Flat UI vs Tabler
Which should you use? A side-by-side look at what each one does, who it suits, what it costs, how hard it is to set up, and where each falls short.
Open source · MIT
A flat-style visual theme and component set built on Bootstrap, for ready-made web pages.
Open source · MIT
Free, open source Bootstrap 5 admin dashboard UI kit with dark mode and RTL support.
The short answer
Choose Flat UI if you need…
- Developers who already use or know Bootstrap and want a flatter visual style
- Designers prototyping a website who want a ready-made component look
- Small teams building simple marketing or landing pages quickly
- People who want a free MIT-licensed starting theme
Choose Tabler if you need…
- Developers building internal admin panels or dashboards quickly
- Teams already comfortable with Bootstrap who want ready-made components
- Projects that need dark mode or right-to-left (RTL) layouts
- Developers using a framework such as React, Vue or Laravel who want a styled UI base
Side-by-side
| Flat UI | Tabler | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Framework | Library |
| Price | Free and open source | Free and open source |
| Licence | MIT | MIT |
| GitHub stars | 15.3k | 42k |
| Setup difficulty | Beginner | Beginner |
| How you get it | Clone and build from source | Install with a package manager |
| Main language | JavaScript | Astro |
| Last code update | 16 months ago | 7 days ago |
What each one is
Flat UI
Flat UI Free is a set of HTML, CSS, LESS and JavaScript files that restyle Bootstrap's components with a flat, minimal look. Developers use it as a starting point so their websites have a consistent modern appearance without designing every button and form from scratch. It comes with a demo page, documentation and a Photoshop file for design work.
Tabler
Tabler is a set of ready-made layouts, components and demo pages for building admin panels, dashboards and web apps. It is built on Bootstrap 5 and ships as CSS and JavaScript you can load from a CDN or install with npm. It is useful for people who want a polished interface without designing every screen from scratch.
Best for
Flat UI
- Developers who already use or know Bootstrap and want a flatter visual style
- Designers prototyping a website who want a ready-made component look
- Small teams building simple marketing or landing pages quickly
- People who want a free MIT-licensed starting theme
Tabler
- Developers building internal admin panels or dashboards quickly
- Teams already comfortable with Bootstrap who want ready-made components
- Projects that need dark mode or right-to-left (RTL) layouts
- Developers using a framework such as React, Vue or Laravel who want a styled UI base
Strengths
Flat UI
- Free and licensed under MIT (with CC BY 3.0 noted in the README)
- Includes both compiled and minified CSS and JS files plus documentation and examples
- Builds on Bootstrap, a widely known framework
Tabler
- Free and MIT-licensed, with a large set of demo pages and components listed in the README
- Includes dark mode and RTL versions of its stylesheets
- Works with plain HTML and with many common frameworks, with setup guides in the docs
Not ideal for
Flat UI
- Projects that need a large, actively expanding component library, since the README gives no sign of new releases beyond 2.3.0
- Anyone wanting a no-code builder; the README describes a code-based theme
- Teams needing SASS source files directly, since the README points to a third-party SASS port for that
Tabler
- People who want a finished app with no coding, since it is a UI kit rather than a ready-to-use product
- Projects that do not use Bootstrap and do not want to adopt its styling system
- Teams that need a design system built from scratch rather than a pre-styled one
Trade-offs
Flat UI
- The README mentions a Bootstrap base but gives no version compatibility details
- Licensing is listed as both CC BY 3.0 and MIT, and the README asks users to link to the website, so check terms before commercial use
- The repository's last push and release info are not described in the README, so maintenance status is unclear
Tabler
- Depends on Bootstrap 5, so you inherit its structure and conventions
- The README is truncated, so details about the full feature list and browser support are not confirmed here
- Bundled plugins add to the package and you must choose which stylesheets to load
Getting started
Flat UI
Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/designmodo/Flat-UI.gitInstall dependencies
npm installTabler
Install the package with npm
npm install @tabler/coreAdd the Tabler skill for a coding agent
npx skills add tabler/tablerFrequently asked questions
What is the difference between Flat UI and Tabler?
Flat UI: A flat-style visual theme and component set built on Bootstrap, for ready-made web pages. Tabler: Free, open source Bootstrap 5 admin dashboard UI kit with dark mode and RTL support. Flat UI suits developers who already use or know bootstrap and want a flatter visual style, while Tabler suits developers building internal admin panels or dashboards quickly.
Are Flat UI and Tabler free?
Flat UI: Free and open source. Tabler: Free and open source.
Is Flat UI or Tabler more popular?
Tabler has more GitHub stars (42k) than Flat UI (15.3k). Popularity isn't the same as fit — check which one matches your use case above.
What are other alternatives to Flat UI and Tabler?
Other options people compare them with include Bootstrap, AdminLTE, Gentelella, Chirpy, Simplefolio.
Keep comparing
Built from our catalogue entries for both products: open-source details come from each project's README (AI-assisted, refreshed weekly) and GitHub data; AI-tool details are editorial. Spotted something wrong? Let us know from either product's page.