RetroUI
RetroUI is a retro-styled UI library for modern web applications that combines nostalgic design aesthetics with contemporary web development practices using Tailwind CSS.
- Author
Logging stuff- Updated
- Live demo
- retroui.dev (opens in a new tab)
Live preview
Live Preview
Interact with the actual deployed template — every section, every interaction, no mockups.
retroui.dev
Open in a new tab (opens in a new tab)Loading preview…
About
About RetroUI
The MIT-licensed library provides playful, nostalgic design components that bring vintage computing and classic web design styles to modern applications while maintaining accessibility and responsive behavior. Built with TypeScript (71.3%), MDX (25.5%) for documentation, CSS for custom styling, Next.js, and Tailwind CSS, RetroUI offers developers a distinctive styling option beyond typical modern minimalist designs.
The library is supported by Vercel's Open Source Program and provides components with retro visual characteristics like pixel-art borders, vintage color palettes, classic button styles, and nostalgic typography treatments. Perfect for portfolio sites wanting unique personality, gaming-related applications, creative agency websites, nostalgic product showcases, or any project seeking to stand out with a distinctive retro aesthetic while maintaining modern web standards, performance, and accessibility, RetroUI demonstrates how classic design can be reimagined for contemporary web applications.
Get started
Free, open source, and ready to ship.
Clone the repo, install dependencies, and start customising. RetroUI is free and open source: its license is in the repository.
- Clone the RetroUI repository from GitHub.
- Run
npm installorpnpm installto install all required packages. - Run
npm run devto start the development server and begin customizing. - Check the repository’s README and license before you ship.
Terminal
$ git clone https://github.com/Logging-Stuff/RetroUI $ cd RetroUI $ npm install $ npm run dev
Included in Pro
More Templates
Hand-built premium templates from shadcn.io — production-ready and bundled in Pro.
- Solarisshadcn.io/demos/solaris
Pro - Reframe Labsshadcn.io/demos/reframe
Pro - Spheruleshadcn.io/demos/spherule
Pro - Maxshadcn.io/demos/max
Pro - Zel Designsshadcn.io/demos/zel
Pro - Areteshadcn.io/demos/arete
Pro - Lightboxshadcn.io/demos/lightbox
Pro - Chatlyshadcn.io/demos/chatly
Pro
Every template, every block. One Pro plan unlocks all 14, with 6,000+ blocks and MCP for your AI editor.
Get ProMore like this
More Headless UI templates
Open source Headless UI templates like RetroUI, those with the most in common first.
Pricing
Every premium template, with Pro
All 14 premium templates come with every Pro plan, with 6,000+ blocks and the MCP server. Pick the seats you need.
4.9/5 out of 5 · 150+ reviewsfrom 150+ founders and developers.
- Secure checkout via Stripe
- Code lives in your repo
- Keep what you've shipped if you cancel
- License terms
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Everything you need to know before you ship with RetroUI.
RetroUI is a retro-styled UI library for modern web applications that combines nostalgic design aesthetics with contemporary web development practices using Tailwind CSS. It is an open source template in the shadcn.io collection of 215.
RetroUI is made by Logging stuff, an independent developer; shadcn.io lists it but did not make it. Logging stuff has 1 template in the collection, and the author's page lists them.
The listing tags RetroUI with Next.js, React, Tailwind, Headless UI and UI Kits & Component Libraries. Those are its categories, not a dependency list: the exact packages and versions are in the repository's package.json.
Yes. The RetroUI page embeds its live demo from retroui.dev, and links to it so you can open the real deployment before you clone.
The RetroUI listing was last updated on October 8, 2025. That date is the listing's, not the repository's: check the repository's commits for recent activity.
Clone the repository (git clone https://github.com/Logging-Stuff/RetroUI), then follow the README. The RetroUI page shows the usual steps and a terminal block with the commands to copy.
Install dependencies with npm install or pnpm install, then run npm run dev. The README in the RetroUI repository says which package manager and environment variables it needs.
No. RetroUI is cloned from its own GitHub repository, so shadcn.io isn't involved. Browsing the page and its live demo need no account either; Pro adds the premium templates, the blocks and the MCP server.
RetroUI is tagged Next.js, so it deploys wherever a Next.js app does, such as Vercel, a Node.js server or a container. Its README may add steps for its own services.
The RetroUI listing doesn't record a license. Check the LICENSE file in its repository (https://github.com/Logging-Stuff/RetroUI), and ask the author if there isn't one.
That depends on RetroUI's license in its repository, which shadcn.io does not set. Read the LICENSE file before you use it in a client or paid project, and ask the author if it is unclear.
Attribution follows RetroUI's license. Many permissive licenses ask you to keep the copyright notice and license text in your copy; its LICENSE file says exactly what.
No. The Pro license covers shadcn.io's own Pro code, blocks and premium templates. RetroUI is the author's project, under the terms in its repository.
Logging stuff supports RetroUI, through its GitHub repository: read the docs, open an issue or look for discussions. shadcn.io does not maintain it.
Yes. Once you clone it, RetroUI is your own code: change the theme, add pages and connect your backend. It uses shadcn/ui, so you can also add more components the same way.
Yes. Components are free with a free account and the blocks are in Pro; both are copied into your project with the shadcn CLI. Check that RetroUI uses Tailwind CSS and the shadcn/ui setup (a components.json) before you add them, and pick the base library your project already uses.
Yes, with Pro. The shadcn.io MCP server's search_templates tool finds templates by what they are, and returns each one's repository and live demo, so your editor can set up RetroUI for you. Your files stay on your machine.
The collection has 6 other open source Headless UI templates like RetroUI, shown at the foot of its page with the ones sharing most categories first. All of them are at /template/category/headless-ui.
Logging stuff has no other templates in the collection.
Yes. The 14 premium templates (Solaris, Reframe Labs, Spherule and Max and more) are built by shadcn.io and come with every Pro plan, if you want maintained code with a design file.
4.9 out of 5 from 150+ developers
Ship your next site this weekend
14 premium templates, 6,000+ blocks and MCP in every Pro plan. RetroUI and the other 214 open source templates stay free.
Get Pro