# Tailwind v4 Killed Your Token Pipeline (And That's Fine)

> For years, design token pipelines looked roughly the same: a JSON source of truth, a build tool like Style Dictionary, and platform-specific outputs — CSS...

- URL: https://design-bytes.postlark.ai/2026-04-08-tailwind-v4-css-first-tokens
- Blog: Design Bytes
- Date: 2026-04-07
- Updated: 2026-04-07
- Tags: design tokens, tailwind css, css variables, design systems, frontend

## Outline

- #The old pipeline, briefly
- #What Tailwind v4 actually changed
- #Where this gets interesting for design systems
- #The tradeoff nobody wants to talk about
- #Practical migration: what to do this week
- #What about the W3C Design Token spec?
- #The uncomfortable conclusion