10 Best Responsive HTML5 Frameworks

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1. Twitter Bootstrap

Bootstrap is a popular, modern front-end/UI development framework. It’s feature-packed and will have most of the things you’ll need for developing responsive sites and apps. Bootstrap has a 12-grid responsive layout, 13 custom jQuery plugins for common UIs like carousels and modal windows, a Bootstrap customizer, and more.

Bootstrap is well-documented, and this open source project has plenty of coverage in blogs and tutorial sites. Bootstrap Tutorials

• Getting Started with Bootstrap (twitter.github.io)
• Twitter Bootstrap 101: Introduction (webdesign.tutsplus.com)

Bootstrap Tools and Resources

2. Foundation

Foundation is another popular responsive front-end framework. With this modern HTML5 framework, you can approach web design either mobile first, or from big displays down to mobile sizes. It has rapid-prototyping capabilities, a responsive grid system and much more.

Foundation is by ZURB, a company of product designers focused on providing web-based solutions. Foundation Tutorials

• Foundation Docs: Getting Started (zurb.com)
• A Beginner’s Guide to Zurb Foundation (designshack.net)
• Dive into Responsive Prototyping with Foundation (alistapart.com)
• Rapid Prototyping For Any Device With Foundation (smashingmagazine.com)
• Quickly build a prototype to test on any device (netmagazine.com)

Foundation Tools and Resources

3. Skeleton

Skeleton is a simple and clean responsive CSS boilerplate for HTML5 websites and apps. It’s got just the things you need, and nothing more. Some notable features: a responsive layout grid, standard media queries for your device-specific CSS style properties, a CSS class for responsive image elements that scale with the layout grid, a PSD template for mocking up your web designs, and an HTML5 shiv for old web browsers.

If you want to get started with responsive design quickly, you should look into this open source project. Skeleton Tutorials

• Build a Responsive, Mobile-Friendly Web Page With Skeleton (designshack.net)
• Skeleton Boilerplate: PSD To HTML (1stwebdesigner.com)
• Intro to Skeleton CSS Boilerplate (youtube.com)

Skeleton Tools and Resources

4. HTML5 Boilerplate

In 2010, HTML5 Boilerplate became one of the first, and subsequently, most popular open source front-end web development tools for getting HTML5 websites and web apps up and running in no time. It’s a compilation web development solutions that enable our sites to support modern web browsers. Included in HTML5 Boilerplate is a mobile-friendly HTML template, placeholder icons, CSS resets for normalizing/standardizing your stylesheet property values, standard media queries for popular viewing screens, an HTML5 shiv for non-modern web browsers, and more.

HTML5 Boilerplate Tutorials

• The Official Guide to HTML5 Boilerplate (net.tutsplus.com)
• HTML5 Boilerplate Walkthrough (youtube.com)
• HTML5 Quick Start with Boilerplate (teamtreehouse.com)

HTML5 Boilerplate Tools and Resources

5. HTML KickStart

One of the newest kids on the block, HTML5 KickStart is a lean and mean package of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript files that promises to save UI developers hours of work. At about 300KB, HTML KickStart packs quite a punch: UI components like stylish buttons and navigation bars, scalable icons (using Font Awesome), a responsive grid layout, a touch-enabled slideshow component and so on. HTML KickStart Tutorials

• HTML KickStart Getting Started Guide (99lime.com)

HTML KickStart Tools and Resources

6. Montage HTML5 Framework

Montage is an open source HTML5 framework for building modern apps. This JavaScript library uses declarative binding which easily helps you keep your app data and UI in sync. Montage also has a feature called Blueprints for associatively binding metadata onto your app objects — a pretty nifty function for dealing with lots of dynamic page elements.

Montage Tutorials

• Montage Quick Start (montagejs.org)
• Montage JS Getting Started (youtube.com)

Montage Tools and Resources

7. SproutCore

SproutCore is a front-end framework for building HTML5 apps rapidly. It follows the MVC architecture pattern and promises its users the ability to craft native-like user experiences for the Web. SproutCore Tutorials

• SproutCore Guides (sproutcore.com)
• Build mobile applications with SproutCore (ibm.com)

SproutCore Tools and Resources

8. Zebra

Zebra is a rich UI open source framework that leverages HTML5 canvas as the backbone of its rendering abilities. Zebra says that using it “isn’t rocket science” and that you can get started in 5 minutes. Zebra Tutorials

• Simple UI Zebra Application (github.com)
• How to create a color picker with Zebra (zebkit.com)

Zebra Tools and Resources

9. CreateJS

CreateJS is a suite of open source JavaScript libraries and tools for creating rich, interactive HTML5 content. It consists of 5 modular JavaScript libraries. It will help you with implementing animation effects, supporting HTML5 audio in your site, and much more.

Adobe, Microsoft, and AOL sponsor this project. CreateJS Tutorials

• Show & Tell / Discussion Area (createjs.com)

CreateJS Tools and Resources

10. Less Framework

Less Framework is a modern front-end framework for building responsive designs. Similar to Skeleton (discussed above), Less Framework focuses on being just a plain and simple layout grid framework. It has 4 pre-built layouts: Default, Tablet, Mobile and Wide Mobile.

Less Framework Tutorials

• Responsive Web Design with HTML5 and the Less Framework (sitepoint.com)

Less Framework Tools and Resources

Comparison Table

*Size is determined as the master package’s archive file size on disk (on MS Windows)

What Responsive HTML5 Framework/Boilerplates/Tools Do You Use?

I chose these 10 based on quantitative (i.e. development activity, popularity, etc.) as well as qualitative (such as reputation of the founders and simply personal preference) reasons. These are my top picks.

I’d like to know yours. Please write a review about your favorite open source HTML5 front-end web development framework or boilerplate and please also discuss your personal experience with it in the comments below.