HTML a tag

Example

Create a link to Programming Infinity.com:

<a href="https://pinfinitys.com">Visit Programming Infinity.com!</a>

Definition and Usage

The <a> tag defines a hyperlink, which is used to link from one page to another.

The most important attribute of the <a> element is the href attribute, which indicates the link's destination.

By default, links will appear as follows in all browsers:

  • An unvisited link is underlined and blue
  • A visited link is underlined and purple
  • An active link is underlined and red

Tips and Notes

Tip: If the <a> tag has no href attribute, it is only a placeholder for a hyperlink.

Tip: A linked page is normally displayed in the current browser window, unless you specify another target.

Attributes

Attribute Value Description
download filename Specifies that the target will be downloaded when a user clicks on the hyperlink
href URL Specifies the URL of the page the link goes to
hreflang language_code Specifies the language of the linked document
media media_query Specifies what media/device the linked document is optimized for
ping list_of_URLs Specifies a space-separated list of URLs to which, when the link is followed, post requests with the body ping will be sent by the browser (in the background). Typically used for tracking.
referrerpolicy no-referrer
no-referrer-when-downgrade
origin
origin-when-cross-origin
same-origin
strict-origin-when-cross-origin
unsafe-url
Specifies which referrer information to send with the link
rel alternate
author
bookmark
external
help
license
next
nofollow
noreferrer
noopener
prev
search
tag
Specifies the relationship between the current document and the linked document
target _blank
_parent
_self
_top
Specifies where to open the linked document
type media_type Specifies the media type of the linked document

Global Attributes

The <a> tag also supports the Global Attributes in HTML.

Event Attributes

The <a> tag also supports the Event Attributes in HTML.

More Examples

Example

How to use an image as a link: Add the image inside the <a> tag.

<a href="https://www.pinfinitys.com">
<img border="0" alt="PI" src="pi.jpg" width="100" height="100">
</a>

Example

How to open a link in a new browser window: Add target of the <a> tag to "_blank".

<a href="https://www.pinfinitys.com" target="_blank">Visit PI.com!</a>

Example

How to link to an email address: Add e-mail address to href attribute with mailto: as prefix.

<a href="mailto:someone@example.com">Send email</a>

Example

How to link to a phone number: Add phone number to href attribute with tel: as prefix.

<a href="tel:+4733378901">+47 333 78 901</a>

Example

How to link to another section on the same page: Add #section_id to the href attribute. The section id is the id of the element, where we want to go on the same web page.

<a href="#section2">Go to Section 2</a>

Example

How to link to a JavaScript: Add javascript function in single line with javascript: as prefix to the href attribute.

<a href="javascript:alert('Hello World!');">Execute JavaScript</a>

Default CSS Settings

Most browsers will display the <a> element with the following default values:

/* internal value is the color pre-defined in browser for links */
a:link, a:visited {
color: (internal value);
text-decoration: underline;
cursor: auto;
}

a:link:active, a:visited:active {
color: (internal value);
}

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