Cascading Style Sheets, commonly known as CSS, is a language that focuses on the design and presentation aspects of documents created with markup languages like HTML or XML. This includes variants of XML such as SVG, MathML, or XHTML. CSS plays a vital role in the functioning of the World Wide Web, standing alongside HTML and JavaScript as one of the foundational technologies.
A CSS parser is a component of a web browser (or any CSS-processing tool) that reads CSS code and turns it into a structured format the computer can understand and use. This roundup focuses on CSS parsers for Linux.
Here’s our verdict captured in a legendary LinuxLinks-style ratings chart. Only free and open source software is eligible for inclusion here.
| CSS Parsers | |
|---|---|
| PostCSS | Transform styles with JavaScript plugins |
| Lightning CSS | Parser, transformer, bundler, and minifier |
| Rework | Plugin framework for CSS preprocessing |
| Mensch | Non-validating CSS parser |
| CSSTree | Tool set for CSS |
| Stylis | Lightweight CSS preprocessor |
| tinycss2 | CSS parser and generator |
| LibCSS | CSS parser and selection engine |
| Ruby CSS Parser | Load, parse and cascade CSS rule sets |
| ParserLib | CSS3 SAX-inspired parser |
| css-parser | Fork of the cssutils project |
| Stylecow | Modern CSS to all browsers |
| Gonzales PE | CSS parser which plays nicely with preprocessors |
| CSSOM | CSS parser written in pure JavaScript |
 Read our complete collection of recommended free and open source software. Our curated compilation covers all categories of software. Spotted a useful open source Linux program not covered on our site? Please let us know by completing this form. The software collection forms part of our series of informative articles for Linux enthusiasts. There are hundreds of in-depth reviews, open source alternatives to proprietary software from large corporations like Google, Microsoft, Apple, Adobe, IBM, Cisco, Oracle, and Autodesk. There are also fun things to try, hardware, free programming books and tutorials, and much more. |