If you're a beginner in the world of React and want to spice up your web application with a sleek image slider, you're in the right place. In this guide, we'll walk through the process of adding a slider to your React project using the Swiper package, and we'll style it effortlessly with Tailwind CSS. To make things even smoother, we'll be working with Vite, a fast and opinionated build tool.

What is Swiper?

Swiper is a powerful and easy-to-use touch slider library for web and mobile applications. It provides a range of customization options and supports touch gestures, making it an ideal choice for creating responsive and interactive sliders.

Prerequisites

Before we dive in, make sure you have Node.js installed on your machine. You can download ithere.

Setting up Vite

Let's start by creating a new React project using Vite. Open your terminal and run the following commands:

npx create-vite my-slider-app--template reactcdmy-slider-app

Now, let's install the required dependencies:

npminstallswipernpminstall-D tailwindcss postcss autoprefixernpx tailwindcss init-p

Configuring Tailwind CSS

Vite makes it simple to configure Tailwind CSS. Create atailwind.config.js file in the project root with the following content:

// tailwind.config.js/** @type {import('tailwindcss').Config} */exportdefault{content:["./index.html","./src/**/*.{js,ts,jsx,tsx}",],theme:{extend:{},},plugins:[],}

Next, In thesrc folder and inindex.css add the following code for tailwind css

/* src/index.css */@tailwindbase;@tailwindcomponents;@tailwindutilities;/* Your custom styles go here */

Setting up Swiper

Let's create a simple React component to showcase the Swiper slider. Create a component directory and make a new fileSlider.jsx and add following content:

// src/components/Slider.jsximportReactfrom'react';import{Autoplay,A11y}from'swiper/modules';import{Swiper,SwiperSlide}from'swiper/react';import'swiper/css';import'swiper/css/autoplay';import'swiper/css/controller';constSlider=()=>{constimages=['https://images.pexels.com/photos/16770561/pexels-photo-16770561/free-photo-of-scenic-view-of-green-hills-and-mountains.jpeg','https://images.pexels.com/photos/20041507/pexels-photo-20041507/free-photo-of-close-up-of-sleeping-cat.jpeg','https://images.pexels.com/photos/12187128/pexels-photo-12187128.jpeg','https://images.pexels.com/photos/11785594/pexels-photo-11785594.jpeg']return(<sectionclassName='bg-white mt-10 mx-4 sm:mx-8 md:mx-20 lg:mx-36 z-10'><divclassName='text-center font-extrabold text-2xl my-8'>Your own Slider</div><Swipermodules={[Autoplay,A11y]}spaceBetween={30}// Adjust the spacing as neededslidesPerView={1}// Show only one slide by defaultautoplay>{images.map((img,index)=>(<SwiperSlidekey={index}><ahref='/#'><imgsrc={img}alt={`slide-${index+1}`}className='w-fit h-[500px] mx-auto select-none'/></a></SwiperSlide>))}</Swiper></section>);};exportdefaultSlider;

Now, integrate the Slider component into yourApp.jsx:

importReactfrom'react'importSliderfrom'./components/Slider'constApp=()=>{return(<><div><Slider/></div></>)}exportdefaultApp

Here, we are using the Swiper component and SwiperSlide component from the Swiper package to create a basic slider. Feel free to replace the image URLs with your own content.

Running your Slider App

Now that everything is set up, run your development server:

npm run dev

Visithttp://localhost:5173 in your browser, and voila! You should see a beautiful slider in action.

Preview

This image shows the final product we made in this blog

Congratulations! You've successfully added a slider to your React project using the Swiper package and styled it with Tailwind CSS. This combination of powerful tools allows you to create dynamic and visually appealing sliders effortlessly.

Feel free to check out theSwiper documentation for more ways to customize your slider and add cool features. You can change how the slider works, add more pictures, and let your imagination run wild to make your website more interesting for users. If you want to see some examples of different sliders in action, take a look at thedemos on the Swiper website. They'll give you a great idea of what you can do with your slider!

Now that you've mastered the art of integrating a slider in React with Tailwind CSS using Vite, you're well on your way to building more dynamic and responsive web applications. Happy coding!