The Power of MJML in Email Design

If you've ever tried to code a responsive HTML email by hand, you know the pain. You are thrust back into the dark ages of web design: fighting with nested <table> tags, writing inline CSS, and implementing confusing Outlook conditional comments (<!--[if mso]>).

Enter MJML (Mailjet Markup Language)—the framework that powers the entire CodedMails ecosystem.

What is MJML?

MJML is an open-source markup language designed to make responsive email coding effortless. It provides semantic syntax that compiles down into the intricate, messy HTML required to satisfy every obscure email client.

Instead of an endlessly nested table, you write clean, intuitive code:

<mjml>
  <mj-body>
    <mj-section>
      <mj-column>
        <mj-text font-size="20px" color="#F45E43">Hello World</mj-text>
      </mj-column>
    </mj-section>
  </mj-body>
</mjml>

Why We Chose MJML for CodedMails

Massive Code Reduction: Building a complex layout in pure HTML might take 800 lines of code. In MJML, it takes 150. That means fewer bugs and faster iterations.
Component Reusability: MJML allows you to define custom components and use includes (<mj-include>). This meant we could build a comprehensive design system of buttons, headers, and footers, re-using them across hundreds of templates.
Guaranteed Responsiveness: MJML's engine handles the responsive breakpoints natively. Columns stack beautifully on mobile, without needing hacky media queries.

By embracing MJML and making our source files openly available, we hope to empower you to build bulletproof emails in a fraction of the time.

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