The width property in CSS is used to set the width of elements such as text and images. It can be specified in various units, including pixels (px), percentages (%), and centimeters (cm). This property defines the width of the content area, excluding padding, borders, and margins.
The width property can be overridden by the min-width and max-width properties. When the box-sizing property is set to border-box, the width includes padding and borders.
Try CSS Width Property
Syntax:
width: auto | value | initial | inherit;
Note: The width property for the element does not involve the padding, border & margin.
Default Value:
Its default value is auto.
Property Values:
| Value | Description |
|---|
auto | Default value; the browser calculates the width of the element automatically. |
value | Sets the width using units like pixels (px), percentages (%), or centimeters (cm). Cannot be negative. |
initial | Sets the width property to its default value. |
inherit | Inherits the width property from its parent element. |
All the properties are described well with the example below.
Setting Width to auto
It is used to set the width property to its default value. If the width property is set to auto then the browser calculates the width of the element.
Syntax
width: auto;
Example: This example demonstrates the use of the width property whose value is set to auto.
HTML
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<title> CSS width Property </title>
<style>
.gfg {
width: auto;
color: white;
font-size: 20px;
background-color: rgb(0, 150, 0);
}
h2 {
font-size: 20px;
color: black;
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h2>
CSS width Property
</h2>
<p class="gfg">
This is an example of auto width property
</p>
</body>
</html>
Output:
Setting Width with Specific Units
It is used to set the width in the form of pixels(px), Percentage(%), centimetre(cm) etc. The width can not be negative.
Syntax:
width: value;
Example: This example demonstrates the use of the width property whose value can be defined in pixels(px), Percentage(%), centimetre(cm) etc.
HTML
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<title> CSS Width Property </title>
<style>
.gfg {
width: 150px;
color: white;
font-size: 20px;
background-color: RGB(0, 150, 0);
}
.gfg1 {
width: 50%;
color: white;
font-size: 20px;
background-color: RGB(0, 200, 0);
}
h2 {
color: black;
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h2>
CSS width Property
</h2>
<p class="gfg">
An example of width property in form of pixels.
</p>
<p class="gfg1">
An example of width property in form of percentage.
</p>
</body>
</html>
Output:
Setting Width to initial
It is used to set an element’s CSS property to its default value.
Syntax:
width: initial;
Example: This example demonstrates the use of the width property whose value is set to the initial.
HTML
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<title> CSS Width Property </title>
<style>
.gfg {
width: initial;
color: white;
font-size: 20px;
background-color: RGB(0, 150, 0);
}
h2 {
color: black;
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h2>
CSS width Property
</h2>
<p class="gfg">
An example of width property for its initial width value.
</p>
</body>
</html>
Output:
Inheriting Width from Parent
It is used to inherit a property to an element from its parent element property value.
Syntax
width: inherit;
Example: This example demonstrates the width property set to inherit.
HTML
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Width: inherit Example</title>
<style>
.parent {
width: 300px;
border: 1px solid black;
}
.child {
width: inherit;
border: 1px solid red;
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<div class="parent">
Parent div
<div class="child">Child div (inherits width)</div>
</div>
</body>
</html>
Output:
Supported Browsers:
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