Most developers are constantly on the lookout for ways to make your workflow and process smoother and more efficient. A very effective way to ensure this is to write as less CSS as possible. One must focus on making it more concise. This way, you can finish off your projects faster. You can reduce load times and ensure easier, more manageable future edits.

Usage of tools that facilitate quicker and easier coding are another way to speed up the process of CSS development. Some of the best options include preprocessors, plugins, and text editors can help.

Listed below are some of the best and most effective tips that can speed up your CSS development:

CSS Preprocessor

You can use a preprocessor such as Sass. It will help you use features presently unavailable in CSS such as inheritance, variables, mixins, nesting, etc. When used with Sass, these features can produce the same output as traditional CSS. The best part is that you need to write less code with this tool.

CSS Shorthand

Shorthand is a process of using basic and shorter ways of generating the similar CSS output. Here is the most common example for the same. It involves the way in which padding and margins are simplified from:

margin-top: 10px;
margin-right: 5px;
margin-bottom: 15px;
margin-left: 10px;
to:
margin: 10px 5px 15px 10px;

Professional freelance website developer prefers using shorthand elements.

There are a number of other less known examples that can effectively speed up CSS development. These include the following listed below:

Transitions

transition-property: opacity;
transition-duration: 3s;
transition-delay: 1s;
transition-timing-function: ease-in;
This can be shortened to as mentioned below:
transition: opacity 3s ease-in 1s;

Fonts

font-style: italic;
font-weight: bold;
font-size: .5em;
line-height: 2;
font-family: Arial, sans-serif;
This can be shortened to as mentioned below:
font: italic bold .5em/2 Arial, sans-serif;

Outlines

outline-width: 1px;
outline-style: solid;
outline-color: #111;
This can be shortened to as mentioned below:
outline: 1px solid #111;

If you are handling complex projects, try using a framework. Bootstrap can be a good choice for framework. However, use of framework was not always suitable. For instance, it may not work well with smaller and simple websites. Bootstrap will ensure good value for speeding up the process of CSS development for medium to large scale websites.

Bootstrap can be easily integrated with Sass. The integrated responsive grid system of this framework is very helpful. It helps developers bypass most of the repetitive CSS that’s needed for building from scratch. It is comprised of a whole library of prebuilt mechanisms.

CSS Reset

This will minimize inconsistencies of browser for features such as font sizes, line heights, and margins. Reset will facilitate CSS features to be predetermined instead of adding fixes consistently all through the stylesheet.

Use of Text Editor with Syntax Highlighting

Text editors such as Sublime Text will let you include a number of well-arranged shortcuts and features that can enhance workflow with CSS.

Multiple Selections feature can be used to change several lines or variables at the same time. The Split Editing mode will let you edit CSS while viewing the JavaScript or HTML. Syntax Highlighting is the most useful feature in this case. It will help in grouping of operators, common tags, common tags, and color codes to make it easier for locating certain points within your CSS.

Above mentioned are only a few ways you can use for speeding up your CSS development process. Adoption of frameworks and preprocessors will upgrade and enhance the process of CSS coding. This saves a lot of time on the part of web developers.