>
    <!-- Page content -->
  </div>
  <div class="drawer-side">
    <label for="my-drawer" class="drawer-overlay"></label>
    <ul class="menu bg-base-200 min-h-full w-80 p-4">
      <li><a>Item 1</a></li>
      <li><a>Item 2</a></li>
    </ul>
  </div>
</div>

Resources

references/

Component documentation and detailed examples:

components.md - Complete component reference with all class names, syntax, and usage rules for every daisyUI component (accordion, alert, avatar, badge, breadcrumbs, button, calendar, card, carousel, chat, checkbox, collapse, countdown, diff, divider, dock, drawer, dropdown, fab, fieldset, file-input, filter, footer, hero, hover-3d, hover-gallery, indicator, input, join, kbd, label, link, list, loading, mask, menu, mockup-browser, mockup-code, mockup-phone, mockup-window, modal, navbar, pagination, progress, radial-progress, radio, range, rating, select, skeleton, stack, stat, status, steps, swap, tab, table, text-rotate, textarea, theme-controller, timeline, toast, toggle, validator)

When working with a specific component, read components.md and search for that component's section.