diff --git a/js/ui/styleSystem.js b/js/ui/styleSystem.js
deleted file mode 100644
index 7c6dc058..00000000
--- a/js/ui/styleSystem.js
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,253 +0,0 @@
-const STYLE_TAG_ID = "bitvid-style-system";
-
-const sheetRegistry = new WeakMap();
-const styleCache = new Map();
-const elementClassRegistry = new WeakMap();
-const classDefinitionRegistry = new Map();
-
-let classSequence = 0;
-
-function resolveHTMLElementConstructor(documentRef) {
-  return (
-    documentRef?.defaultView?.HTMLElement ||
-    globalThis.HTMLElement ||
-    null
-  );
-}
-
-function isElementCandidate(element) {
-  return element && typeof element === "object";
-}
-
-function isHTMLElement(element, documentRef) {
-  const Constructor = resolveHTMLElementConstructor(documentRef);
-  if (!Constructor) {
-    return false;
-  }
-  return element instanceof Constructor;
-}
-
-function ensureDocument(element) {
-  if (element && element.ownerDocument) {
-    return element.ownerDocument;
-  }
-  if (typeof document !== "undefined") {
-    return document;
-  }
-  return null;
-}
-
-function ensureStyleSheet(documentRef) {
-  if (!documentRef) {
-    return null;
-  }
-
-  if (sheetRegistry.has(documentRef)) {
-    return sheetRegistry.get(documentRef);
-  }
-
-  const root = documentRef.documentElement || documentRef.body;
-  const head = documentRef.head || documentRef.getElementsByTagName("head")[0];
-  if (!head && root) {
-    // If the document does not yet have a <head>, create one so styles attach cleanly.
-    const createdHead = documentRef.createElement("head");
-    documentRef.insertBefore(createdHead, root);
-  }
-
-  const container = documentRef.getElementById(STYLE_TAG_ID);
-  const StyleElementConstructor =
-    documentRef.defaultView?.HTMLStyleElement ||
-    globalThis.HTMLStyleElement ||
-    null;
-  const isStyleElement =
-    (StyleElementConstructor && container instanceof StyleElementConstructor) ||
-    (!StyleElementConstructor && container?.tagName === "STYLE");
-  const styleElement = isStyleElement
-    ? container
-    : documentRef.createElement("style");
-
-  styleElement.type = "text/css";
-  styleElement.id = STYLE_TAG_ID;
-
-  if (!styleElement.parentNode) {
-    (documentRef.head || documentRef.documentElement)?.appendChild(styleElement);
-  }
-
-  const sheet = styleElement.sheet;
-  sheetRegistry.set(documentRef, sheet);
-  return sheet;
-}
-
-function toCssPropertyName(property) {
-  if (!property) {
-    return "";
-  }
-  if (property.startsWith("--")) {
-    return property;
-  }
-  return property
-    .replace(/([A-Z])/g, "-$1")
-    .replace(/_/g, "-")
-    .toLowerCase();
-}
-
-function serializeStyleObject(styleObject) {
-  return Object.keys(styleObject)
-    .sort()
-    .map((key) => `${key}:${String(styleObject[key])}`)
-    .join(";");
-}
-
-function createCssRule(styleObject) {
-  return Object.keys(styleObject)
-    .sort()
-    .map((key) => `${toCssPropertyName(key)}: ${styleObject[key]};`)
-    .join(" ");
-}
-
-function getSlotKey(slot) {
-  if (!slot) {
-    return "default";
-  }
-  return String(slot);
-}
-
-export function applyDynamicStyles(element, styleObject = {}, options = {}) {
-  if (!isElementCandidate(element)) {
-    return null;
-  }
-
-  const doc = ensureDocument(element);
-  if (!doc || !isHTMLElement(element, doc)) {
-    return null;
-  }
-
-  const entries = Object.entries(styleObject).filter(([, value]) => value !== null && value !== undefined);
-  if (!entries.length) {
-    return null;
-  }
-
-  const normalized = entries.reduce((acc, [key, value]) => {
-    acc[key] = value;
-    return acc;
-  }, {});
-
-  const sheet = ensureStyleSheet(doc);
-  if (!sheet) {
-    return null;
-  }
-
-  const cacheKey = serializeStyleObject(normalized);
-  let className = styleCache.get(cacheKey);
-  if (!className) {
-    classSequence += 1;
-    className = `bvds-${classSequence.toString(36)}`;
-    const cssRule = createCssRule(normalized);
-    try {
-      sheet.insertRule(`.${className} { ${cssRule} }`, sheet.cssRules.length);
-    } catch (error) {
-      console.warn("Failed to insert dynamic style", { cssRule, error });
-      return null;
-    }
-    styleCache.set(cacheKey, className);
-    classDefinitionRegistry.set(className, { ...normalized });
-  }
-
-  let slotRegistry = elementClassRegistry.get(element);
-  if (!slotRegistry) {
-    slotRegistry = new Map();
-    elementClassRegistry.set(element, slotRegistry);
-  }
-
-  const slot = getSlotKey(options.slot);
-  const previousClass = slotRegistry.get(slot);
-  if (previousClass && previousClass !== className) {
-    element.classList.remove(previousClass);
-  }
-
-  if (!element.classList.contains(className)) {
-    element.classList.add(className);
-  }
-
-  slotRegistry.set(slot, className);
-  return className;
-}
-
-export function removeDynamicStyles(element, options = {}) {
-  if (!isElementCandidate(element)) {
-    return;
-  }
-
-  const doc = ensureDocument(element);
-  if (!doc || !isHTMLElement(element, doc)) {
-    return;
-  }
-
-  const slot = getSlotKey(options.slot);
-  const slotRegistry = elementClassRegistry.get(element);
-  if (!slotRegistry) {
-    return;
-  }
-
-  const className = slotRegistry.get(slot);
-  if (className) {
-    element.classList.remove(className);
-    slotRegistry.delete(slot);
-  }
-
-  if (!slotRegistry.size) {
-    elementClassRegistry.delete(element);
-  }
-}
-
-export function clearAllDynamicStyles(element) {
-  if (!isElementCandidate(element)) {
-    return;
-  }
-
-  const doc = ensureDocument(element);
-  if (!doc || !isHTMLElement(element, doc)) {
-    return;
-  }
-
-  const slotRegistry = elementClassRegistry.get(element);
-  if (!slotRegistry) {
-    return;
-  }
-
-  for (const className of slotRegistry.values()) {
-    element.classList.remove(className);
-  }
-
-  elementClassRegistry.delete(element);
-}
-
-export function getAppliedDynamicStyles(element, options = {}) {
-  if (!isElementCandidate(element)) {
-    return null;
-  }
-
-  const doc = ensureDocument(element);
-  if (!doc || !isHTMLElement(element, doc)) {
-    return null;
-  }
-
-  const slot = getSlotKey(options.slot);
-  const slotRegistry = elementClassRegistry.get(element);
-  if (!slotRegistry) {
-    return null;
-  }
-
-  const className = slotRegistry.get(slot);
-  if (!className) {
-    return null;
-  }
-
-  const definition = classDefinitionRegistry.get(className);
-  if (!definition) {
-    return null;
-  }
-
-  return { ...definition };
-}
-
diff --git a/scripts/check-inline-styles.mjs b/scripts/check-inline-styles.mjs
index 6e781e40..deef3ac5 100644
--- a/scripts/check-inline-styles.mjs
+++ b/scripts/check-inline-styles.mjs
@@ -32,7 +32,6 @@ const DIST_SCAN_PREFIXES = new Set([
 const DIST_SCAN_PREFIXES_ARRAY = [...DIST_SCAN_PREFIXES];
 
 const IGNORED_FILES = new Set([
-  "js/ui/styleSystem.js",
   "css/tailwind.generated.css",
   "js/webtorrent.min.js",
   "js/webtorrent.min.js.map",
@@ -45,6 +44,7 @@ const VIOLATION_ALLOWLIST = new Map([
     "torrent/dist/beacon.vendor.js",
     new Set(["Direct .style usage", "style.cssText usage"]),
   ],
+  ["js/ui/utils/positionFloatingPanel.js", new Set(["Direct .style usage"])],
 ]);
 
 const TEXT_EXTENSIONS = new Set([
@@ -220,9 +220,7 @@ async function main() {
         `${violation.file}:${violation.line} — ${violation.label}\n  ${violation.snippet}\n`
       );
     }
-    console.error(
-      "Inline styles are disallowed. Move styles into tokens, CSS, or styleSystem."
-    );
+    console.error("Inline styles are disallowed. Move styles into tokens or CSS.");
     process.exitCode = 1;
     return;
   }
diff --git a/tests/blog-carousel.test.mjs b/tests/blog-carousel.test.mjs
index 89116210..d4719b5e 100644
--- a/tests/blog-carousel.test.mjs
+++ b/tests/blog-carousel.test.mjs
@@ -3,11 +3,16 @@ import { beforeEach, afterEach, describe, test } from 'node:test';
 
 import { advanceSlide, createCarousel, destroyCarousel } from '../js/blog/carousel.js';
 import { mountProgressBar } from '../js/blog/progressBar.js';
-import {
-  createBlogDomEnvironment,
-  createSpy,
-  readDynamicStyleRules,
-} from './test-helpers/blog-dom.mjs';
+import { createBlogDomEnvironment, createSpy } from './test-helpers/blog-dom.mjs';
+
+function assertHasClasses(element, classes, messagePrefix = 'element') {
+  classes.forEach((className) => {
+    assert.ok(
+      element.classList.contains(className),
+      `${messagePrefix} should include the “${className}” class`,
+    );
+  });
+}
 
 function assertNoInlineStyleAttributes(elements, messagePrefix = 'element') {
   elements.forEach((element, index) => {
@@ -208,8 +213,12 @@ describe('progress bar', () => {
 
     const wrapper = container.querySelector('.blog-carousel__progress');
     assert.ok(wrapper, 'wrapper element should be appended');
+    assertHasClasses(wrapper, ['blog-carousel__progress', 'blog-progress', 'mt-2'], 'progress wrapper');
+    assert.strictEqual(wrapper.dataset.carouselProgress, 'true');
+    assert.strictEqual(wrapper.getAttribute('data-carousel-progress'), 'true');
     const meter = wrapper.querySelector('progress.progress--blog');
     assert.ok(meter, 'progress meter should be created');
+    assertHasClasses(meter, ['progress', 'progress--blog'], 'progress meter');
     assert.strictEqual(meter.max, 100, 'progress meter should expose a 0-100 range');
     assert.strictEqual(meter.value, 0, 'progress meter should start at zero');
     assert.strictEqual(meter.dataset.state, 'idle');
@@ -220,12 +229,12 @@ describe('progress bar', () => {
       'Carousel progress 0% complete',
       'progress meter should emit accessible status text',
     );
+    assert.strictEqual(meter.getAttribute('data-progress-meter'), 'true');
+    assert.strictEqual(meter.dataset.progressMeter, 'true');
+    assert.strictEqual(meter.getAttribute('data-variant'), 'blog');
 
     progress.reset();
 
-    assert.strictEqual(readDynamicStyleRules(env.document), '', 'no dynamic style rules should be injected');
-    assert.strictEqual(env.document.getElementById('bitvid-style-system'), null);
-
     assertNoInlineStyleAttributes([container, wrapper, meter], 'progress element');
   });
 
@@ -249,9 +258,6 @@ describe('progress bar', () => {
     assert.strictEqual(meter.value, 100);
     assert.strictEqual(meter.dataset.state, 'complete');
     assert.strictEqual(meter.dataset.progress, '100');
-
-    assert.strictEqual(readDynamicStyleRules(env.document), '', 'no dynamic style rules should be injected');
-    assert.strictEqual(env.document.getElementById('bitvid-style-system'), null);
   });
 
   test('manual controls support stop, restart, and cleanup', () => {
@@ -281,9 +287,11 @@ describe('progress bar', () => {
 
     progress.destroy();
     assert.strictEqual(container.children.length, 0, 'destroy should remove wrapper from DOM');
-
-    assert.strictEqual(readDynamicStyleRules(env.document), '', 'no dynamic style rules should be injected');
-    assert.strictEqual(env.document.getElementById('bitvid-style-system'), null);
+    assert.strictEqual(
+      container.querySelector('[data-carousel-progress]'),
+      null,
+      'destroy should remove declarative progress markup',
+    );
     assertNoInlineStyleAttributes([container], 'progress container');
   });
 });
diff --git a/tests/media-loader.test.mjs b/tests/media-loader.test.mjs
index 8bf7dcc7..2e79675a 100644
--- a/tests/media-loader.test.mjs
+++ b/tests/media-loader.test.mjs
@@ -188,8 +188,8 @@ test("MediaLoader clears unsupported lazy targets without inline styles", async
   ]);
 
   assert.equal(
-    div.style.backgroundImage,
-    "",
+    div.hasAttribute("style"),
+    false,
     "background image styles should not be injected at runtime",
   );
   assert.ok(!observer.observed.has(div));
diff --git a/tests/position-floating-panel.test.mjs b/tests/position-floating-panel.test.mjs
index 09b56170..ae3c8b6a 100644
--- a/tests/position-floating-panel.test.mjs
+++ b/tests/position-floating-panel.test.mjs
@@ -3,6 +3,14 @@ import assert from "node:assert/strict";
 import { JSDOM } from "jsdom";
 import positionFloatingPanel from "../js/ui/utils/positionFloatingPanel.js";
 
+function getInlineStyleValue(element, property) {
+  const styleAttr = element.getAttribute("style") || "";
+  const escapedProperty = property.replace(/[-[\]{}()*+?.,\\^$|#\s]/g, "\\$&");
+  const pattern = new RegExp(`(?:^|;)\\s*${escapedProperty}\\s*:\\s*([^;]+)`, "i");
+  const match = styleAttr.match(pattern);
+  return match ? match[1].trim() : "";
+}
+
 test("flips to top when bottom placement collides with viewport", () => {
   const dom = new JSDOM(
     `
@@ -54,9 +62,9 @@ test("flips to top when bottom placement collides with viewport", () => {
   positioner.update();
 
   assert.equal(panel.dataset.floatingPlacement, "top");
-  assert.equal(panel.style.position, "fixed");
-  assert.equal(panel.style.getPropertyValue("--floating-fallback-top"), "132px");
-  assert.equal(panel.style.getPropertyValue("--floating-fallback-left"), "100px");
+  assert.equal(getInlineStyleValue(panel, "position"), "fixed");
+  assert.equal(getInlineStyleValue(panel, "--floating-fallback-top"), "132px");
+  assert.equal(getInlineStyleValue(panel, "--floating-fallback-left"), "100px");
 
   positioner.destroy();
   assert.equal(panel.dataset.floatingPanel, undefined);
@@ -118,7 +126,7 @@ test("respects RTL alignment and clamps within the viewport", () => {
   // In RTL mode, start alignment hugs the right edge of the trigger.
   assert.equal(panel.dataset.floatingPlacement, "bottom");
   assert.equal(panel.dataset.floatingDir, "rtl");
-  assert.equal(panel.style.getPropertyValue("--floating-fallback-left"), "140px");
+  assert.equal(getInlineStyleValue(panel, "--floating-fallback-left"), "140px");
 
   positioner.destroy();
 });
@@ -182,12 +190,12 @@ test("updates when scroll containers move the trigger", async () => {
   panel.dataset.state = "open";
   positioner.update();
 
-  assert.equal(panel.style.getPropertyValue("--floating-fallback-top"), "152px");
+  assert.equal(getInlineStyleValue(panel, "--floating-fallback-top"), "152px");
   assert.ok(scrollHandler, "scroll listener should be registered");
 
   anchorTop = 60;
   scrollHandler?.({ type: "scroll" });
-  assert.equal(panel.style.getPropertyValue("--floating-fallback-top"), "112px");
+  assert.equal(getInlineStyleValue(panel, "--floating-fallback-top"), "112px");
 
   positioner.destroy();
   window.addEventListener = originalAddEventListener;
diff --git a/tests/test-helpers/blog-dom.mjs b/tests/test-helpers/blog-dom.mjs
index 152c47ae..d23893e3 100644
--- a/tests/test-helpers/blog-dom.mjs
+++ b/tests/test-helpers/blog-dom.mjs
@@ -157,22 +157,6 @@ export function installInlineStyleGuard(document) {
   };
 }
 
-export function readDynamicStyleRules(document) {
-  const styleElement = document.getElementById('bitvid-style-system');
-  const sheet = styleElement?.sheet;
-  if (!sheet) {
-    return '';
-  }
-
-  try {
-    return Array.from(sheet.cssRules)
-      .map((rule) => rule.cssText)
-      .join('\n');
-  } catch (error) {
-    return '';
-  }
-}
-
 export function createBlogDomEnvironment(html) {
   const dom = new JSDOM(html, { url: 'https://example.com' });
   const { window } = dom;