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JavaScript & CSS Scaffolding

• Introduction
• Writing CSS
• Writing JavaScript

Introduction

While Laravel does not dictate which JavaScript or CSS pre-processors you use, it does provide a basic starting point using Tailwind CSS, Inertia, and / or Livewire that will be helpful for many applications. By default, Laravel uses NPM to install frontend packages.

The Tailwind CSS and Livewire / Inertia scaffolding provided by Laravel is located in the laravel/jetstream Composer package, which may be installed using Composer:

composer require laravel/jetstream

Once the laravel/jetstream package has been installed, you may install the frontend scaffolding using the jetstream:install Artisan command:

// Generate basic scaffolding...
php artisan jetstream:install livewire
php artisan jetstream:install inertia

// Generate team support scaffolding...
php artisan jetstream:install --teams

{tip} To learn more about Laravel Jetstream, please consult the official Jetstream documentation.

CSS

Laravel Mix provides a clean, expressive API over compiling SASS or Less, which are extensions of plain CSS that add variables, mixins, and other powerful features that make working with CSS much more enjoyable. In this document, we will briefly discuss CSS compilation in general; however, you should consult the full Laravel Mix documentation for more information on compiling SASS or Less.

JavaScript

Laravel does not require you to use a specific JavaScript framework or library to build your applications. In fact, you don't have to use JavaScript at all. However, Laravel does include some basic scaffolding to make it easier to get started writing modern JavaScript using Inertia and Vue. Vue provides an expressive API for building robust JavaScript applications using components. As with CSS, we may use Laravel Mix to easily compile JavaScript components into a single, browser-ready JavaScript file.

Writing CSS

After installing the laravel/jetstream Composer package and generating the frontend scaffolding, Laravel's package.json file will include Tailwind CSS packages to help you get started prototyping your application's frontend using Tailwind. However, feel free to add or remove packages from the package.json file as needed for your own application. You are not required to use the Tailwind framework to build your Laravel application - it is provided as a good starting point for those who choose to use it.

Before compiling your CSS, install your project's frontend dependencies using the Node package manager (NPM):

npm install

Once the dependencies have been installed using npm install, you can compile your CSS files using Laravel Mix. The npm run dev command will process the instructions in your webpack.mix.js file. Typically, your compiled CSS will be placed in the public/css directory:

npm run dev

The webpack.mix.js file included with Laravel's frontend scaffolding will compile the resources/css/app.css file. This app.css file contains the proper starting configuration for Tailwind CSS. Feel free to customize the app.css file however you wish.

Writing JavaScript

When using the Jetstream Inertia scaffolding, all of the JavaScript dependencies required by your application can be found in the package.json file in the project's root directory. This file is similar to a composer.json file except it specifies JavaScript dependencies instead of PHP dependencies. You can install these dependencies using the Node package manager (NPM):

npm install

Once the packages are installed, you can use the npm run dev command to compile your assets. Webpack is a module bundler for modern JavaScript applications. When you run the npm run dev command, Webpack will execute the instructions in your webpack.mix.js file:

npm run dev

By default, the Laravel webpack.mix.js file compiles your CSS and the resources/js/app.js file. Your compiled JavaScript will typically be placed in the public/js directory.

{tip} The app.js file will load the resources/js/bootstrap.js file which bootstraps and configures your basic JavaScript dependencies. If you have additional JavaScript dependencies to configure, you may do so in this file.