Ninna UI vs Other Libraries

How Ninna UI compares to shadcn/ui, Chakra UI, Mantine, and DaisyUI. See the differences in theming, accessibility, bundle size, and developer experience.

Feature Comparison

Side-by-side comparison of key features across popular React UI libraries.

Feature	Ninna UI	shadcn/ui	Chakra UI	Mantine	DaisyUI
Install model	npm package	Copy-paste CLI	npm package	npm package	npm package
Theming	1 CSS import	Manual CSS variables	JS ThemeProvider	JS MantineProvider	1 CSS import
Dark mode	CSS variables (auto)	Manual class toggle	ColorModeProvider	ColorSchemeProvider	CSS variables (auto)
Accessibility	Radix-powered	Radix-powered	Built-in	Built-in	None (CSS only)
Component count	68+	~50	~60	~100	~50 (CSS only)
Tailwind CSS	v4 native	v3 / v4	No	No	v3 / v4
Bundle impact	Tree-shakeable	Zero bundle (source)	Full runtime	Full runtime	CSS only
React version	19+	18+	18+	18+	Any (CSS)
TypeScript	Strict mode	Yes	Yes	Yes	N/A
Theme presets	5 built-in	Community themes	1 default	1 default	32 built-in

Why Ninna UI

The unique combination that sets Ninna UI apart.

Theming Simplicity

Like DaisyUI, Ninna UI makes theming as simple as a single CSS import — no JavaScript configuration, no ThemeProvider wrapper, no context setup. Unlike DaisyUI, you get real React components with full TypeScript support and accessibility.

/* One line to theme your entire app */
@import "@ninna-ui/core/theme/presets/ocean.css";

/* Switch themes — just change the import */
@import "@ninna-ui/core/theme/presets/sunset.css";

Component Quality

Every component follows strict quality standards: forwardRef, displayName,data-slot attributes, and cn() class merging. This matches the quality bar set by shadcn/ui — but shipped as npm packages you can install and update.

// 98 data-slot attributes across all components
// Target any inner element with plain CSS
[data-slot="input"] {
  border-radius: 0.75rem;
}

[data-slot="modal-content"] {
  max-width: 600px;
}

Radix Without Radix

Complex interactive components — Select, Checkbox, Radio, Switch, Slider, Tabs, Accordion — use Radix UI primitives internally via an engine wrapper layer. But as a consumer, you never import or configure Radix. No Radix types leak into your code, no Radix peer dependencies to manage.

// You write this:
import { Select } from "@ninna-ui/forms";

<Select color="primary" placeholder="Choose...">
  <Select.Item value="react">React</Select.Item>
  <Select.Item value="vue">Vue</Select.Item>
</Select>

// Internally, Ninna UI uses Radix primitives for:
// ✓ Keyboard navigation
// ✓ Focus management
// ✓ Screen reader announcements
// ✓ Typeahead search

Tailwind CSS v4 Native

Built from the ground up for Tailwind CSS v4. CSS-first configuration with @theme inline tokens and CSS custom properties. No tailwind.config.ts anywhere. Works with both @tailwindcss/vite and @tailwindcss/postcss.

oklch Color System

All theme colors use the oklch color space for perceptually uniform colors. WCAG AA contrast is guaranteed between every semantic color and its -content counterpart. 31 CSS variables define the entire design system.

/* 8 semantic colors + auto-generated content colors */
--color-primary: oklch(0.49 0.31 275);
--color-primary-content: oklch(0.98 0.01 275);

/* WCAG AA guaranteed: 4.5:1+ contrast ratio */
/* Works in both light and dark mode automatically */

Coming From Another Library?

Quick migration tips for switching to Ninna UI from popular alternatives.

From

shadcn/ui

1.Replace copy-pasted component files with npm imports — e.g. import { Button } from "@ninna-ui/primitives"
2.Remove Radix peer dependencies from your package.json — Ninna UI wraps Radix internally
3.Replace your CSS variables with a single @import "@ninna-ui/core/theme/presets/default.css"
4.Delete components.json — Ninna UI uses standard npm packages

From

Chakra UI

1.Remove ChakraProvider and ColorModeProvider wrappers from your app root
2.Replace @chakra-ui/react imports with the appropriate @ninna-ui/* package
3.Replace useColorMode() with CSS class-based dark mode (.dark on root element)
4.Replace extendTheme() with a CSS theme preset import

From

Mantine

1.Remove MantineProvider wrapper from your app root
2.Replace @mantine/core imports with the appropriate @ninna-ui/* package
3.Replace createTheme() with a CSS theme preset import — no JS config needed
4.Install Tailwind CSS v4 — Mantine uses its own styling, Ninna UI uses Tailwind

From

DaisyUI

1.Replace daisyUI CSS classes with Ninna UI React components — you get real props, TypeScript, and accessibility
2.Replace @plugin "daisyui" with @import "@ninna-ui/core/theme/presets/default.css"
3.Add React component imports — e.g. import { Button } from "@ninna-ui/primitives" instead of class="btn"
4.Keep your Tailwind utility classes — they work alongside Ninna UI components

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