Comparison

CSS-Tricks vs Smashing Magazine

CSS-Tricks lands on Worth it, and Smashing Magazine lands on Depends.

CSS-Tricks

Worth it

Confidence: Medium

Free to use, so there is no purchase risk . worth bookmarking as a CSS learning and reference resource.

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Smashing Magazine

smashingmagazine.com

Depends

Confidence: Medium

Front-end devs and designers should bookmark it . most content is free and well-regarded by working developers.

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CSS-Tricks versus Smashing Magazine
Compare	CSS-Tricks	Smashing Magazine
Verdict	Worth it	Depends
Best for	Self-taught front-end devs	Front-end developers and designers
Who it's not for	Teams shopping for software . this is a blog, not a tool	Anyone expecting software or tooling . it's editorial content, not a product
Privacy	No known public vulnerabilities found in the sources reviewed.¹¹	No known public vulnerabilities found in the sources reviewed.
Support quality	Content site; no support evidence	Only 3 Trustpilot reviews; no support data
Public sentiment	Long treated as a go-to CSS learning reference, recent community discussion centers on its quietness and uncertain future after the DigitalOcean acquisition.^³	Developers on Reddit broadly praise it as a regular read, though a few threads question quality trends.¹⁶
Biggest gotcha	Content freshness is the real risk . recent coverage is about the site going quiet, not new guides^³	Membership price isn't publicly indexed . verify current cost on-site before subscribing¹³

Pick CSS-Tricks when

Self-taught front-end devs
CSS beginners
Devs needing a snippet or Almanac reference

When CSS-Tricks is not a fit

Teams shopping for software . this is a blog, not a tool
Anyone needing actively updated content right now
Learners wanting structured courses with support
Buyers needing vendor support, SLAs, or guarantees

Pick Smashing Magazine when

Front-end developers and designers
Self-directed learners
Teams caring about accessibility and UX

When Smashing Magazine is not a fit

Anyone expecting software or tooling . it's editorial content, not a product
Learners needing certified, structured curricula
Teams shopping for a training platform with admin controls
Non-technical buyers

Sources

CSS-Trickscss-tricks.com
official
Where I'm at on the whole CSS-Tricks thing . Chris Coyierchriscoyier.net
news
Why CSS-Tricks Has Been Quiet Lately . Reddit r/webdevreddit.com
review
CSS-Tricks in Limbo . Hacker Newsnews.ycombinator.com
news
HN: CSS-Tricks was a big blunder on DigitalOcean's sidenews.ycombinator.com
news
CSS-Tricks Reviews . Trustpilottrustpilot.com
review
CSS Tricks . Pricing, Reviews & Alternativesneura.market
review
CSS Tricks . Tracxn company profiletracxn.com
news
My CSS-Tricks Top 10 . Geoff Grahamgeoffgraham.me
review
Real talk, what happened to CSS Tricks? . Reddit r/cssreddit.com
review
Security pagecss-tricks.com
security
Smashing Magazine homepagesmashingmagazine.com
official
Smashing Membershipsmashingmagazine.com
official
The Smashing Email Newslettersmashingmagazine.com
official
Smashing Magazine Reviews . Trustpilottrustpilot.com
review
Webdevs of reddit: what online web development resources do you use?reddit.com
review