Browserslist is a config to share target browsers between different front-end tools.

This repository shows how Browserslist is used by:

• developers
• Autoprefixer
• Babel
• postcss-preset-env
• postcss-normalize
• ESLint
• Stylelint

See package.json for config example.

Browserslist config can be defined in .browserslistrc file or in browserslist section of package.json.

In this example, we defined target browsers in package.json to reduce config files in project dir:

{
  "private": true,
+ "browserslist": [
+   "Edge 16"
+ ],
  "scripts": {
  }
}

Browserslist config is a list of browsers queries (like last 2 Chrome versions). You can find queries list in Browserslist docs.

Yes, Browserslist is useful not only for tools. Browserslist is a standard place to find project’s target browsers.

With Browserslist config new developers will not bother you with questions like “What browsers do we support?” or “Do we support IE 11”? They will find an answer in the config.

Also, Browserslist has CLI tool to show what browser versions is selected by project’s Browserslist queries:

$ npx browserslist
edge 16

Autoprefixer is a PostCSS plugin to add vendor prefixes to CSS. It adds only actual prefixes according to Browserslist’s target browsers and Can I Use data.

Let’s install it:

$ npm install postcss-cli autoprefixer

and add to package.json:

  "browserslist": [
    "Edge 16"
  ],
+ "postcss": {
+   "plugins": {
+     "autoprefixer": {}
+   }
+ },
  "scripts": {
+   "build:css": "postcss src/app.css -o build/app.css",
+   "build": "npm run build:css"
  }

Now we can forget about prefixes and write clean code in src/app.css:

body {
  user-select: none
}

Autoprefixer will compile it to:

body {
  -ms-user-select: none;
      user-select: none
}

As you can see, Autoprefixer added only -ms- prefixes because Browserslist told that we support only Edge 16.

Babel is a tool to compile JS files. The most popular way to use it is to compile future JS syntaxes to JS supported by target browsers. From Babel 7.0 @babel/preset-env loads target browsers from the same Browserslist config.

Let’s install it:

$ npm install @babel/core @babel/cli @babel/preset-env

and add to package.json:

  "postcss": {
    "plugins": {
      "autoprefixer": {}
    }
  },
+ "babel": {
+   "presets": [
+     [
+       "@babel/preset-env"
+     ]
+   ]
+ },
  "scripts": {
    "build:css": "postcss src/app.css -o build/app.css",
+   "build:js": "babel src/app.js -o dist/app.js",
-   "build": "npm run build:css"
+   "build": "npm run build:css && npm run build:js"
  }

Now we can write future JS syntax in src/app.js:

const array = [1, 2, 3];
const [first, second] = array;

Babel will compile it for Edge 16:

const array = [1, 2, 3];
const first = array[0],
      second = array[1];

Note, that Babel doesn’t change const since Edge 16 supports it.

postcss-preset-env is a “Babel for CSS.” It compiles future CSS syntax to CSS supported by target browsers. It is similar to cssnext, but more accurate with CSS spec and has stage option.

Let’s install it:

$ npm install postcss-preset-env

and add to package.json:

  "postcss": {
    "plugins": {
+     "postcss-preset-env": {},
      "autoprefixer": {}
    }
  },

Now we can write future CSS in src/app.css:

.popup {
  --text-color: black;
  color: var(--text-color);
  background-color: #bbb9;
}

And postcss-preset-env will compile it for Edge 16:

.popup {
  --text-color: black;
  color: var(--text-color);
  background-color: rgba(187, 187, 187, 0.6);
}

Note, plugin replaced #bbb9 to rgba(), but didn’t replace CSS Custom Properties, because Edge 16 supports them.

Browsers have different default styles. To have same styles in all browsers we need to “normalize” these differences.

postcss-normalize is a fork of popular Normalize.css with 2 differents: it doesn’t have opinionated styles, and it adds only necessary fixes according Browserslist target browsers.

Let’s install it;

$ npm install postcss-normalize

and add to package.json:

  "postcss": {
    "plugins": {
+     "postcss-normalize": {},
      "postcss-preset-env": {},
      "autoprefixer": {}
    }
  },

Now plugin will replace @import-normalize; to CSS which normalize Edge 16 styles. You can check output in dist/app.css.

Note that inserted CSS is smaller than standard Normalize.css. postcss-normalize added rules necessary only for Edge 16.

ESLint finds mistakes in your JS. eslint-plugin-compat is a plugin to ESLint to warn that JS will not work in all target browsers.

Let’s install it:

$ npm install eslint eslint-plugin-compat

and add to package.json:

+ "eslintConfig": {
+   "parserOptions": {
+     "ecmaVersion": 6
+   },
+   "plugins": [
+     "compat"
+   ],
+   "rules": {
+     "compat/compat": "warn"
+   }
+ },
  "scripts": {
    "build:css": "postcss src/app.css -o dist/app.css",
    "build:js": "babel src/app.js -o dist/app.js",
+   "lint:js": "eslint src/*.js",
+   "test": "npm run lint:js",
    "build": "npm run build:css && npm run build:js"
  },

Now, if you will write navigator.serviceWorker, ESLint will warn you that Edge 16 doesn’t support Service Workers:

$ npm test

> eslint src/*.js

/browserslist-example/src/app.js
  3:1  warning  navigator.serviceWorker() is not supported in Edge 16  compat/compat

✖ 1 problem (0 errors, 1 warning)

Stylelint is a “ESLint for CSS” to warn you about mistakes in CSS. It also has stylelint-no-unsupported-browser-features plugin to warn you when CSS property will not work in all target browsers.

Let’s install it:

$ npm install stylelint stylelint-no-unsupported-browser-features

and add to package.json:

+ "stylelint": {
+   "plugins": [
+     "stylelint-no-unsupported-browser-features"
+   ],
+   "rules": {
+     "plugin/no-unsupported-browser-features": true
+   },
+   "defaultSeverity": "warning"
+ },
  "scripts": {
    "build:css": "postcss src/app.css -o dist/app.css",
    "build:js": "babel src/app.js -o dist/app.js",
+   "lint:css": "stylelint src/*.css",
    "lint:js": "eslint src/*.js",
-   "test": "npm run lint:js",
+   "test": "npm run lint:js && npm run lint:css",
    "build": "npm run build:css && npm run build:js"
  },

Now, if you will write will-change: transform in your CSS, Stylelint will warn you that Edge 16 doesn’t support this property:

$ npm test

> stylelint src/*.css

src/app.css
 14:3  ⚠  Unexpected browser feature     plugin/no-unsupported-browser-features
          "will-change" is not                                                 
          supported by Edge 16