CSS Grid vs Flexbox: When and Why to Use Each

20 Jan 2026 • 2 min read

CSS Grid and Flexbox are the two most powerful layout systems in modern CSS.
Both solve layout problems — but in different ways.

Many developers ask:

Should I use Grid or Flexbox?

The answer depends on what kind of layout you’re building.

Let’s understand their differences, use cases, and examples.

🔹 Core Difference

Feature	Flexbox	Grid
Layout direction	One-dimensional (row OR column)	Two-dimensional (rows AND columns)
Best for	Components	Page layouts
Alignment	Along a single axis	Both axes
Content-driven	Yes	Layout-driven

Flexbox is ideal when you want to arrange items in a row or a column.

Example:

.container {
  display: flex;
  justify-content: space-between;
  align-items: center;
}

Left

Center

Right

Use Flexbox for:

Grid lets you define rows and columns at the same time.

Example:

.container {
  display: grid;
  grid-template-columns: 1fr 3fr;
  grid-template-rows: auto 1fr auto;
}

Header

Sidebar

Main Content

Footer

Use Grid for:

Flexbox responds naturally to content size.
Grid responds naturally to layout size.

You can combine them:

.page {
  display: grid;
  grid-template-columns: 250px 1fr;
}

.nav {
  display: flex;
  gap: 2rem;
}

❌ Using Grid for simple one-row alignment
❌ Using Flexbox for complex page structures
❌ Not combining them

Both Grid and Flexbox are fully supported in all modern browsers.

They are not competitors — they complement each other.