CSS Horizontal & Vertical Align (CSS Layout)
Center elements
horizontally and vertically
Center Align Elements
To horizontally center a block element (like <div>), use margin: auto;
Setting the width of the element will prevent it from stretching out to the edges of its container.
The element will then take up the specified width, and the remaining space will be split equally between the two margins:
This div element is centered.
Example
margin: auto;
width: 50%;
border: 3px solid blue;
padding: 10px;
}
Note: Center aligning has no effect if the width
property is not set (or set to 100%).
Center Align Text
To just center the text inside an element, use text-align: center;
This text is centered.
Example
text-align: center;
border: 3px solid blue;
}
Center an Image
To center an image, set left and right margin to auto
and make it into a block
element:
Example
display: block;
margin-left: auto;
margin-right: auto;
width: 40%;
}
Left and Right Align - Using position
One method for aligning elements is to use position: absolute;
:
In my younger and more vulnerable years my father gave me some advice that I've been turning over in my mind ever since.
Example
position: absolute;
right: 0px;
width: 300px;
border: 3px solid #0054ff;
padding: 10px;
}
Note: Absolute positioned elements are removed from the normal flow, and can overlap elements.
Left and Right Align - Using float
Another method for aligning elements is to use the float
property:
Example
float: right;
width: 300px;
border: 3px solid #0054ff;
padding: 10px;
}
The clearfix Hack
Note: If an element is taller than the element containing it, and it is floated, it will overflow outside of its container. You can use the "clearfix hack" to fix this (see example below).
Without Clearfix
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With Clearfix
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Phasellus imperdiet, nulla et dictum interdum, nisi lorem egestas odio, vitae scelerisque enim ligula venenatis dolor. Maecenas nisl est, ultrices nec congue eget, auctor vitae massa. Fusce luctus vestibulum augue ut aliquet. Mauris ante ligula, facilisis sed ornare eu, lobortis in odio. Praesent convallis urna a lacus interdum ut hendrerit risus congue. Nunc sagittis dictum nisi, sed ullamcorper ipsum dignissim ac...
Then we can add the clearfix hack to the containing element to fix this problem:
Example
content: "";
clear: both;
display: table;
}
Center Vertically - Using padding
There are many ways to center an element vertically in CSS. A simple solution is to use top and bottom padding
:
I am vertically centered.
Example
padding: 70px 0;
border: 3px solid blue;
}
To center both vertically and horizontally, use padding
and text-align: center
:
I am vertically and horizontally centered.
Example
padding: 70px 0;
border: 3px solid blue;
text-align: center;
}
Center Vertically - Using line-height
Another trick is to use the line-height
property with a value that is equal to the height
property:
I am vertically and horizontally centered.
Example
line-height: 200px;
height: 200px;
border: 3px solid blue;
text-align: center;
}
/* If the text has multiple lines, add the following: */
.center p {
line-height: 1.5;
display: inline-block;
vertical-align: middle;
}
Center Vertically - Using position & transform
If padding
and line-height
are not options, another solution is to use positioning and the transform
property:
I am vertically and horizontally centered.
Example
height: 200px;
position: relative;
border: 3px solid blue;
}
.center p {
margin: 0;
position: absolute;
top: 50%;
left: 50%;
transform: translate(-50%, -50%);
}
Center Vertically - Using Flexbox
You can also use flexbox to center things. Just note that flexbox is not supported in IE10 and earlier versions:
Example
display: flex;
justify-content: center;
align-items: center;
height: 200px;
border: 3px solid blue;
}
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