CSS Height and Width

Setting height and width

The height and width properties are used to set the height and width of an element.

The height and width can be set to auto (this is default. Means that the browser calculates the height and width), or be specified in length values, like px, cm, etc., or in percent (%) of the containing block.

Note: The height and width properties do not include padding, borders, or margins; they set the height/width of the area inside the padding, border, and margin of the element!

Setting max-width

The max-width property is used to set the maximum width of an element.

The max-width can be specified in length values, like px, cm, etc., or in percent (%) of the containing block, or set to none (this is default. Means that there is no maximum width).

The problem with the <div> above occurs when the browser window is smaller than the width of the element (500px). The browser then adds a horizontal scrollbar to the page.

Using max-width instead, in this situation, will improve the browser's handling of small windows.

Tip: Drag the browser window to smaller than 500px wide, to see the difference between the two divs!

Note: The value of the max-width property overrides width.

The following example shows a <div> element with a height of 100 pixels and a max-width of 500 pixels:

Try it Yourself - Examples

Set the height and width of elements
This example demonstrates how to set the height and width of different elements.

Set the height and width of an image using percent
This example demonstrates how to set the height and width of an image using a percent value.

Set min-width and max-width of an element
This example demonstrates how to set a minimum width and a maximum width of an element using a pixel value.

Set min-height and max-height of an element
This example demonstrates how to set a minimum height and a maximum height of an element using a pixel value.

Test Yourself with Exercises!

Exercise 1 »  Exercise 2 »

All CSS Dimension Properties