Min-Width or Max-Width: Which is the Better Choice for Mobile-First Design?

Max-Width vs. Min-Width: A Mobile-First Perspective

When it comes to using media queries, the choice between min-width and max-width often arises. While min-width is more prevalent for mobile-first design, understanding the rationale behind both methods is crucial.

Mobile-First Design and min-width

The principle behind mobile-first design is to start with styles tailored for mobile devices and gradually enhance the layout for larger screens. min-width media queries follow this flow.

Using min-width, the default styles apply to mobile devices. Subsequent queries progressively target wider screens:

<code class="css">body {
  /* Default mobile styles */
}

@media screen and (min-width: 480px) {
  /* Styles for screens 480px and wider */
}

@media screen and (min-width: 800px) {
  /* Styles for screens 800px and wider */
}</code>

Desktop-First Design and max-width

In contrast, desktop-first design starts with styles for desktops and uses max-width queries to adapt for smaller screens:

<code class="css">body {
  /* Default desktop styles */
}

@media screen and (max-width: 800px) {
  /* Styles for screens 800px and narrower */
}

@media screen and (max-width: 480px) {
  /* Styles for screens 480px and narrower */
}</code>

Custom Navigation for 360px or Less

For a custom navigation targeting devices with a width of 360px or less, you could use max-width if it's an isolated exception to your mobile-first design:

<code class="css">body {
  /* Default mobile styles (also applies to 361-479px) */
}

@media screen and (max-width: 360px) {
  /* Custom styles for screens 360px and narrower */
}

@media screen and (min-width: 480px) {
  /* Styles for screens 480px and wider */
}</code>

However, it's generally recommended to prioritize mobile-first principles and use min-width for progressive enhancement, either by including the 360px exception as a secondary query or by styling it as the baseline and overriding it for wider screens.

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