Bootstrap: how to stack divs of different heights?

This question is a bit similar to this one, but I want to know if there is a pure CSS solution that is compatible with Bootstrap.

Basically, I have the following layout:

This is the HTML of that page:

<div class="menu row">
    <div class="menu-category list-group col-lg-3 col-md-4 col-sm-6 col-xs-12">
        <div class="menu-category-name list-group-item active">Category</div><a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
        <a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
        <a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
        <a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
        <a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
        <a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
        <a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
    </div>

    <div class="menu-category list-group col-lg-3 col-md-4 col-sm-6 col-xs-12">
        <div class="menu-category-name list-group-item active">Category</div><a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
        <a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
        <a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
        <a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
    </div>

    <div class="menu-category list-group col-lg-3 col-md-4 col-sm-6 col-xs-12">
        <div class="menu-category-name list-group-item active">Category</div><a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
        <a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
        <a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
        <a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
        <a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
    </div>

    <div class="menu-category list-group col-lg-3 col-md-4 col-sm-6 col-xs-12">
        <div class="menu-category-name list-group-item active">Category</div><a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
        <a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
        <a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
        <a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
        <a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
        <a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
        <a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
        <a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
    </div>

    <div class="menu-category list-group col-lg-3 col-md-4 col-sm-6 col-xs-12">
        <div class="menu-category-name list-group-item active">Category</div><a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
        <a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
        <a href="#" class="menu-item list-group-item">Lorem ipsum.<span class="badge">€ 0.00</span></a>
    </div>
</div>

The problem is, as you can see, that the row system of Bootstrap is a bit inconvenient here. I want these categories to stack in the most optimal way. So my question is: how can I do that with CSS? The masonry plugin seems excellent but I would like to keep it for plan B.

Thanks!

Solution 1:

Better to use .visible-sm,.visible-md, .visible-lg with clearfix classes. That helps to clear the floats according to screen sizes also.

<!-- This will clear the float in Middle and Large Size screens only -->
<div class="clearfix visible-md visible-lg"></div>

<!-- This will clear the float in Small Size screens only -->
<div class="clearfix visible-sm"></div>

See Reference: on Bootstrap 3

Solution 2:

Take a look at these examples..

Masonry-style Layout ONLY with CSS

Applied to your Bootstrap list-group it would look something like this..

http://bootply.com/85737

However, you need to remove the Bootstrap col-* classes from your markup since they use floats a mess up the masonry layout. Use the *-column-width property to change the width of the panels. So, it's possible with pure CSS, but not cross-browser compatible so you still may want to use the Masonry plugin as a fallback.

If you're simply looking to ensure the columns wrap every x columns, use Bootstrap responsive resets, or a clearfix solution with media queries like this: http://www.codeply.com/go/jXuoGHHker

More on solving the different heights issue

UPDATE Bootstrap 4 will include a CSS column layout masonry option.