# PurgeCSS

Tool that removes unused CSS selectors by matching them against the markup and scripts of a project, producing smaller stylesheets.


Source: https://findsoftware.frbit.cloud/purgecss/
Last reviewed: 2026-10-28
Listed since: 2026-10-28

## Record

### Links

- home: https://purgecss.com
- repository: https://github.com/FullHuman/purgecss
- docs: https://purgecss.com

### Identity

- status: active
- maintainer: Full Human LTD
- maintainerType: unknown
- parent: unknown
- firstRelease: 2017
- hqCountry: unknown

### Kind

- category: build-tool
- hosting: not applicable
- language: javascript
- runtime: unknown
- runtimeMin: not applicable
- basedOn: unknown

### Content

- contentStore: not applicable
- databases: not applicable
- adminUi: not applicable
- headlessApi: not applicable
- templating: not applicable
- i18n: not applicable

### Rendering and deploy

- runsAs: local
- renderingModes: not applicable
- installMethod: npm install purgecss --save-dev

### License

- licenseModel: open-source
- license: MIT

### Releases

- currentMajor: 8
- latestReleaseDate: 2026-01-24

### Adoption

- githubStargazers: 8053
- packagistDownloads: not applicable
- npmWeeklyDownloads: 1540290
- contributors: 85
- pluginCount: unknown
- packagistMonthlyDownloads: unknown
- ecosystemsMonthlyDownloads: unknown
- httpArchiveSites: unknown
- wordpressActiveInstalls: unknown
- dependentRepos: 169179
- dependentPackages: 294

### Sources

- urls: https://purgecss.com (read 2026-10-28)
- urls: https://api.github.com/repos/FullHuman/purgecss (read 2026-10-28)
- urls: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/FullHuman/purgecss/main/README.md (read 2026-10-28)
- maintainer: https://purgecss.com (read 2026-10-28)
- category: https://purgecss.com (read 2026-10-28)
- language: https://api.github.com/repos/FullHuman/purgecss (read 2026-10-28)
- runsAs: https://purgecss.com/CLI.html (read 2026-10-28)
- installMethod: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/FullHuman/purgecss/main/README.md (read 2026-10-28)
- installMethod: https://purgecss.com/CLI.html (read 2026-10-28)
- license: https://registry.npmjs.org/purgecss/latest (read 2026-10-28)
- license: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/FullHuman/purgecss/main/LICENSE (read 2026-10-28)
- firstRelease: https://registry.npmjs.org/purgecss (read 2026-10-28)
- currentMajor: https://api.github.com/repos/FullHuman/purgecss/releases (read 2026-10-28)
- latestReleaseDate: https://api.github.com/repos/FullHuman/purgecss/releases (read 2026-10-28)
- githubStargazers: https://api.github.com/repos/FullHuman/purgecss (read 2026-10-28)
- contributors: https://api.github.com/repos/FullHuman/purgecss/contributors (read 2026-10-28)
- npmWeeklyDownloads: https://api.npmjs.org/downloads/range/2026-09-28:2026-10-04/purgecss (read 2026-10-28)
- dependentPackages: https://packages.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/registries/npmjs.org/packages/purgecss (read 2026-10-28)
- dependentRepos: https://packages.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/registries/npmjs.org/packages/purgecss (read 2026-10-28)

## Notes

PurgeCSS removes unused CSS selectors from a project. It analyzes the content files and the CSS files, matches the selectors in the stylesheets against the content, and removes the selectors it does not find. It can be run from a command line interface, alone or with a configuration file, or through a plugin for a build tool.

It is installed with npm as a dev dependency. The repository is a monorepo that publishes its build-tool plugins as separate packages, and the core package is the one the install guide names.

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Data licensed CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Attributes are recorded, never scored; absent means unknown.
Credit, in full: FindSoftware, CC BY 4.0