--- title: "Don't miss out on css variables" url: https://daily.dev/posts/don-t-miss-out-on-css-variables-5cxqy010h source_url: https://timdeschryver.dev/blog/do-not-miss-out-on-css-variables type: article source: "Tim Deschryver" author: "Tim Deschryver" published: 2026-05-31T07:47:25.344Z updated: 2026-06-01T04:01:31.521Z tags: ["javascript", "css"] reading_time: 3 upvotes: 0 comments: 0 language: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Don't miss out on css variables **[Tim Deschryver](https://daily.dev/sources/timdeschryver)** · [@timdeschryver](https://daily.dev/timdeschryver) · 3 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary CSS variables (custom properties) are a native browser feature that can replace preprocessors like SCSS or SASS for many use cases. Declared with double-dash syntax and accessed via the var() function, they support fallback values and cascade through the DOM. A key advantage is theming: by toggling a class on the body element, all dependent variables update automatically for light/dark themes. The JavaScript API (getPropertyValue and setProperty) enables dynamic runtime manipulation of CSS variables, opening up interactive use cases like a drag-to-select box that updates four corner coordinates via mouse events. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: --- Tags: [#javascript](https://daily.dev/tags/javascript), [#css](https://daily.dev/tags/css) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/don-t-miss-out-on-css-variables-5cxqy010h)