CSS Border Gradient Skill

Teach how to create and customize CSS gradient borders using a pseudo-element mask, including Tailwind-friendly usage and common pitfalls.

Views

Uses

Updated

February 3, 2026

Author

MengTo

Skill creator

Source

MengTo/Skills

Added by Meng To

css web-design ui-design best-practices

Property	Value
name	css-border-gradient
description	Create and apply CSS gradient borders using a pseudo-element mask (the .border-gradient::before technique), including Tailwind-friendly usage and customization of angle, colors, border thickness, and radius. Use when asked for gradient borders, border glow, or the specific mask-composite border gradient snippet.
keywords	css, web-design, ui-design, best-practices

CSS Border Gradient Skill

Workflow

Confirm environment (plain CSS vs Tailwind) and gather missing specs (border radius, thickness, angle, colors).
Provide the baseline snippet and a short usage checklist.
Offer focused tweaks only (change angle, colors, thickness, radius) and avoid redesigning the component.

Baseline snippet

.border-gradient {
  position: relative;
}

.border-gradient::before {
  content: "";
  position: absolute;
  inset: 0;
  border-radius: 10px;
  padding: 1px;
  -webkit-mask: linear-gradient(#fff 0 0) content-box,
    linear-gradient(#fff 0 0);
  -webkit-mask-composite: xor;
  mask-composite: exclude;
  background: linear-gradient(225deg,
    rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.0) 0%,
    rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.2) 50%,
    rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.0) 100%);
  pointer-events: none;
}

Usage checklist

Insert the snippet in global CSS or the page <head>.
Add border-gradient to the element.
Remove any existing border styles.
Match the element radius to the pseudo-element radius.

Tailwind example

<div class="border-gradient rounded-lg before:rounded-lg">
  ...
</div>

If a project uses Tailwind layers, wrap the class in @layer utilities.

Customization knobs

Thickness: change padding (for example 2px).
Radius: change border-radius or the before:rounded-* class.
Angle: change the linear-gradient(225deg, ...) angle.
Colors: adjust the rgba(...) stops to fit the theme.

Common pitfalls

Mismatched radius between the element and pseudo-element.
Leaving an existing border on the element (double border).
Tailwind purge removing the class because it is not referenced in content files.

Questions to ask when specs are missing

What border radius and thickness do you want?
What gradient angle and colors should it use?
Is this for light, dark, or both themes?