How does masonry choose columns?

It fits as many columns as the container allows up to columns, then places each item in the shortest column so they end level.

How do I install Masonry?

Masonry is part of Charcoal UI Pro. Add the @charcoal registry to components.json with your access token, then run npx shadcn@latest add @charcoal/masonry. It copies masonry.tsx into components/ui and installs motion, clsx, tailwind-merge.

Is Masonry free for commercial use?

Masonry needs a Charcoal UI Pro seat, monthly or a one-time lifetime price. A seat covers unlimited personal and commercial projects, including client work, and every future Pro component.

Does Masonry work with Next.js?

Yes. It is a client component for React 19 styled with Tailwind CSS 4, so it works in the Next.js App Router and Pages Router, Vite, Remix and Astro.

Can an AI coding agent install Masonry?

Yes. Connect the Charcoal UI MCP server (https://charcoalui.com/mcp) to Claude Code, Cursor or any MCP client; get_component returns Masonry's props and get_install_command returns the exact command.

Masonry

A masonry grid balanced by height: each item goes into the shortest column, items rise in on first paint, and layout animation carries them to new places when the list or column count changes.

Category: Display
Licence: Charcoal UI Pro
Built with: React 19, Tailwind CSS 4, Motion
Dependencies: motion, clsx, tailwind-merge

Examples

Masonry

Switch the filter to watch the items reflow.

API reference

Prop	Type	Default	Description
`items`	`{ id: string; src: string; height: number; alt?: string; title?: string }[]`	—	height is relative to the column width, as a percentage.
`columns`	`number`	`3`	Drops to fewer on narrow containers.
`gap`	`number`	`12`
`stagger`	`number`	`0.04`
`hoverLift`	`boolean`	`true`
`onSelect`	`(item) => void`	—
`className`	`string`	—

About Masonry

Masonry places each item in the shortest column so columns end level, rises items in on first paint, and animates them to new places when the list or column count changes.

Masonry is a display component for React 19, styled with Tailwind CSS 4 and animated with Motion. It drops into Next.js, Vite, Remix or Astro through the shadcn CLI as a single file you own.

When to use Masonry

Photo and Pinterest-style galleries.
Blog and article grids.
Product feeds.
Inspiration boards.

How it works

Placement is computed from measured width and item heights, then each item animates to its slot with springs. Columns drop on narrow containers.

Interactive parts are buttons or links with accessible names, decorative layers are hidden from assistive tech, and everything is reachable by keyboard. With prefers-reduced-motion on, it holds still or settles instantly instead of animating.

Customizing Masonry

Every prop is documented in the API reference above with its type and default. The ones you will reach for first are listed here.

The Customize panel next to the preview lets you change columns, gap, stagger, hoverLift live, and the Code tab updates to match, so the snippet you copy already carries your values.

items: height is relative to the column width, as a percentage.
columns (number, default 3): Drops to fewer on narrow containers.
gap (number, default 12).
stagger (number, default 0.04).
hoverLift (boolean, default true).

The example on this page

Masonry: Switch the filter to watch the items reflow.

Goes well with Masonry

Masonry is already composed into a ready-made section, so you can see it in context or install the whole block.

Gallery Masonry: Gallery section
Tilt Card: A 3D tilt card for React that leans toward the pointer with a moving glare
Spotlight Card: A React spotlight card: an accent glow follows the pointer across card and border
Sortable List: A drag-to-reorder React list with lifted shadows and keyboard sorting
Card Stack: A swipeable React card stack where the next card rises to meet you
Image Compare: A React before and after image comparison slider you can drag anywhere

Install Masonry

npx shadcn@latest add @charcoal/masonry

Masonry is part of Charcoal UI Pro. One seat unlocks all 300 Pro components, 107 landing-page sections and 100 full templates, for every personal and client project, with updates included. Add the @charcoal registry once with your access token, then the command above copies masonry.tsx into components/ui and installs clsx, tailwind-merge.

You own the file you install: no runtime package, no lock-in, nothing to keep in sync. Change it however your product needs.

See Charcoal UI Pro pricing · Pro setup

Frequently asked questions

How does masonry choose columns?: It fits as many columns as the container allows up to columns, then places each item in the shortest column so they end level.
How do I install Masonry?: Masonry is part of Charcoal UI Pro. Add the @charcoal registry to components.json with your access token, then run npx shadcn@latest add @charcoal/masonry. It copies masonry.tsx into components/ui and installs motion, clsx, tailwind-merge.
Is Masonry free for commercial use?: Masonry needs a Charcoal UI Pro seat, monthly or a one-time lifetime price. A seat covers unlimited personal and commercial projects, including client work, and every future Pro component.
Does Masonry work with Next.js?: Yes. It is a client component for React 19 styled with Tailwind CSS 4, so it works in the Next.js App Router and Pages Router, Vite, Remix and Astro.
Can an AI coding agent install Masonry?: Yes. Connect the Charcoal UI MCP server (https://charcoalui.com/mcp) to Claude Code, Cursor or any MCP client; get_component returns Masonry's props and get_install_command returns the exact command.

Masonry as Markdown · llms.txt