16 CSS Side Menu Designs 08 / 16

Full-Height Flexbox Sidebar

A sidebar that uses CSS Flexbox column direction to perfectly space a brand header, navigation links, an informational card, and a pinned user footer without absolute positioning.

Pure CSS MIT licensed
Live Demo Open in tab
Open in playground

The code

<div class="sm-08">
  <nav class="sm-08__nav">
    <div class="sm-08__brand">
      <div class="sm-08__logo">A</div>
      <div class="sm-08__brand-name">Apex</div>
    </div>
    <div class="sm-08__links">
      <div class="sm-08__section-lbl">Workspace</div>
      <a class="sm-08__link sm-08__link--active" href="#"><span class="sm-08__link-icon">⬡</span> Dashboard</a>
      <a class="sm-08__link" href="#"><span class="sm-08__link-icon">◈</span> Projects</a>
      <a class="sm-08__link" href="#"><span class="sm-08__link-icon">▦</span> Tasks <span class="sm-08__badge">14</span></a>
      <a class="sm-08__link" href="#"><span class="sm-08__link-icon">◉</span> Inbox <span class="sm-08__badge">6</span></a>
      <div class="sm-08__section-lbl">Team</div>
      <a class="sm-08__link" href="#"><span class="sm-08__link-icon">◬</span> Members</a>
      <a class="sm-08__link" href="#"><span class="sm-08__link-icon">⬟</span> Roles</a>
    </div>
    <div class="sm-08__nav-card">
      <div class="sm-08__nav-card-title">Storage 68% full</div>
      <div class="sm-08__nav-card-sub">6.8 GB of 10 GB used. Upgrade for unlimited storage.</div>
    </div>
    <div class="sm-08__user">
      <div class="sm-08__user-avatar">TN</div>
      <div>
        <div class="sm-08__user-name">Tom N.</div>
        <div class="sm-08__user-plan">Pro Plan</div>
      </div>
      <div class="sm-08__logout">↗</div>
    </div>
  </nav>
  <div class="sm-08__main">
    <div class="sm-08__topbar">
      <div class="sm-08__page-title">Dashboard</div>
      <div class="sm-08__topbar-actions">
        <button class="sm-08__btn sm-08__btn--ghost">Export</button>
        <button class="sm-08__btn sm-08__btn--primary">+ New</button>
      </div>
    </div>
    <div class="sm-08__content">
      <p class="sm-08__desc">Sidebar uses <code>display:flex; flex-direction:column</code>. The links region has <code>flex:1</code> to grow and pin header/footer to top and bottom without <code>position:absolute</code>.</p>
      <div class="sm-08__grid">
        <div class="sm-08__card"><div class="sm-08__card-val">28</div><div class="sm-08__card-lbl">Active Projects</div></div>
        <div class="sm-08__card"><div class="sm-08__card-val">142</div><div class="sm-08__card-lbl">Open Tasks</div></div>
        <div class="sm-08__card"><div class="sm-08__card-val">7</div><div class="sm-08__card-lbl">Team Members</div></div>
        <div class="sm-08__card"><div class="sm-08__card-val">99%</div><div class="sm-08__card-lbl">SLA</div></div>
      </div>
    </div>
  </div>
</div>
.sm-08, .sm-08 *, .sm-08 *::before, .sm-08 *::after {
  box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0; padding: 0;
}
.sm-08 ::selection { background: #7c3aed; color: #fff; }
.sm-08 {
  --bg: #fafaf9;
  --surface: #fff;
  --nav-bg: #1c1917;
  --accent: #7c3aed;
  --accent2: #a78bfa;
  --text: #fafaf9;
  --muted: #78716c;
  --text-dark: #1c1917;
  --border-nav: rgba(255,255,255,0.08);
  --border-main: #e7e5e4;
  --font: 'Outfit', system-ui, sans-serif;
  font-family: var(--font);
  background: var(--bg);
  color: var(--text-dark);
  display: flex;
  min-height: 100vh;
  border-radius: 12px;
  overflow: hidden;
}
/* Sidebar nav using flexbox for perfect spacing */
.sm-08__nav {
  width: 240px;
  background: var(--nav-bg);
  display: flex;
  flex-direction: column;
  flex-shrink: 0;
  padding: 0;
}
/* Top: brand */
.sm-08__brand {
  padding: 22px 18px;
  border-bottom: 1px solid var(--border-nav);
  display: flex; align-items: center; gap: 11px;
}
.sm-08__logo {
  width: 36px; height: 36px;
  background: linear-gradient(135deg, var(--accent), var(--accent2));
  border-radius: 9px;
  display: flex; align-items: center; justify-content: center;
  font-weight: 800; font-size: 16px; color: #fff;
}
.sm-08__brand-name { font-size: 16px; font-weight: 700; color: var(--text); }
/* Middle: links — flex: 1 stretches this to fill available space */
.sm-08__links {
  flex: 1;
  padding: 14px 10px;
  display: flex;
  flex-direction: column;
  gap: 2px;
}
.sm-08__section-lbl {
  font-size: 10px;
  font-weight: 700;
  letter-spacing: 0.14em;
  text-transform: uppercase;
  color: #57534e;
  padding: 8px 10px 4px;
}
.sm-08__link {
  display: flex; align-items: center; gap: 11px;
  padding: 10px 12px;
  border-radius: 9px;
  color: #a8a29e;
  font-size: 13px; font-weight: 600;
  cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;
  transition: all 0.2s;
}
.sm-08__link:hover { color: var(--text); background: rgba(255,255,255,0.07); }
.sm-08__link--active { color: var(--text); background: rgba(124,58,237,0.25); }
.sm-08__link-icon { font-size: 15px; }
.sm-08__badge {
  margin-left: auto;
  background: rgba(167,139,250,0.2);
  color: var(--accent2);
  font-size: 10px;
  font-weight: 700;
  padding: 2px 7px;
  border-radius: 99px;
}
/* Spacer pushes bottom content down */
.sm-08__spacer { flex: 1; }
/* Notification card in nav */
.sm-08__nav-card {
  margin: 0 10px 14px;
  padding: 14px;
  background: rgba(124,58,237,0.15);
  border: 1px solid rgba(124,58,237,0.25);
  border-radius: 10px;
}
.sm-08__nav-card-title { font-size: 13px; font-weight: 700; color: var(--text); margin-bottom: 4px; }
.sm-08__nav-card-sub { font-size: 11px; color: #a8a29e; line-height: 1.5; }
/* Bottom: user profile pinned to base */
.sm-08__user {
  padding: 16px 18px;
  border-top: 1px solid var(--border-nav);
  display: flex; align-items: center; gap: 10px;
}
.sm-08__user-avatar {
  width: 34px; height: 34px;
  border-radius: 50%;
  background: linear-gradient(135deg, #f59e0b, #ef4444);
  display: flex; align-items: center; justify-content: center;
  font-size: 12px; font-weight: 700; color: #fff;
  flex-shrink: 0;
}
.sm-08__user-name { font-size: 13px; font-weight: 700; color: var(--text); }
.sm-08__user-plan { font-size: 10px; color: #a78bfa; }
.sm-08__logout {
  margin-left: auto;
  width: 28px; height: 28px;
  background: rgba(255,255,255,0.07);
  border-radius: 7px;
  display: flex; align-items: center; justify-content: center;
  cursor: pointer;
  font-size: 14px;
  transition: background 0.2s;
}
.sm-08__logout:hover { background: rgba(255,255,255,0.15); }
/* Main */
.sm-08__main { flex: 1; display: flex; flex-direction: column; }
.sm-08__topbar {
  padding: 18px 22px;
  border-bottom: 1px solid var(--border-main);
  display: flex; align-items: center; justify-content: space-between;
}
.sm-08__page-title { font-size: 18px; font-weight: 800; }
.sm-08__topbar-actions { display: flex; gap: 8px; }
.sm-08__btn {
  padding: 8px 16px;
  border-radius: 8px;
  font-size: 13px; font-weight: 700;
  cursor: pointer;
  font-family: var(--font);
}
.sm-08__btn--ghost { background: transparent; border: 1px solid var(--border-main); color: var(--text-dark); }
.sm-08__btn--primary { background: var(--accent); border: none; color: #fff; }
.sm-08__content { flex: 1; padding: 22px; }
.sm-08__desc { font-size: 13px; color: var(--muted); line-height: 1.7; margin-bottom: 20px; }
.sm-08__grid { display: grid; grid-template-columns: 1fr 1fr; gap: 12px; }
.sm-08__card {
  background: var(--surface);
  border: 1px solid var(--border-main);
  border-radius: 10px;
  padding: 16px;
  box-shadow: 0 1px 3px rgba(0,0,0,0.05);
}
.sm-08__card-val { font-size: 24px; font-weight: 800; color: var(--accent); }
.sm-08__card-lbl { font-size: 12px; color: var(--muted); margin-top: 3px; }
@media (prefers-reduced-motion: reduce) {
  .sm-08__link, .sm-08__logout { transition: none; }
}

How this works

The sidebar is a flex container with flex-direction: column. The brand and footer sections have natural content heights. The .sm-08__links div uses flex: 1 to claim all remaining vertical space between them, distributing navigation across the available height. No position: absolute is needed to pin elements to the bottom.

The notification card sits between links and the user footer — since links already has flex: 1 the card naturally rests above the footer without explicit margins. The main content area is a separate flex child with its own column direction so topbar and content distribute correctly.

Customize

  • Add a second flex: 1 section below primary links to create a bottom-anchored secondary group separating App links from Account links.
  • Replace the notification card with a version badge or a collapsed announcement area using overflow-y: auto; max-height: 120px.
  • Add a resizable sidebar via a JS resize observer updating the nav's width CSS variable for drag-to-resize without changing the flexbox model.
  • Nest the user footer in a flex row with align-items: center and gap: 8px to easily add logout or notification icons.
  • Use gap on the links container instead of per-link margin-bottom for consistent spacing with a single property.

Watch out for

  • If the flex container has a fixed height but content overflows, flex children will compress — add overflow-y: auto to the links section to allow scrolling.
  • Mixing flex: 1 with explicit pixel heights can behave unexpectedly if the parent height is not set or derived from a viewport unit.
  • min-height: 0 is often required on flex children with overflow: auto — without it the browser enforces intrinsic minimum height and prevents shrinking.

Browser support

ChromeSafariFirefoxEdge
29+ 9+ 28+ 29+

Flexbox with flex:1 column layout is fully supported in all modern browsers and IE11 with -ms- prefix.

More from 16 CSS Side Menu Designs

Responsive Sidebar Menu (Hidden-to-Visible)Sticky Fixed Vertical Navigation SidebarMulti-Level Accordion Side MenuNeumorphic Inset Side MenuGlassmorphism Blurred SidebarDark Mode Cyberpunk Neon SidebarBrutalist Left-Hand Border NavigationHamburger Checkbox-Hack Side MenuCSS Hover-Triggered Sidebar DrawerCollapsible Sidebar Menu with CSS TransitionsCSS-Only Accordion Side NavigationPure CSS Slide-In Side Menu
View the full collection →

Search CodeFronts

Loading…

↑↓ navigate ↵ select esc close Open full search page →