Installation
Nordstar ships as a single npm package with two CSS entry points — one for Tailwind CSS v4 consumers, one for everyone else. Pick the path that matches your setup.
Prerequisites
- Node — 24.x (see the repository's
.nvmrc). - React — 19 or later. Nordstar uses Server Components and the React 19 compiler-friendly APIs.
Install the package
pnpm add @nordcom/nordstarWire up the styles
Tailwind v4 users
Add a single @import after the Tailwind import in your global stylesheet:
@import "tailwindcss";
@import "@nordcom/nordstar";
That's it — Nordstar's tokens become Tailwind utilities (bg-primary, font-heading, etc.), and component classes resolve against your project's Tailwind compiler.
Non-Tailwind users
Import the precompiled stylesheet directly:
@import "@nordcom/nordstar/styles.css";
This bundle includes everything Nordstar's components need at runtime, no Tailwind required. The trade-off is bundle size (~50% larger than the Tailwind path) — fine for prototypes and small apps, less ideal for production.
Provider setup
Wrap your app in <NordstarProvider>. Most apps do this once at the root layout:
// app/layout.tsx
import { NordstarProvider } from '@nordcom/nordstar';
import '@/styles/globals.css';
export default function RootLayout({ children }: { children: React.ReactNode }) {
return (
<html lang="en">
<body>
<NordstarProvider>{children}</NordstarProvider>
</body>
</html>
);
}
The provider injects token defaults at runtime and exposes them to descendants. Custom theme overrides (colors, fonts) go on the provider's theme prop — see the Theme guide for the shape.
Per-component packages
Verify
A minimal sanity check — render a <Button> inside a route:
import { Button } from '@nordcom/nordstar';
export default function Home() {
return <Button color="primary">It works</Button>;
}
If the button renders styled (rounded corners, primary color, uppercase Heading-styled label), the install is good. If you see an unstyled button, the CSS import is missing or applied after another rule that resets it — re-check the order of the imports in your global stylesheet.
Next
- Components — the full component reference.
- Customization → Theme — override colors, fonts, and tokens.
- Customization → System — composition patterns.