Articles
Introduction to CSS
Layout-related CSS Properties

Layout-related CSS Properties

This article explains layout-related CSS properties.

You can learn about the usage and how to write the display and position properties.

YouTube Video

HTML for Preview

css-layout.html 
  1<!DOCTYPE html>
  2<html lang="en">
  3<head>
  4    <meta charset="UTF-8">
  5    <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
  6    <title>CSS Properties Example</title>
  7    <link rel="stylesheet" href="css-base.css">
  8    <link rel="stylesheet" href="css-layout.css">
  9</head>
 10<body>
 11    <!-- Header -->
 12    <header>
 13        <h1>CSS Properties For Layout</h1>
 14    </header>
 15
 16    <!-- Main content -->
 17    <main>
 18        <header>
 19            <h2>Layout Related Properties</h2>
 20        </header>
 21        <article>
 22            <h3>display: block</h3>
 23            <section>
 24                <header><h4>CSS</h4></header>
 25<pre class="sample">
 26.block-element {
 27    display: block;
 28    width: 400px;
 29    background-color: lightblue;
 30    padding: 10px;
 31    margin-bottom: 10px;
 32}
 33</pre>
 34                <header><h4>HTML</h4></header>
 35                <pre>&lt;div class="block-element"&gt;This is a block element.&lt;/div&gt;</pre>
 36                <header><h4>HTML+CSS</h4></header>
 37                <section class="sample-view">
 38                    <div class="block-element">This is a block element.</div>
 39                </section>
 40            </section>
 41        </article>
 42        <article>
 43            <h3>display: inline</h3>
 44            <section>
 45                <header><h4>CSS</h4></header>
 46<pre class="sample">
 47span.inline-element {
 48    background-color: lightgray;
 49    padding: 10px;
 50}
 51
 52div.inline-element {
 53    display: inline;
 54    background-color: lightblue;
 55    padding: 10px;
 56}
 57</pre>
 58                <header><h4>HTML</h4></header>
 59<pre>
 60&lt;span class="inline-element"&gt;This is an inline element.&lt;/span&gt;
 61&lt;div class="inline-element"&gt;div tag with "display: inline"&lt;/div&gt;
 62</pre>
 63                <header><h4>HTML+CSS</h4></header>
 64                <section class="sample-view">
 65                    <span class="inline-element">This is an inline element.</span>
 66                    <div class="inline-element">div tag with "display: inline"</div>
 67                </section>
 68            </section>
 69        </article>
 70        <article>
 71            <h3>display: inline-block</h3>
 72            <section>
 73                <header><h4>CSS</h4></header>
 74<pre class="sample">
 75.inline-block-element {
 76    display: inline-block;
 77    width: 200px;
 78    background-color: lightblue;
 79    padding: 10px;
 80}
 81</pre>
 82                <header><h4>HTML</h4></header>
 83<pre>
 84&lt;span class="inline-element"&gt;This is an inline element.&lt;/span&gt;
 85&lt;div class="inline-block-element"&gt;This is an inline-block element.&lt;/div&gt;
 86&lt;span class="inline-element"&gt;Another inline element.&lt;/span&gt;
 87</pre>
 88                <header><h4>HTML+CSS</h4></header>
 89                <section class="sample-view">
 90                    <span class="inline-element">This is an inline element.</span>
 91                    <div class="inline-block-element">This is an inline-block element.</div>
 92                    <span class="inline-element">Another inline element.</span>
 93                </section>
 94            </section>
 95        </article>
 96        <article>
 97            <h3>display: none</h3>
 98            <section>
 99                <header><h4>CSS</h4></header>
100<pre class="sample">
101div.none-element {
102    display: none;
103    background-color: lightblue;
104    padding: 10px;
105}
106</pre>
107                <header><h4>HTML</h4></header>
108                <pre>&lt;div class="none-element"&gt;This is a none element.&lt;/div&gt;</pre>
109                <header><h4>HTML+CSS</h4></header>
110                <section class="sample-view">
111                    <div class="none-element">This is a none element.</div>
112                </section>
113            </section>
114        </article>
115        <article>
116            <h3>display: flex</h3>
117            <section>
118                <header><h4>CSS</h4></header>
119<pre class="sample">
120.flex-container {
121    display: flex;
122    justify-content: space-between;
123    background-color: lightgray;
124    padding: 10px;
125}
126
127.flex-container div {
128    width: 120px;
129    background-color: lightblue;
130}
131</pre>
132                <header><h4>HTML</h4></header>
133<pre>
134&lt;div class="flex-container"&gt;
135    &lt;div&gt;Item 1&lt;/div&gt;
136    &lt;div&gt;Item 2&lt;/div&gt;
137&lt;/div&gt;
138</pre>
139                <header><h4>HTML+CSS</h4></header>
140                <section class="sample-view">
141                    <div class="flex-container">
142                        <div>Flex item 1</div>
143                        <div>Flex item 2</div>
144                    </div>
145                </section>
146            </section>
147        </article>
148        <article>
149            <h3>display: inline-flex</h3>
150            <section>
151                <header><h4>CSS</h4></header>
152<pre class="sample">
153.inline-flex-container {
154    display: inline-flex;
155    width: 250px;
156    justify-content: space-between;
157    background-color: lightgray;
158    padding: 10px;
159}
160
161.inline-flex-container div {
162    width: 100px;
163    background-color: lightblue;
164}
165</pre>
166                <header><h4>HTML</h4></header>
167<pre>
168&lt;span class="inline-element"&gt;Inline element&lt;/span&gt;
169&lt;div class="inline-flex-container"&gt;
170    &lt;div&gt;Inline Flex item 1&lt;/div&gt;
171    &lt;div&gt;Inline Flex item 2&lt;/div&gt;
172&lt;/div&gt;
173</pre>
174                <header><h4>HTML+CSS</h4></header>
175                <section class="sample-view">
176                    <span class="inline-element">Inline element</span>
177                    <div class="inline-flex-container">
178                        <div>Inline Flex item 1</div>
179                        <div>Inline Flex item 2</div>
180                    </div>
181                </section>
182            </section>
183        </article>
184        <article>
185            <h3>display: grid</h3>
186            <section>
187                <header><h4>CSS</h4></header>
188<pre class="sample">
189.grid-container {
190    display: grid;
191    grid-template-columns: repeat(2, 1fr);
192    gap: 10px;
193    background-color: #f3f3f3;
194    padding: 10px;
195    height: 200px;
196}
197.grid-container div {
198    background-color: lightblue;
199    border: 1px solid #aaa;
200    padding: 5px;
201    text-align: center;
202    width: 100px;
203}
204</pre>
205                <header><h4>HTML</h4></header>
206<pre>
207&lt;div class="grid-container"&gt;
208    &lt;div&gt;Item 1&lt;/div&gt;
209    &lt;div&gt;Item 2&lt;/div&gt;
210    &lt;div&gt;Item 3&lt;/div&gt;
211    &lt;div&gt;Item 4&lt;/div&gt;
212&lt;/div&gt;
213</pre>
214                <header><h4>HTML+CSS</h4></header>
215                <section class="sample-view">
216                    <div class="grid-container">
217                        <div>Item 1</div>
218                        <div>Item 2</div>
219                        <div>Item 3</div>
220                        <div>Item 4</div>
221                    </div>
222                </section>
223            </section>
224        </article>
225        <article>
226            <h3>display: inline-grid</h3>
227            <section>
228                <header><h4>CSS</h4></header>
229<pre class="sample">
230.inline-grid-element {
231    display: inline-grid;
232    grid-template-columns: 1fr 1fr;
233    gap: 5px;
234    background-color: lightblue;
235    padding: 5px;
236    width: 200px;
237    height: 150px;
238}
239.inline-grid-element div {
240    background-color: lightskyblue;
241    padding: 5px;
242    text-align: center;
243    border: 1px solid #ccc;
244    width: 80px;
245    height: 25px;
246}
247</pre>
248                <header><h4>HTML</h4></header>
249<pre>
250&lt;span class="inline-element"&gt;This is an inline element.&lt;/span&gt;
251&lt;div class="inline-grid-element"&gt;
252    &lt;div&gt;Item 1&lt;/div&gt;
253    &lt;div&gt;Item 2&lt;/div&gt;
254    &lt;div&gt;Item 3&lt;/div&gt;
255    &lt;div&gt;Item 4&lt;/div&gt;
256&lt;/div&gt;
257&lt;span class="inline-element"&gt;Another inline element.&lt;/span&gt;
258</pre>
259                <header><h4>HTML+CSS</h4></header>
260                <section class="sample-view">
261                    <span class="inline-element">This is an inline element.</span>
262                    <div class="inline-grid-element">
263                        <div>Item 1</div>
264                        <div>Item 2</div>
265                        <div>Item 3</div>
266                        <div>Item 4</div>
267                    </div>
268                    <span class="inline-element">Another inline element.</span>
269                </section>
270            </section>
271        </article>
272        <article>
273            <h3>display: table</h3>
274            <section>
275                <header><h4>CSS</h4></header>
276<pre class="sample">
277.table-container {
278    display: table;
279    border-collapse: collapse;
280    width: 100%;
281    height: 100%;
282}
283
284.table-row {
285    display: table-row;
286}
287
288.table-cell {
289    display: table-cell;
290    border: 1px solid #999;
291    padding: 8px;
292    text-align: center;
293    vertical-align: middle;
294    background-color: lightblue;
295}
296
297.header-row .table-cell {
298    font-weight: bold;
299    background-color: lightskyblue;
300}
301</pre>
302                <header><h4>HTML</h4></header>
303<pre>
304&lt;section&gt;
305    &lt;div class="table-container"&gt;
306        &lt;div class="table-row header-row"&gt;
307            &lt;div class="table-cell"&gt;Header 1&lt;/div&gt;
308            &lt;div class="table-cell"&gt;Header 2&lt;/div&gt;
309        &lt;/div&gt;
310        &lt;div class="table-row"&gt;
311            &lt;div class="table-cell"&gt;Row 1, Cell 1&lt;/div&gt;
312            &lt;div class="table-cell"&gt;Row 1, Cell 2&lt;/div&gt;
313        &lt;/div&gt;
314        &lt;div class="table-row"&gt;
315            &lt;div class="table-cell"&gt;Row 2, Cell 1&lt;/div&gt;
316            &lt;div class="table-cell"&gt;Row 2, Cell 2&lt;/div&gt;
317        &lt;/div&gt;
318    &lt;/div&gt;
319&lt;/section&gt;
320</pre>
321                <header><h4>HTML+CSS</h4></header>
322                <section class="sample-view">
323                    <div class="table-container">
324                        <div class="table-row header-row">
325                            <div class="table-cell">Header 1</div>
326                            <div class="table-cell">Header 2</div>
327                        </div>
328                        <div class="table-row">
329                            <div class="table-cell">Row 1, Cell 1</div>
330                            <div class="table-cell">Row 1, Cell 2</div>
331                        </div>
332                        <div class="table-row">
333                            <div class="table-cell">Row 2, Cell 1</div>
334                            <div class="table-cell">Row 2, Cell 2</div>
335                        </div>
336                    </div>
337                </section>
338            </section>
339        </article>
340        <article>
341            <h3>display: list-item</h3>
342            <section>
343                <header><h4>CSS</h4></header>
344<pre class="sample">
345.list-item-element {
346    display: list-item;
347    list-style-position: inside;
348    list-style-type: disc;
349    margin-left: 20px;
350    background-color: lightblue;
351    padding: 10px;
352    height: min-content;
353}
354</pre>
355                <header><h4>HTML</h4></header>
356<pre>
357&lt;div class="list-item-element"&gt;This is a list item element.&lt;/div&gt;
358&lt;div class="list-item-element"&gt;Another list item element.&lt;/div&gt;
359&lt;div class="list-item-element"&gt;Yet another list item element.&lt;/div&gt;
360</pre>
361                <header><h4>HTML+CSS</h4></header>
362                <section class="sample-view">
363                    <div class="list-item-element">This is a list item element.</div>
364                    <div class="list-item-element">Another list item element.</div>
365                    <div class="list-item-element">Yet another list item element.</div>
366                </section>
367            </section>
368        </article>
369        <article>
370            <h3>position</h3>
371            <section style="height: auto;">
372                <header><h4>position: static</h4></header>
373                <section class="sample-view">
374                    <div class="static-element">This is a static element.</div>
375                </section>
376                <header><h4>position: relative; top: 10px; left: 20px;</h4></header>
377                <section class="sample-view">
378                    <div class="relative-element">This is a relative element.</div>
379                </section>
380                <header><h4>position: absolute; top: 10px; left: 20px;</h4></header>
381                <section class="sample-view">
382                    <div class="absolute-container">
383                        <div class="absolute-element">This is an absolute element.</div>
384                    </div>
385                </section>
386                <header><h4>position: fixed; bottom: 10px; right: 10px;</h4></header>
387                <section class="sample-view">
388                    <div class="fixed-element">This is a fixed element.</div>
389                </section>
390                <header><h4>position: sticky; top: 0;</h4></header>
391                <section class="sample-view">
392                    <div class="sticky-container">
393                        <div style="width: 20px; height: 400px; background: linear-gradient(to top, red, blue);"></div>
394                        <div class="sticky-element">This is a sticky element. Scroll down!</div>
395                    </div>
396                </section>
397            </section>
398        </article>
399    </main>
400</body>
401</html>

{^ i18n　配置・レイアウト ^}

display property

The display property is a CSS property that defines how the element is displayed. It determines in what format the element is rendered, such as block, inline, flex, grid, or hidden.

display property values

block 
1.block-element {
2    display: block;
3    width: 400px;
4    background-color: lightblue;
5    padding: 10px;
6    margin-bottom: 10px;
7}
  • By specifying block, the element is displayed as a block-level element.
  • Block elements are displayed on a new line within the page, moving other elements to the next line.
  • Typical block elements include <div>, <p>, <h1>, <section>, <article>, etc.
inline 
 1span.inline-element {
 2    background-color: lightgray;
 3    padding: 10px;
 4}
 5
 6div.inline-element {
 7    display: inline;
 8    background-color: lightblue;
 9    padding: 10px;
10}
  • By specifying inline, the element is displayed as an inline element.
  • Inline elements are displayed on the same line as neighboring elements and are aligned horizontally.
  • Typical inline elements include <span>, <a>, <strong>, etc.
  • Inline elements are placed on the same line as other inline elements and are displayed continuously horizontally, unlike block elements.
inline-block 
1.inline-block-element {
2    display: inline-block;
3    width: 200px;
4    background-color: lightblue;
5    padding: 10px;
6}
  • Specifying inline-block displays the element as an inline element, but it also possesses block element characteristics.
  • Inline-block elements are displayed on the same line as other inline elements, but you can set height and width like block elements.
  • <img>, <button>, and <canvas> elements behave like inline-block by default.
none 
1div.none-element {
2    display: none;
3    background-color: lightblue;
4    padding: 10px;
5}
  • Specifying none makes the element not displayed.
  • The element becomes completely invisible and is excluded from both the screen and the layout.
flex 
 1.flex-container {
 2    display: flex;
 3    justify-content: space-between;
 4    background-color: lightgray;
 5    padding: 10px;
 6}
 7
 8.flex-container div {
 9    width: 120px;
10    background-color: lightblue;
11}
  • Specifying flex displays the element as a flexbox container.
  • It is used to flexibly arrange and align child elements (flex items).
  • Using flexbox allows child elements to be displayed inline, with margins and alignment automatically adjusted.
inline-flex 
 1.inline-flex-container {
 2    display: inline-flex;
 3    width: 250px;
 4    justify-content: space-between;
 5    background-color: lightgray;
 6    padding: 10px;
 7}
 8
 9.inline-flex-container div {
10    width: 100px;
11    background-color: lightblue;
12}
  • Specifying inline-flex displays the element as an inline flexbox container.
  • While possessing flexbox characteristics, it is treated like an inline element and displayed on the same line as other elements.
grid 
 1.grid-container {
 2    display: grid;
 3    grid-template-columns: repeat(2, 1fr);
 4    gap: 10px;
 5    background-color: #f3f3f3;
 6    padding: 10px;
 7    height: 200px;
 8}
 9
10.grid-container div {
11    background-color: lightblue;
12    border: 1px solid #aaa;
13    padding: 5px;
14    text-align: center;
15    width: 100px;
16}
  • Specifying grid displays the element as a grid container.
  • A grid layout can be applied to line up child elements in rows and columns.
  • Child elements within the grid container are neatly arranged along columns and rows.
inline-grid 
 1.inline-grid-element {
 2    display: inline-grid;
 3    grid-template-columns: 1fr 1fr;
 4    gap: 5px;
 5    background-color: lightblue;
 6    padding: 5px;
 7    width: 200px;
 8    height: 150px;
 9}
10.inline-grid-element div {
11    background-color: lightskyblue;
12    padding: 5px;
13    text-align: center;
14    border: 1px solid #ccc;
15    width: 80px;
16    height: 25px;
17}
  • Specifying inline-grid displays the element as an inline grid container.
  • It uses the grid layout system and is treated as an inline element.
table 
 1.table-container {
 2    display: table;
 3    border-collapse: collapse;
 4    width: 100%;
 5    height: 100%;
 6}
 7
 8.table-row {
 9    display: table-row;
10}
11
12.table-cell {
13    display: table-cell;
14    border: 1px solid #999;
15    padding: 8px;
16    text-align: center;
17    vertical-align: middle;
18    background-color: lightblue;
19}
20
21.header-row .table-cell {
22    font-weight: bold;
23    background-color: lightskyblue;
24}
  • Specifying table displays the element as a table. It has a layout similar to HTML <table>, and its child elements are treated as table cells.
  • As in this example, set the display property of child elements to table-row or table-cell.
    • When table-row is specified, the element behaves like a table row (<tr>).
    • When table-cell is specified, the element behaves like a table cell (<td>).
list-item 
1.list-item-element {
2    display: list-item;
3    list-style-position: inside;
4    list-style-type: disc;
5    margin-left: 20px;
6    background-color: lightblue;
7    padding: 10px;
8    height: min-content;
9}
  • Specifying list-item displays the element as a list item. It is applied to <li> elements typically used within <ul> or <ol>.

position property 

 1.static-element {
 2    position: static;
 3    background-color: lightblue;
 4    padding: 10px;
 5    margin-bottom: 20px;
 6}
 7
 8.relative-element {
 9    position: relative;
10    background-color: lightblue;
11    top: 10px;
12    left: 20px;
13    padding: 10px;
14    margin-bottom: 20px;
15}
16
17.absolute-container {
18    position: relative;
19    width: 500px;
20    height: 150px;
21    background-color: lightgray;
22    margin-bottom: 20px;
23}
24
25.absolute-element {
26    position: absolute;
27    top: 10px;
28    left: 20px;
29    background-color: lightblue;
30    padding: 10px;
31}
32
33.fixed-element {
34    position: fixed;
35    bottom: 10px;
36    right: 10px;
37    background-color: lightblue;
38    padding: 10px;
39}
40
41.sticky-container {
42    overflow: scroll;
43    height: 150px;
44    width: 500px;
45}
46
47.sticky-element {
48    position: sticky;
49    top: 0;
50    background-color: lightblue;
51    padding: 10px;
52}

position is a property that controls how elements are positioned in CSS. This property can be used to position elements relative or absolute to their parent or other elements, or to fix them in place.

Values of the position property

static 
1.static-element {
2    position: static;
3}
  • In the static-element class, position is specified as static. The element is positioned in the normal flow.
  • static is the default value. If position is not specified, static is applied.
  • The element is positioned according to the normal document flow. The top, right, bottom, left properties cannot be used.
relative 
1.relative-element {
2    position: relative;
3    top: 10px;
4    left: 20px;
5}
  • In the relative-element class, position is set to relative. The element moves relative to its normal position. In this example, it is positioned 10px down and 20px to the right.
  • Specifying relative positions the element relative. The element moves from its original position to the position specified by the top, right, bottom, left properties, following the normal document flow.
  • An element set to relative positioning leaves space at its original position even after moving.
  • In this example, the element moves 10 pixels down and 20 pixels right from its original position, but the document flow is processed based on the original position.
absolute 
1.absolute-element {
2    position: absolute;
3    top: 10px;
4    left: 20px;
5}
  • In the absolute-element class, position is set to absolute. In this example, the element is positioned 10 pixels down and 20 pixels to the right from the top-left corner of its parent (or the viewport).
  • When absolute is specified, the element is positioned absolutely relative to its parent. If the parent element's position is set to relative, absolute, or fixed, the element moves based on that parent using top, right, bottom, left properties. If no parent element is found, it is positioned relative to the entire page (viewport).
  • An element set to absolute positioning is removed from the normal document flow and does not affect other elements.
fixed 
1.fixed-element {
2    position: fixed;
3    top: 0;
4    right: 0;
5}
  • In the fixed-element class, position is set to fixed. Specifying fixed positions the element at a fixed location. The element is fixed to the viewport and does not move when scrolling.
  • For example, it is used to keep a page header or navigation bar always visible.
  • In this example, the element is fixed to the bottom-right corner of the screen and stays there even when the page is scrolled.
sticky 
1.sticky-element {
2    position: sticky;
3    top: 0;
4}
  • In the sticky-element class, position is set to sticky.
  • When sticky is specified, the element is dynamically positioned according to scrolling. It follows the normal document flow, but when the page is scrolled, the element becomes "stuck" at a specific position based on the specified top, right, bottom, and left values.
  • sticky behaves like a fixed element within a certain range.
  • In this example, the element is displayed in its normal position, but when the page is scrolled to the specified top position, it sticks to that position and follows scrolling.

top, left, bottom, right properties

top, left, bottom, and right are properties for controlling element positions in CSS. These properties are used together with the position property to specify how much to move an element in a certain direction relative to its position.

However, these properties only apply when position is set to relative, absolute, fixed, or sticky. In the default static value, these properties have no effect.

How to use top, left, bottom, right

top 
1.relative-element {
2    position: relative;
3    top: 20px; /* Positioned 20px from the top */
4}
  • The top property specifies how far an element should be offset from the top.
    • In this example, the element moves 20px down from its normal position.
left 
1.absolute-element {
2    position: absolute;
3    left: 50px; /* Positioned 50px from the left */
4}
  • The left property specifies how far an element should be offset from the left.
    • In this example, the element moves 50px to the right from the left.
bottom 
1.fixed-element {
2    position: fixed;
3    bottom: 10px; /* Positioned 10px from the bottom */
4}
  • The bottom property specifies how far an element should be offset from the bottom.
    • In this example, the element is fixed 10px above the bottom of the screen. It remains in that position even when scrolling.
right 
1.sticky-element {
2    position: sticky;
3    right: 20px; /* Positioned 20px from the right */
4}
  • The right property specifies how far an element should be offset from the right.
    • In this example, during scrolling, the element moves 20px left from the right and is fixed at that position.

Relationship with the position property

  • relative: Moves the element by the specified top, left, bottom, right values relative to its normal position.
  • absolute: Moves the element to the specified top, left, bottom, right location relative to the nearest ancestor with position set to relative, absolute, or fixed.
  • fixed: Fixes the element at the specified position relative to the viewport (the entire screen). It remains in that position even when scrolling.
  • sticky: The element remains in its normal position until it reaches a specified position during scrolling, at which point it "sticks" at that position.

You can follow along with the above article using Visual Studio Code on our YouTube channel. Please also check out the YouTube channel.

YouTube Video

Table-related CSS propertiesFlexbox-related CSS properties