Piny

About Piny

Piny is a visual editor extension that integrates directly into Visual Studio Code and similar IDEs, supporting frameworks like Tailwind CSS, Astro, React, and Next.js. It enables developers to edit styles and navigate project code visually without leaving their coding environment, all while making changes directly in the source code.

Review

Piny offers a focused approach to visual editing by concentrating on styling and project navigation within popular modern frameworks. It avoids abstracting away from the code, allowing developers to maintain full control over their projects. This makes it a practical tool for those who want visual assistance without sacrificing code transparency.

Key Features

• Visual Tailwind CSS styling with editable tree view of classes and states.
• Direct project navigation by selecting elements in a live browser preview to jump to their source code.
• Integration within popular IDEs such as Visual Studio Code, Cursor, and Windsurf.
• Support for React with Vite, Next.js, and Astro projects.
• All edits happen directly in the code, with no cloud services or vendor lock-in.

Pricing and Value

Piny offers a free standard edition that requires no sign-up and can be installed directly from the extension marketplace. For users seeking extended functionality, Piny Pro includes features such as the visual select project navigation and custom Tailwind theme imports. Currently, there is an Early Access discount of 60% on the Pro version, which will be maintained indefinitely for those who purchase before the offer ends. Overall, the pricing model provides good value, especially for developers looking to enhance their workflow without additional cloud dependencies.

Pros

• Seamless integration within popular IDEs, keeping the workflow uninterrupted.
• Direct code editing avoids abstraction, ensuring full transparency and control.
• Easy styling of Tailwind CSS classes with visual controls and class inspector.
• Enables quick navigation between live preview elements and source code.
• Free standard version with no sign-up lowers the barrier to entry.

Cons

• Currently limited framework support, with Vue and Svelte planned but not yet available.
• Visual navigation requires inserting a small development script into layouts, which may not suit all projects.
• Focuses mainly on styling and navigation, so it does not cover layout creation, data handling, or logic editing.

Piny is well suited for front-end developers working with Tailwind CSS and popular JavaScript frameworks who prefer to keep their workflow inside their IDE. It is ideal for those who want to speed up styling and code navigation without relying on cloud-based tools or complex abstractions. Developers working on projects with supported frameworks will find it particularly helpful as a complement to AI coding assistants or manual coding.