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class="sidebar-inner"><header class="sidebar-actions"><section class="sidebar-filter-container"><div class="sidebar-filter "><label id="sidebar-filter-label" class="sidebar-filter-label" for="sidebar-filter-input"><span class="icon icon-filter"></span><span class="visually-hidden">Filter sidebar</span></label><input id="sidebar-filter-input" autoComplete="off" class="sidebar-filter-input-field false" type="text" placeholder="Filter" value=""/><button type="button" class="button action has-icon clear-sidebar-filter-button"><span class="button-wrap"><span class="icon icon-cancel "></span><span class="visually-hidden">Clear filter input</span></span></button></div></section></header><div class="sidebar-inner-nav"><div class="in-nav-toc"><div class="document-toc-container"><section class="document-toc"><header><h2 class="document-toc-heading">In this article</h2></header><ul class="document-toc-list"><li class="document-toc-item "><a class="document-toc-link" href="#so_what_is_html">So what is HTML?</a></li><li class="document-toc-item "><a class="document-toc-link" href="#images">Images</a></li><li class="document-toc-item "><a class="document-toc-link" href="#marking_up_text">Marking up text</a></li><li class="document-toc-item "><a class="document-toc-link" href="#links">Links</a></li><li class="document-toc-item "><a class="document-toc-link" href="#conclusion">Conclusion</a></li></ul></section></div></div><div class="sidebar-body"><ol><li class="section"><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web">Complete beginners start here!</a></li><li><details open=""><summary>Getting started with the web</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web">Getting started with the web</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/Installing_basic_software">Installing basic software</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/What_will_your_website_look_like">What will your website look like?</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/Dealing_with_files">Dealing with files</a></li><li><em><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/HTML_basics" aria-current="page">HTML basics</a></em></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/CSS_basics">CSS basics</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/JavaScript_basics">JavaScript basics</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/Publishing_your_website">Publishing your website</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/How_the_Web_works">How the web works</a></li></ol></details></li><li class="section"><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML">HTML — Structuring the web</a></li><li><details><summary>Introduction to HTML</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Introduction_to_HTML">Introduction to HTML</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Introduction_to_HTML/Getting_started">Getting started with HTML</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Introduction_to_HTML/The_head_metadata_in_HTML">What's in the head? Metadata in HTML</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Introduction_to_HTML/HTML_text_fundamentals">HTML text fundamentals</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Introduction_to_HTML/Creating_hyperlinks">Creating hyperlinks</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Introduction_to_HTML/Advanced_text_formatting">Advanced text formatting</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Introduction_to_HTML/Document_and_website_structure">Document and website structure</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Introduction_to_HTML/Debugging_HTML">Debugging HTML</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Introduction_to_HTML/Marking_up_a_letter">Marking up a letter</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Introduction_to_HTML/Structuring_a_page_of_content">Structuring a page of content</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Multimedia and embedding</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Multimedia_and_embedding">Multimedia and embedding</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Multimedia_and_embedding/Images_in_HTML">Images in HTML</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Multimedia_and_embedding/Video_and_audio_content">Video and audio content</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Multimedia_and_embedding/Other_embedding_technologies">From object to iframe — other embedding technologies</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Multimedia_and_embedding/Adding_vector_graphics_to_the_Web">Adding vector graphics to the web</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Multimedia_and_embedding/Responsive_images">Responsive images</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Multimedia_and_embedding/Mozilla_splash_page">Mozilla splash page</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>HTML tables</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Tables">HTML tables</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Tables/Basics">HTML table basics</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Tables/Advanced">HTML table advanced features and accessibility</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Tables/Structuring_planet_data">Structuring planet data</a></li></ol></details></li><li class="section"><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS">CSS — Styling the web</a></li><li><details><summary>CSS first steps</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/First_steps">CSS first steps</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/First_steps/What_is_CSS">What is CSS?</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/First_steps/Getting_started">Getting started with CSS</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/First_steps/How_CSS_is_structured">How CSS is structured</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/First_steps/How_CSS_works">How CSS works</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/First_steps/Styling_a_biography_page">Styling a biography page</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>CSS building blocks</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks">CSS building blocks</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Selectors">CSS selectors</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Selectors/Type_Class_and_ID_Selectors">Type, class, and ID selectors</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Selectors/Attribute_selectors">Attribute selectors</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Selectors/Pseudo-classes_and_pseudo-elements">Pseudo-classes and pseudo-elements</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Selectors/Combinators">Combinators</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Cascade_and_inheritance">Cascade, specificity, and inheritance</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Cascade_layers">Cascade layers</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/The_box_model">The box model</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Backgrounds_and_borders">Backgrounds and borders</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Handling_different_text_directions">Handling different text directions</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Overflowing_content">Overflowing content</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Values_and_units">CSS values and units</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Sizing_items_in_CSS">Sizing items in CSS</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Images_media_form_elements">Images, media, and form elements</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Styling_tables">Styling tables</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Advanced_styling_effects">Advanced styling effects</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Debugging_CSS">Debugging CSS</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Organizing">Organizing your CSS</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Fundamental_CSS_comprehension">Fundamental CSS comprehension</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Creating_fancy_letterheaded_paper">Creating fancy letterheaded paper</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/A_cool_looking_box">A cool-looking box</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Styling text</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Styling_text">CSS styling text</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Styling_text/Fundamentals">Fundamental text and font styling</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Styling_text/Styling_lists">Styling lists</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Styling_text/Styling_links">Styling links</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Styling_text/Web_fonts">Web fonts</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Styling_text/Typesetting_a_homepage">Typesetting a community school homepage</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>CSS layout</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout">CSS layout</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Introduction">Introduction to CSS layout</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Normal_Flow">Normal Flow</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Flexbox">Flexbox</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Grids">Grids</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Floats">Floats</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Positioning">Positioning</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Multiple-column_Layout">Multiple-column layout</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Responsive_Design">Responsive design</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Media_queries">Beginner's guide to media queries</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Legacy_Layout_Methods">Legacy layout methods</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Supporting_Older_Browsers">Supporting older browsers</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Fundamental_Layout_Comprehension">Fundamental layout comprehension</a></li></ol></details></li><li class="section"><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript">JavaScript — Dynamic client-side scripting</a></li><li><details><summary>JavaScript first steps</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/First_steps">JavaScript first steps</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/First_steps/What_is_JavaScript">What is JavaScript?</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/First_steps/A_first_splash">A first splash into JavaScript</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/First_steps/What_went_wrong">What went wrong? Troubleshooting JavaScript</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/First_steps/Variables">Storing the information you need — Variables</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/First_steps/Math">Basic math in JavaScript — numbers and operators</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/First_steps/Strings">Handling text — strings in JavaScript</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/First_steps/Useful_string_methods">Useful string methods</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/First_steps/Arrays">Arrays</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/First_steps/Silly_story_generator">Silly story generator</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>JavaScript building blocks</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Building_blocks">JavaScript building blocks</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Building_blocks/conditionals">Making decisions in your code — conditionals</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Building_blocks/Looping_code">Looping code</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Building_blocks/Functions">Functions — reusable blocks of code</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Building_blocks/Build_your_own_function">Build your own function</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Building_blocks/Return_values">Function return values</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Building_blocks/Events">Introduction to events</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Building_blocks/Event_bubbling">Event bubbling</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Building_blocks/Image_gallery">Image gallery</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Introducing JavaScript objects</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Objects">Introducing JavaScript objects</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Objects/Basics">JavaScript object basics</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Objects/Object_prototypes">Object prototypes</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Objects/Object-oriented_programming">Object-oriented programming</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Objects/Classes_in_JavaScript">Classes in JavaScript</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Objects/JSON">Working with JSON</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Objects/Object_building_practice">Object building practice</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Objects/Adding_bouncing_balls_features">Adding features to our bouncing balls demo</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Asynchronous JavaScript</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Asynchronous">Asynchronous JavaScript</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Asynchronous/Introducing">Introducing asynchronous JavaScript</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Asynchronous/Promises">How to use promises</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Asynchronous/Implementing_a_promise-based_API">How to implement a promise-based API</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Asynchronous/Introducing_workers">Introducing workers</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Asynchronous/Sequencing_animations">Sequencing animations</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Client-side web APIs</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Client-side_web_APIs">Client-side web APIs</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Client-side_web_APIs/Introduction">Introduction to web APIs</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Client-side_web_APIs/Manipulating_documents">Manipulating documents</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Client-side_web_APIs/Fetching_data">Fetching data from the server</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Client-side_web_APIs/Third_party_APIs">Third-party APIs</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Client-side_web_APIs/Drawing_graphics">Drawing graphics</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Client-side_web_APIs/Video_and_audio_APIs">Video and Audio APIs</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Client-side_web_APIs/Client-side_storage">Client-side storage</a></li></ol></details></li><li class="section"><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms">Web forms — Working with user data</a></li><li><details><summary>Web form building blocks</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms">Web form building blocks</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/Your_first_form">Your first form</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/How_to_structure_a_web_form">How to structure a web form</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/Basic_native_form_controls">Basic native form controls</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/HTML5_input_types">The HTML5 input types</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/Other_form_controls">Other form controls</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/Styling_web_forms">Styling web forms</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/Advanced_form_styling">Advanced form styling</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/UI_pseudo-classes">UI pseudo-classes</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/Form_validation">Client-side form validation</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/Sending_and_retrieving_form_data">Sending form data</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Advanced web form techniques</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/How_to_build_custom_form_controls">How to build custom form controls</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/Sending_forms_through_JavaScript">Sending forms through JavaScript</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/Property_compatibility_table_for_form_controls">CSS property compatibility table for form controls</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/HTML_forms_in_legacy_browsers">HTML forms in legacy browsers</a></li></ol></details></li><li class="section"><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility">Accessibility — Make the web usable by everyone</a></li><li><details><summary>Accessibility guides</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility">Accessibility</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility/What_is_accessibility">What is accessibility?</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility/HTML">HTML: A good basis for accessibility</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility/CSS_and_JavaScript">CSS and JavaScript accessibility best practices</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility/WAI-ARIA_basics">WAI-ARIA basics</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility/Multimedia">Accessible multimedia</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility/Mobile">Mobile accessibility</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility/Accessibility_troubleshooting">Assessment: Accessibility troubleshooting</a></li></ol></details></li><li class="section"><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance">Performance — Making websites fast and responsive</a></li><li><details><summary>Performance guides</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance">Web performance</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance/why_web_performance">The "why" of web performance</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance/What_is_web_performance">What is web performance?</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance/Perceived_performance">Perceived performance</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance/Measuring_performance">Measuring performance</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance/Multimedia">Multimedia: Images</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance/video">Multimedia: video</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance/JavaScript">JavaScript performance optimization</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance/HTML">HTML performance optimization</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance/CSS">CSS performance optimization</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance/business_case_for_performance">The business case for web performance</a></li></ol></details></li><li class="section"><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/MathML">MathML — Writing mathematics with MathML</a></li><li><details><summary>MathML first steps</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/MathML/First_steps">MathML first steps</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/MathML/First_steps/Getting_started">Getting started with MathML</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/MathML/First_steps/Text_containers">MathML Text Containers</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/MathML/First_steps/Fractions_and_roots">MathML fractions and roots</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/MathML/First_steps/Scripts">MathML scripted elements</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/MathML/First_steps/Tables">MathML tables</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/MathML/First_steps/Three_famous_mathematical_formulas">Three famous mathematical formulas</a></li></ol></details></li><li class="section"><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/../Games">Games — Developing games for the web</a></li><li><details><summary>Guides and tutorials</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Games/Introduction">Introduction to game development for the Web</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Games/Techniques">Techniques for game development</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Games/Tutorials">Tutorials</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Games/Publishing_games">Publishing games</a></li></ol></details></li><li class="section"><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing">Tools and testing</a></li><li><details><summary>Client-side web development tools</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Understanding_client-side_tools">Understanding client-side web development tools</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Understanding_client-side_tools/Overview">Client-side tooling overview</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Understanding_client-side_tools/Command_line">Command line crash course</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Understanding_client-side_tools/Package_management">Package management basics</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Understanding_client-side_tools/Introducing_complete_toolchain">Introducing a complete toolchain</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Understanding_client-side_tools/Deployment">Deploying our app</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Introduction to client-side frameworks</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Introduction">Introduction to client-side frameworks</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Main_features">Framework main features</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>React</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/React_getting_started">Getting started with React</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/React_todo_list_beginning">Beginning our React todo list</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/React_components">Componentizing our React app</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/React_interactivity_events_state">React interactivity: Events and state</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/React_interactivity_filtering_conditional_rendering">React interactivity: Editing, filtering, conditional rendering</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/React_accessibility">Accessibility in React</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/React_resources">React resources</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Ember</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Ember_getting_started">Getting started with Ember</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Ember_structure_componentization">Ember app structure and componentization</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Ember_interactivity_events_state">Ember interactivity: Events, classes and state</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Ember_conditional_footer">Ember Interactivity: Footer functionality, conditional rendering</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Ember_routing">Routing in Ember</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Ember_resources">Ember resources and troubleshooting</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Vue</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Vue_getting_started">Getting started with Vue</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Vue_first_component">Creating our first Vue component</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Vue_rendering_lists">Rendering a list of Vue components</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Vue_methods_events_models">Adding a new todo form: Vue events, methods, and models</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Vue_styling">Styling Vue components with CSS</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Vue_computed_properties">Using Vue computed properties</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Vue_conditional_rendering">Vue conditional rendering: editing existing todos</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Vue_refs_focus_management">Vue refs and lifecycle methods for focus management</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Vue_resources">Vue resources</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Svelte</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Svelte_getting_started">Getting started with Svelte</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Svelte_Todo_list_beginning">Starting our Svelte to-do list app</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Svelte_variables_props">Dynamic behavior in Svelte: working with variables and props</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Svelte_components">Componentizing our Svelte app</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Svelte_reactivity_lifecycle_accessibility">Advanced Svelte: Reactivity, lifecycle, accessibility</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Svelte_stores">Working with Svelte stores</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Svelte_TypeScript">TypeScript support in Svelte</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Svelte_deployment_next">Deployment and next steps</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Angular</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Angular_getting_started">Getting started with Angular</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Angular_todo_list_beginning">Beginning our Angular todo list app</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Angular_styling">Styling our Angular app</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Angular_item_component">Creating an item component</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Angular_filtering">Filtering our to-do items</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Angular_building">Building Angular applications and further resources</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Git and GitHub</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/GitHub">Git and GitHub</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Cross browser testing</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Cross_browser_testing">Cross browser testing</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Cross_browser_testing/Introduction">Introduction to cross-browser testing</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Cross_browser_testing/Testing_strategies">Strategies for carrying out testing</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Cross_browser_testing/HTML_and_CSS">Handling common HTML and CSS problems</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Cross_browser_testing/JavaScript">Handling common JavaScript problems</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Cross_browser_testing/Accessibility">Handling common accessibility problems</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Cross_browser_testing/Feature_detection">Implementing feature detection</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Cross_browser_testing/Automated_testing">Introduction to automated testing</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Cross_browser_testing/Your_own_automation_environment">Setting up your own test automation environment</a></li></ol></details></li><li class="section"><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side">Server-side website programming</a></li><li><details><summary>First steps</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/First_steps">Server-side website programming first steps</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/First_steps/Introduction">Introduction to the server side</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/First_steps/Client-Server_overview">Client-Server Overview</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/First_steps/Web_frameworks">Server-side web frameworks</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/First_steps/Website_security">Website security</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Django web framework (Python)</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django">Django Web Framework (Python)</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/Introduction">Django introduction</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/development_environment">Setting up a Django development environment</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/Tutorial_local_library_website">Django Tutorial: The Local Library website</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/skeleton_website">Django Tutorial Part 2: Creating a skeleton website</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/Models">Django Tutorial Part 3: Using models</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/Admin_site">Django Tutorial Part 4: Django admin site</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/Home_page">Django Tutorial Part 5: Creating our home page</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/Generic_views">Django Tutorial Part 6: Generic list and detail views</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/Sessions">Django Tutorial Part 7: Sessions framework</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/Authentication">Django Tutorial Part 8: User authentication and permissions</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/Forms">Django Tutorial Part 9: Working with forms</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/Testing">Django Tutorial Part 10: Testing a Django web application</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/Deployment">Django Tutorial Part 11: Deploying Django to production</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/web_application_security">Django web application security</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/django_assessment_blog">Assessment: DIY Django mini blog</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Express Web Framework (Node.js/JavaScript)</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Express_Nodejs">Express web framework (Node.js/JavaScript)</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Express_Nodejs/Introduction">Express/Node introduction</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Express_Nodejs/development_environment">Setting up a Node development environment</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Express_Nodejs/Tutorial_local_library_website">Express Tutorial: The Local Library website</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Express_Nodejs/skeleton_website">Express Tutorial Part 2: Creating a skeleton website</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Express_Nodejs/mongoose">Express Tutorial Part 3: Using a Database (with Mongoose)</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Express_Nodejs/routes">Express Tutorial Part 4: Routes and controllers</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Express_Nodejs/Displaying_data">Express Tutorial Part 5: Displaying library data</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Express_Nodejs/forms">Express Tutorial Part 6: Working with forms</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Express_Nodejs/deployment">Express Tutorial Part 7: Deploying to production</a></li></ol></details></li><li class="section"><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Common_questions">Further resources</a></li><li><details><summary>Common questions</summary><ol><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Common_questions">Common questions</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Howto">Use HTML to solve common problems</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Howto">Use CSS to solve common problems</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Howto">Solve common problems in your JavaScript code</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Common_questions/Web_mechanics">Web mechanics</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Common_questions/Tools_and_setup">Tools and setup</a></li><li><a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Common_questions/Design_and_accessibility">Design and accessibility</a></li></ol></details></li></ol></div></div><section class="place side"></section></nav></aside><div class="toc-container"><aside class="toc"><nav><div class="document-toc-container"><section class="document-toc"><header><h2 class="document-toc-heading">In this article</h2></header><ul class="document-toc-list"><li class="document-toc-item "><a class="document-toc-link" href="#so_what_is_html">So what is HTML?</a></li><li class="document-toc-item "><a class="document-toc-link" href="#images">Images</a></li><li class="document-toc-item "><a class="document-toc-link" href="#marking_up_text">Marking up text</a></li><li class="document-toc-item "><a class="document-toc-link" href="#links">Links</a></li><li class="document-toc-item "><a class="document-toc-link" href="#conclusion">Conclusion</a></li></ul></section></div></nav></aside><section class="place side"></section></div></div><main id="content" class="main-content "><article class="main-page-content" lang="en-US"><header><h1>HTML basics</h1></header><div class="section-content"><ul class="prev-next"> <li><a class="button secondary" href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/Dealing_with_files"><span class="button-wrap"> Previous </span></a></li> <li><a class="button secondary" href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web"><span class="button-wrap"> Overview: Getting started with the web</span></a></li> <li><a class="button secondary" href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/CSS_basics"><span class="button-wrap"> Next </span></a></li> </ul> <p>HTML (<strong>H</strong>yper<strong>T</strong>ext <strong>M</strong>arkup <strong>L</strong>anguage) is the code that is used to structure a web page and its content. For example, content could be structured within a set of paragraphs, a list of bulleted points, or using images and data tables. As the title suggests, this article will give you a basic understanding of HTML and its functions.</p></div><section aria-labelledby="so_what_is_html"><h2 id="so_what_is_html"><a href="#so_what_is_html">So what is HTML?</a></h2><div class="section-content"><p>HTML is a <em>markup language</em> that defines the structure of your content. HTML consists of a series of <strong><a href="/en-US/docs/Glossary/Element">elements</a></strong>, which you use to enclose, or wrap, different parts of the content to make it appear a certain way, or act a certain way. The enclosing <a href="/en-US/docs/Glossary/Tag">tags</a> can make a word or image hyperlink to somewhere else, can italicize words, can make the font bigger or smaller, and so on. For example, take the following line of content:</p> <pre class="brush: plain notranslate">My cat is very grumpy </pre> <p>If we wanted the line to stand by itself, we could specify that it is a paragraph by enclosing it in paragraph tags:</p> <div class="code-example"><div class="example-header"><span class="language-name">html</span></div><pre class="brush: html notranslate"><code><p>My cat is very grumpy</p> </code></pre></div></div></section><section aria-labelledby="anatomy_of_an_html_element"><h3 id="anatomy_of_an_html_element"><a href="#anatomy_of_an_html_element">Anatomy of an HTML element</a></h3><div class="section-content"><p>Let's explore this paragraph element a bit further.</p> <p> <img src="/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/HTML_basics/grumpy-cat-small.png" alt="paragraph element including opening tag, content reading 'my cat is very grumpy', and a closing tag" width="821" height="255" loading="lazy"> </p> <p>The main parts of our element are as follows:</p> <ol> <li><strong>The opening tag:</strong> This consists of the name of the element (in this case, p), wrapped in opening and closing <strong>angle brackets</strong>. This states where the element begins or starts to take effect — in this case where the paragraph begins.</li> <li><strong>The closing tag:</strong> This is the same as the opening tag, except that it includes a <em>forward slash</em> before the element name. This states where the element ends — in this case where the paragraph ends. Failing to add a closing tag is one of the standard beginner errors and can lead to strange results.</li> <li><strong>The content:</strong> This is the content of the element, which in this case, is just text.</li> <li><strong>The element:</strong> The opening tag, the closing tag, and the content together comprise the element.</li> </ol> <p>Elements can also have attributes that look like the following:</p> <p> <img src="/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/HTML_basics/grumpy-cat-attribute-small.png" alt="Paragraph opening tag with a class attribute highlighted: class=editor-note" width="1287" height="156" loading="lazy"> </p> <p> Attributes contain extra information about the element that you don't want to appear in the actual content. Here, <code>class</code> is the attribute <em>name</em> and <code>editor-note</code> is the attribute <em>value</em>. The <code>class</code> attribute allows you to give the element a non-unique identifier that can be used to target it (and any other elements with the same <code>class</code> value) with style information and other things. Some attributes have no value, such as <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Attributes/required"><code>required</code></a>. </p> <p>Attributes that set a value always have:</p> <ol> <li>A space between it and the element name (or the previous attribute, if the element already has one or more attributes).</li> <li>The attribute name followed by an equal sign.</li> <li>The attribute value wrapped by opening and closing quotation marks.</li> </ol> <div class="notecard note"> <p><strong>Note:</strong> Simple attribute values that don't contain <a href="/en-US/docs/Glossary/ASCII">ASCII</a> whitespace (or any of the characters <code>"</code> <code>'</code> <code>`</code> <code>=</code> <code><</code> <code>></code>) can remain unquoted, but it is recommended that you quote all attribute values, as it makes the code more consistent and understandable.</p> </div></div></section><section aria-labelledby="nesting_elements"><h3 id="nesting_elements"><a href="#nesting_elements">Nesting elements</a></h3><div class="section-content"><p>You can put elements inside other elements too — this is called <strong>nesting</strong>. If we wanted to state that our cat is <strong>very</strong> grumpy, we could wrap the word "very" in a <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/strong"><code><strong></code></a> element, which means that the word is to be strongly emphasized:</p> <div class="code-example"><div class="example-header"><span class="language-name">html</span></div><pre class="brush: html notranslate"><code><p>My cat is <strong>very</strong> grumpy.</p> </code></pre></div> <p>You do however need to make sure that your elements are properly nested. In the example above, we opened the <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/p"><code><p></code></a> element first, then the <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/strong"><code><strong></code></a> element; therefore, we have to close the <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/strong"><code><strong></code></a> element first, then the <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/p"><code><p></code></a> element. The following is incorrect:</p> <div class="code-example"><div class="example-header"><span class="language-name">html</span></div><pre class="brush: html example-bad notranslate"><code><p>My cat is <strong>very grumpy.</p></strong> </code></pre></div> <p>The elements have to open and close correctly so that they are clearly inside or outside one another. If they overlap as shown above, then your web browser will try to make the best guess at what you were trying to say, which can lead to unexpected results. So don't do it!</p></div></section><section aria-labelledby="void_elements"><h3 id="void_elements"><a href="#void_elements">Void elements</a></h3><div class="section-content"><p>Some elements have no content and are called <strong><a href="/en-US/docs/Glossary/Void_element">void elements</a></strong>. Take the <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/img"><code><img></code></a> element that we already have in our HTML page:</p> <div class="code-example"><div class="example-header"><span class="language-name">html</span></div><pre class="brush: html notranslate"><code><img src="images/firefox-icon.png" alt="My test image" /> </code></pre></div> <p>This contains two attributes, but there is no closing <code></img></code> tag and no inner content. This is because an image element doesn't wrap content to affect it. Its purpose is to embed an image in the HTML page in the place it appears.</p></div></section><section aria-labelledby="anatomy_of_an_html_document"><h3 id="anatomy_of_an_html_document"><a href="#anatomy_of_an_html_document">Anatomy of an HTML document</a></h3><div class="section-content"><p>That wraps up the basics of individual HTML elements, but they aren't handy on their own. Now we'll look at how individual elements are combined to form an entire HTML page. Let's revisit the code we put into our <code>index.html</code> example (which we first met in the <a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/Dealing_with_files">Dealing with files</a> article):</p> <div class="code-example"><div class="example-header"><span class="language-name">html</span></div><pre class="brush: html notranslate"><code><!doctype html> <html lang="en-US"> <head> <meta charset="utf-8" /> <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width" /> <title>My test page</title> </head> <body> <img src="images/firefox-icon.png" alt="My test image" /> </body> </html> </code></pre></div> <p>Here, we have the following:</p> <ul> <li><code><!doctype html></code> — <a href="/en-US/docs/Glossary/Doctype">doctype</a>. It is a required preamble. In the mists of time, when HTML was young (around 1991/92), doctypes were meant to act as links to a set of rules that the HTML page had to follow to be considered good HTML, which could mean automatic error checking and other useful things. However, these days, they don't do much and are basically just needed to make sure your document behaves correctly. That's all you need to know for now.</li> <li><code><html></html></code> — the <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/html"><code><html></code></a> element. This element wraps all the content on the entire page and is sometimes known as the root element. It also includes the <code>lang</code> attribute, setting the primary language of the document.</li> <li><code><head></head></code> — the <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/head"><code><head></code></a> element. This element acts as a container for all the stuff you want to include on the HTML page that <em>isn't</em> the content you are showing to your page's viewers. This includes things like <a href="/en-US/docs/Glossary/Keyword">keywords</a> and a page description that you want to appear in search results, CSS to style our content, character set declarations, and more.</li> <li><code><meta charset="utf-8"></code> — This element sets the character set your document should use to UTF-8 which includes most characters from the vast majority of written languages. Essentially, it can now handle any textual content you might put on it. There is no reason not to set this, and it can help avoid some problems later on.</li> <li><code><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width"></code> — This <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/Viewport_concepts#mobile_viewports">viewport element</a> ensures the page renders at the width of viewport, preventing mobile browsers from rendering pages wider than the viewport and then shrinking them down.</li> <li><code><title></title></code> — the <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/title"><code><title></code></a> element. This sets the title of your page, which is the title that appears in the browser tab the page is loaded in. It is also used to describe the page when you bookmark/favorite it.</li> <li><code><body></body></code> — the <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/body"><code><body></code></a> element. This contains <em>all</em> the content that you want to show to web users when they visit your page, whether that's text, images, videos, games, playable audio tracks, or whatever else.</li> </ul></div></section><section aria-labelledby="images"><h2 id="images"><a href="#images">Images</a></h2><div class="section-content"><p>Let's turn our attention to the <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/img"><code><img></code></a> element again:</p> <div class="code-example"><div class="example-header"><span class="language-name">html</span></div><pre class="brush: html notranslate"><code><img src="images/firefox-icon.png" alt="My test image" /> </code></pre></div> <p>As we said before, it embeds an image into our page in the position it appears. It does this via the <code>src</code> (source) attribute, which contains the path to our image file.</p> <p>We have also included an <code>alt</code> (alternative) attribute. In the <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/img#authoring_meaningful_alternate_descriptions"><code>alt</code> attribute</a>, you specify descriptive text for users who cannot see the image, possibly because of the following reasons:</p> <ol> <li>They are visually impaired. Users with significant visual impairments often use tools called screen readers to read out the alt text to them.</li> <li>Something has gone wrong causing the image not to display. For example, try deliberately changing the path inside your <code>src</code> attribute to make it incorrect. If you save and reload the page, you should see something like this in place of the image:</li> </ol> <p> <img src="/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/HTML_basics/alt-text-example.png" alt="The words: my test image" width="108" height="36" loading="lazy"> </p> <p>The keywords for alt text are "descriptive text". The alt text you write should provide the reader with enough information to have a good idea of what the image conveys. In this example, our current text of "My test image" is no good at all. A much better alternative for our Firefox logo would be "The Firefox logo: a flaming fox surrounding the Earth."</p> <p>Try coming up with some better alt text for your image now.</p> <div class="notecard note"> <p><strong>Note:</strong> Find out more about accessibility in our <a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility">accessibility learning module</a> and <a href="https://www.w3.org/WAI/tutorials/images/decision-tree/" class="external" target="_blank">An alt Decision Tree</a> to learn how to use an alt attribute for images in various situations.</p> </div></div></section><section aria-labelledby="marking_up_text"><h2 id="marking_up_text"><a href="#marking_up_text">Marking up text</a></h2><div class="section-content"><p>This section will cover some essential HTML elements you'll use for marking up the text.</p></div></section><section aria-labelledby="headings"><h3 id="headings"><a href="#headings">Headings</a></h3><div class="section-content"><p>Heading elements allow you to specify that certain parts of your content are headings — or subheadings. In the same way that a book has the main title, chapter titles, and subtitles, an HTML document can too. HTML contains 6 heading levels, <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/Heading_Elements"><h1> - <h6></a>, although you'll commonly only use 3 to 4 at most:</p> <div class="code-example"><div class="example-header"><span class="language-name">html</span></div><pre class="brush: html notranslate"><code> <h1>My main title</h1> <h2>My top level heading</h2> <h3>My subheading</h3> <h4>My sub-subheading</h4> </code></pre></div> <div class="notecard note"> <p><strong>Note:</strong> Anything in HTML between <code></code> is an <strong>HTML comment</strong>. The browser ignores comments as it renders the code. In other words, they are not visible on the page - just in the code. HTML comments are a way for you to write helpful notes about your code or logic.</p> </div> <p>Now try adding a suitable title to your HTML page just above your <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/img"><code><img></code></a> element.</p> <div class="notecard note"> <p><strong>Note:</strong> You'll see that your heading level 1 has an implicit style. Don't use heading elements to make text bigger or bold, because they are used for <a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility/HTML#text_content">accessibility</a> and <a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Introduction_to_HTML/HTML_text_fundamentals#why_do_we_need_structure">other reasons such as SEO</a>. Try to create a meaningful sequence of headings on your pages, without skipping levels.</p> </div></div></section><section aria-labelledby="paragraphs"><h3 id="paragraphs"><a href="#paragraphs">Paragraphs</a></h3><div class="section-content"><p>As explained above, <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/p"><code><p></code></a> elements are for containing paragraphs of text; you'll use these frequently when marking up regular text content:</p> <div class="code-example"><div class="example-header"><span class="language-name">html</span></div><pre class="brush: html notranslate"><code><p>This is a single paragraph</p> </code></pre></div> <p>Add your sample text (you should have it from <a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/What_will_your_website_look_like"><em>What will your website look like?</em></a>) into one or a few paragraphs, placed directly below your <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/img"><code><img></code></a> element.</p></div></section><section aria-labelledby="lists"><h3 id="lists"><a href="#lists">Lists</a></h3><div class="section-content"><p>A lot of the web's content is lists and HTML has special elements for these. Marking up lists always consists of at least 2 elements. The most common list types are ordered and unordered lists:</p> <ol> <li><strong>Unordered lists</strong> are for lists where the order of the items doesn't matter, such as a shopping list. These are wrapped in a <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/ul"><code><ul></code></a> element.</li> <li><strong>Ordered lists</strong> are for lists where the order of the items does matter, such as a recipe. These are wrapped in an <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/ol"><code><ol></code></a> element.</li> </ol> <p>Each item inside the lists is put inside an <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/li"><code><li></code></a> (list item) element.</p> <p>For example, if we wanted to turn the part of the following paragraph fragment into a list</p> <div class="code-example"><div class="example-header"><span class="language-name">html</span></div><pre class="brush: html notranslate"><code><p> At Mozilla, we're a global community of technologists, thinkers, and builders working together… </p> </code></pre></div> <p>We could modify the markup to this</p> <div class="code-example"><div class="example-header"><span class="language-name">html</span></div><pre class="brush: html notranslate"><code><p>At Mozilla, we're a global community of</p> <ul> <li>technologists</li> <li>thinkers</li> <li>builders</li> </ul> <p>working together…</p> </code></pre></div> <p>Try adding an ordered or unordered list to your example page.</p></div></section><section aria-labelledby="links"><h2 id="links"><a href="#links">Links</a></h2><div class="section-content"><p>Links are very important — they are what makes the web a web! To add a link, we need to use an element — <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/a"><code><a></code></a> — "a" being the short form for "anchor". To make text within your paragraph into a link, follow these steps:</p> <ol> <li> <p>Choose some text. We chose the text "Mozilla Manifesto".</p> </li> <li> <p>Wrap the text in an <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/a"><code><a></code></a> element, as shown below:</p> <div class="code-example"><div class="example-header"><span class="language-name">html</span></div><pre class="brush: html notranslate"><code><a>Mozilla Manifesto</a> </code></pre></div> </li> <li> <p>Give the <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/a"><code><a></code></a> element an <code>href</code> attribute, as shown below:</p> <div class="code-example"><div class="example-header"><span class="language-name">html</span></div><pre class="brush: html notranslate"><code><a href="">Mozilla Manifesto</a> </code></pre></div> </li> <li> <p>Fill in the value of this attribute with the web address that you want the link to point to:</p> <div class="code-example"><div class="example-header"><span class="language-name">html</span></div><pre class="brush: html notranslate"><code><a href="https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/about/manifesto/"> Mozilla Manifesto </a> </code></pre></div> </li> </ol> <p>You might get unexpected results if you omit the <code>https://</code> or <code>http://</code> part, called the <em>protocol</em>, at the beginning of the web address. After making a link, click it to make sure it is sending you where you wanted it to.</p> <div class="notecard note"> <p><strong>Note:</strong> <code>href</code> might appear like a rather obscure choice for an attribute name at first. If you are having trouble remembering it, remember that it stands for <em><strong>h</strong>ypertext <strong>ref</strong>erence</em>.</p> </div> <p>Add a link to your page now, if you haven't already done so.</p></div></section><section aria-labelledby="conclusion"><h2 id="conclusion"><a href="#conclusion">Conclusion</a></h2><div class="section-content"><p>If you have followed all the instructions in this article, you should end up with a page that looks like the one below (you can also <a href="https://mdn.github.io/beginner-html-site/" class="external" target="_blank">view it here</a>):</p> <p> <img src="/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/HTML_basics/finished-test-page-small.png" alt="A web page screenshot showing a Firefox logo, a heading saying Mozilla is cool, and two paragraphs of filler text" width="716" height="838" loading="lazy"> </p> <p>If you get stuck, you can always compare your work with our <a href="https://github.com/mdn/beginner-html-site/blob/main/index.html" class="external" target="_blank">finished example code</a> on GitHub.</p> <p>Here, we have only really scratched the surface of HTML. 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Content available under <a href="/en-US/docs/MDN/Writing_guidelines/Attrib_copyright_license">a Creative Commons license</a>.</p></div></div></footer></div><script type="application/json" id="hydration">{"url":"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/HTML_basics","doc":{"isMarkdown":true,"isTranslated":false,"isActive":true,"flaws":{},"title":"HTML basics","mdn_url":"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/HTML_basics","locale":"en-US","native":"English (US)","sidebarHTML":"<ol><li class=\"section\"><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web\">Complete beginners start here!</a></li><li><details open=\"\"><summary>Getting started with the web</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web\">Getting started with the web</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/Installing_basic_software\">Installing basic software</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/What_will_your_website_look_like\">What will your website look like?</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/Dealing_with_files\">Dealing with files</a></li><li><em><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/HTML_basics\" aria-current=\"page\">HTML basics</a></em></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/CSS_basics\">CSS basics</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/JavaScript_basics\">JavaScript basics</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/Publishing_your_website\">Publishing your website</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/How_the_Web_works\">How the web works</a></li></ol></details></li><li class=\"section\"><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML\">HTML — Structuring the web</a></li><li><details><summary>Introduction to HTML</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Introduction_to_HTML\">Introduction to HTML</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Introduction_to_HTML/Getting_started\">Getting started with HTML</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Introduction_to_HTML/The_head_metadata_in_HTML\">What's in the head? Metadata in HTML</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Introduction_to_HTML/HTML_text_fundamentals\">HTML text fundamentals</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Introduction_to_HTML/Creating_hyperlinks\">Creating hyperlinks</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Introduction_to_HTML/Advanced_text_formatting\">Advanced text formatting</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Introduction_to_HTML/Document_and_website_structure\">Document and website structure</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Introduction_to_HTML/Debugging_HTML\">Debugging HTML</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Introduction_to_HTML/Marking_up_a_letter\">Marking up a letter</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Introduction_to_HTML/Structuring_a_page_of_content\">Structuring a page of content</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Multimedia and embedding</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Multimedia_and_embedding\">Multimedia and embedding</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Multimedia_and_embedding/Images_in_HTML\">Images in HTML</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Multimedia_and_embedding/Video_and_audio_content\">Video and audio content</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Multimedia_and_embedding/Other_embedding_technologies\">From object to iframe — other embedding technologies</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Multimedia_and_embedding/Adding_vector_graphics_to_the_Web\">Adding vector graphics to the web</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Multimedia_and_embedding/Responsive_images\">Responsive images</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Multimedia_and_embedding/Mozilla_splash_page\">Mozilla splash page</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>HTML tables</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Tables\">HTML tables</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Tables/Basics\">HTML table basics</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Tables/Advanced\">HTML table advanced features and accessibility</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Tables/Structuring_planet_data\">Structuring planet data</a></li></ol></details></li><li class=\"section\"><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS\">CSS — Styling the web</a></li><li><details><summary>CSS first steps</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/First_steps\">CSS first steps</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/First_steps/What_is_CSS\">What is CSS?</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/First_steps/Getting_started\">Getting started with CSS</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/First_steps/How_CSS_is_structured\">How CSS is structured</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/First_steps/How_CSS_works\">How CSS works</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/First_steps/Styling_a_biography_page\">Styling a biography page</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>CSS building blocks</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks\">CSS building blocks</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Selectors\">CSS selectors</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Selectors/Type_Class_and_ID_Selectors\">Type, class, and ID selectors</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Selectors/Attribute_selectors\">Attribute selectors</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Selectors/Pseudo-classes_and_pseudo-elements\">Pseudo-classes and pseudo-elements</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Selectors/Combinators\">Combinators</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Cascade_and_inheritance\">Cascade, specificity, and inheritance</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Cascade_layers\">Cascade layers</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/The_box_model\">The box model</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Backgrounds_and_borders\">Backgrounds and borders</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Handling_different_text_directions\">Handling different text directions</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Overflowing_content\">Overflowing content</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Values_and_units\">CSS values and units</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Sizing_items_in_CSS\">Sizing items in CSS</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Images_media_form_elements\">Images, media, and form elements</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Styling_tables\">Styling tables</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Advanced_styling_effects\">Advanced styling effects</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Debugging_CSS\">Debugging CSS</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Organizing\">Organizing your CSS</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Fundamental_CSS_comprehension\">Fundamental CSS comprehension</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/Creating_fancy_letterheaded_paper\">Creating fancy letterheaded paper</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Building_blocks/A_cool_looking_box\">A cool-looking box</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Styling text</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Styling_text\">CSS styling text</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Styling_text/Fundamentals\">Fundamental text and font styling</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Styling_text/Styling_lists\">Styling lists</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Styling_text/Styling_links\">Styling links</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Styling_text/Web_fonts\">Web fonts</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Styling_text/Typesetting_a_homepage\">Typesetting a community school homepage</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>CSS layout</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout\">CSS layout</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Introduction\">Introduction to CSS layout</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Normal_Flow\">Normal Flow</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Flexbox\">Flexbox</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Grids\">Grids</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Floats\">Floats</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Positioning\">Positioning</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Multiple-column_Layout\">Multiple-column layout</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Responsive_Design\">Responsive design</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Media_queries\">Beginner's guide to media queries</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Legacy_Layout_Methods\">Legacy layout methods</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Supporting_Older_Browsers\">Supporting older browsers</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/CSS_layout/Fundamental_Layout_Comprehension\">Fundamental layout comprehension</a></li></ol></details></li><li class=\"section\"><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript\">JavaScript — Dynamic client-side scripting</a></li><li><details><summary>JavaScript first steps</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/First_steps\">JavaScript first steps</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/First_steps/What_is_JavaScript\">What is JavaScript?</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/First_steps/A_first_splash\">A first splash into JavaScript</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/First_steps/What_went_wrong\">What went wrong? Troubleshooting JavaScript</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/First_steps/Variables\">Storing the information you need — Variables</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/First_steps/Math\">Basic math in JavaScript — numbers and operators</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/First_steps/Strings\">Handling text — strings in JavaScript</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/First_steps/Useful_string_methods\">Useful string methods</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/First_steps/Arrays\">Arrays</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/First_steps/Silly_story_generator\">Silly story generator</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>JavaScript building blocks</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Building_blocks\">JavaScript building blocks</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Building_blocks/conditionals\">Making decisions in your code — conditionals</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Building_blocks/Looping_code\">Looping code</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Building_blocks/Functions\">Functions — reusable blocks of code</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Building_blocks/Build_your_own_function\">Build your own function</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Building_blocks/Return_values\">Function return values</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Building_blocks/Events\">Introduction to events</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Building_blocks/Event_bubbling\">Event bubbling</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Building_blocks/Image_gallery\">Image gallery</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Introducing JavaScript objects</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Objects\">Introducing JavaScript objects</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Objects/Basics\">JavaScript object basics</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Objects/Object_prototypes\">Object prototypes</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Objects/Object-oriented_programming\">Object-oriented programming</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Objects/Classes_in_JavaScript\">Classes in JavaScript</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Objects/JSON\">Working with JSON</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Objects/Object_building_practice\">Object building practice</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Objects/Adding_bouncing_balls_features\">Adding features to our bouncing balls demo</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Asynchronous JavaScript</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Asynchronous\">Asynchronous JavaScript</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Asynchronous/Introducing\">Introducing asynchronous JavaScript</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Asynchronous/Promises\">How to use promises</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Asynchronous/Implementing_a_promise-based_API\">How to implement a promise-based API</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Asynchronous/Introducing_workers\">Introducing workers</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Asynchronous/Sequencing_animations\">Sequencing animations</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Client-side web APIs</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Client-side_web_APIs\">Client-side web APIs</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Client-side_web_APIs/Introduction\">Introduction to web APIs</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Client-side_web_APIs/Manipulating_documents\">Manipulating documents</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Client-side_web_APIs/Fetching_data\">Fetching data from the server</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Client-side_web_APIs/Third_party_APIs\">Third-party APIs</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Client-side_web_APIs/Drawing_graphics\">Drawing graphics</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Client-side_web_APIs/Video_and_audio_APIs\">Video and Audio APIs</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Client-side_web_APIs/Client-side_storage\">Client-side storage</a></li></ol></details></li><li class=\"section\"><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms\">Web forms — Working with user data</a></li><li><details><summary>Web form building blocks</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms\">Web form building blocks</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/Your_first_form\">Your first form</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/How_to_structure_a_web_form\">How to structure a web form</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/Basic_native_form_controls\">Basic native form controls</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/HTML5_input_types\">The HTML5 input types</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/Other_form_controls\">Other form controls</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/Styling_web_forms\">Styling web forms</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/Advanced_form_styling\">Advanced form styling</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/UI_pseudo-classes\">UI pseudo-classes</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/Form_validation\">Client-side form validation</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/Sending_and_retrieving_form_data\">Sending form data</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Advanced web form techniques</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/How_to_build_custom_form_controls\">How to build custom form controls</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/Sending_forms_through_JavaScript\">Sending forms through JavaScript</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/Property_compatibility_table_for_form_controls\">CSS property compatibility table for form controls</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Forms/HTML_forms_in_legacy_browsers\">HTML forms in legacy browsers</a></li></ol></details></li><li class=\"section\"><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility\">Accessibility — Make the web usable by everyone</a></li><li><details><summary>Accessibility guides</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility\">Accessibility</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility/What_is_accessibility\">What is accessibility?</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility/HTML\">HTML: A good basis for accessibility</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility/CSS_and_JavaScript\">CSS and JavaScript accessibility best practices</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility/WAI-ARIA_basics\">WAI-ARIA basics</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility/Multimedia\">Accessible multimedia</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility/Mobile\">Mobile accessibility</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility/Accessibility_troubleshooting\">Assessment: Accessibility troubleshooting</a></li></ol></details></li><li class=\"section\"><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance\">Performance — Making websites fast and responsive</a></li><li><details><summary>Performance guides</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance\">Web performance</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance/why_web_performance\">The \"why\" of web performance</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance/What_is_web_performance\">What is web performance?</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance/Perceived_performance\">Perceived performance</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance/Measuring_performance\">Measuring performance</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance/Multimedia\">Multimedia: Images</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance/video\">Multimedia: video</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance/JavaScript\">JavaScript performance optimization</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance/HTML\">HTML performance optimization</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance/CSS\">CSS performance optimization</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Performance/business_case_for_performance\">The business case for web performance</a></li></ol></details></li><li class=\"section\"><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/MathML\">MathML — Writing mathematics with MathML</a></li><li><details><summary>MathML first steps</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/MathML/First_steps\">MathML first steps</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/MathML/First_steps/Getting_started\">Getting started with MathML</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/MathML/First_steps/Text_containers\">MathML Text Containers</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/MathML/First_steps/Fractions_and_roots\">MathML fractions and roots</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/MathML/First_steps/Scripts\">MathML scripted elements</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/MathML/First_steps/Tables\">MathML tables</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/MathML/First_steps/Three_famous_mathematical_formulas\">Three famous mathematical formulas</a></li></ol></details></li><li class=\"section\"><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/../Games\">Games — Developing games for the web</a></li><li><details><summary>Guides and tutorials</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Games/Introduction\">Introduction to game development for the Web</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Games/Techniques\">Techniques for game development</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Games/Tutorials\">Tutorials</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Games/Publishing_games\">Publishing games</a></li></ol></details></li><li class=\"section\"><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing\">Tools and testing</a></li><li><details><summary>Client-side web development tools</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Understanding_client-side_tools\">Understanding client-side web development tools</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Understanding_client-side_tools/Overview\">Client-side tooling overview</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Understanding_client-side_tools/Command_line\">Command line crash course</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Understanding_client-side_tools/Package_management\">Package management basics</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Understanding_client-side_tools/Introducing_complete_toolchain\">Introducing a complete toolchain</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Understanding_client-side_tools/Deployment\">Deploying our app</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Introduction to client-side frameworks</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Introduction\">Introduction to client-side frameworks</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Main_features\">Framework main features</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>React</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/React_getting_started\">Getting started with React</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/React_todo_list_beginning\">Beginning our React todo list</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/React_components\">Componentizing our React app</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/React_interactivity_events_state\">React interactivity: Events and state</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/React_interactivity_filtering_conditional_rendering\">React interactivity: Editing, filtering, conditional rendering</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/React_accessibility\">Accessibility in React</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/React_resources\">React resources</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Ember</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Ember_getting_started\">Getting started with Ember</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Ember_structure_componentization\">Ember app structure and componentization</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Ember_interactivity_events_state\">Ember interactivity: Events, classes and state</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Ember_conditional_footer\">Ember Interactivity: Footer functionality, conditional rendering</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Ember_routing\">Routing in Ember</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Ember_resources\">Ember resources and troubleshooting</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Vue</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Vue_getting_started\">Getting started with Vue</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Vue_first_component\">Creating our first Vue component</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Vue_rendering_lists\">Rendering a list of Vue components</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Vue_methods_events_models\">Adding a new todo form: Vue events, methods, and models</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Vue_styling\">Styling Vue components with CSS</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Vue_computed_properties\">Using Vue computed properties</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Vue_conditional_rendering\">Vue conditional rendering: editing existing todos</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Vue_refs_focus_management\">Vue refs and lifecycle methods for focus management</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Vue_resources\">Vue resources</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Svelte</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Svelte_getting_started\">Getting started with Svelte</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Svelte_Todo_list_beginning\">Starting our Svelte to-do list app</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Svelte_variables_props\">Dynamic behavior in Svelte: working with variables and props</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Svelte_components\">Componentizing our Svelte app</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Svelte_reactivity_lifecycle_accessibility\">Advanced Svelte: Reactivity, lifecycle, accessibility</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Svelte_stores\">Working with Svelte stores</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Svelte_TypeScript\">TypeScript support in Svelte</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Svelte_deployment_next\">Deployment and next steps</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Angular</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Angular_getting_started\">Getting started with Angular</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Angular_todo_list_beginning\">Beginning our Angular todo list app</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Angular_styling\">Styling our Angular app</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Angular_item_component\">Creating an item component</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Angular_filtering\">Filtering our to-do items</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Client-side_JavaScript_frameworks/Angular_building\">Building Angular applications and further resources</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Git and GitHub</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/GitHub\">Git and GitHub</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Cross browser testing</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Cross_browser_testing\">Cross browser testing</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Cross_browser_testing/Introduction\">Introduction to cross-browser testing</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Cross_browser_testing/Testing_strategies\">Strategies for carrying out testing</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Cross_browser_testing/HTML_and_CSS\">Handling common HTML and CSS problems</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Cross_browser_testing/JavaScript\">Handling common JavaScript problems</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Cross_browser_testing/Accessibility\">Handling common accessibility problems</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Cross_browser_testing/Feature_detection\">Implementing feature detection</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Cross_browser_testing/Automated_testing\">Introduction to automated testing</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Tools_and_testing/Cross_browser_testing/Your_own_automation_environment\">Setting up your own test automation environment</a></li></ol></details></li><li class=\"section\"><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side\">Server-side website programming</a></li><li><details><summary>First steps</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/First_steps\">Server-side website programming first steps</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/First_steps/Introduction\">Introduction to the server side</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/First_steps/Client-Server_overview\">Client-Server Overview</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/First_steps/Web_frameworks\">Server-side web frameworks</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/First_steps/Website_security\">Website security</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Django web framework (Python)</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django\">Django Web Framework (Python)</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/Introduction\">Django introduction</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/development_environment\">Setting up a Django development environment</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/Tutorial_local_library_website\">Django Tutorial: The Local Library website</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/skeleton_website\">Django Tutorial Part 2: Creating a skeleton website</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/Models\">Django Tutorial Part 3: Using models</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/Admin_site\">Django Tutorial Part 4: Django admin site</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/Home_page\">Django Tutorial Part 5: Creating our home page</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/Generic_views\">Django Tutorial Part 6: Generic list and detail views</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/Sessions\">Django Tutorial Part 7: Sessions framework</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/Authentication\">Django Tutorial Part 8: User authentication and permissions</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/Forms\">Django Tutorial Part 9: Working with forms</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/Testing\">Django Tutorial Part 10: Testing a Django web application</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/Deployment\">Django Tutorial Part 11: Deploying Django to production</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/web_application_security\">Django web application security</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Django/django_assessment_blog\">Assessment: DIY Django mini blog</a></li></ol></details></li><li><details><summary>Express Web Framework (Node.js/JavaScript)</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Express_Nodejs\">Express web framework (Node.js/JavaScript)</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Express_Nodejs/Introduction\">Express/Node introduction</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Express_Nodejs/development_environment\">Setting up a Node development environment</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Express_Nodejs/Tutorial_local_library_website\">Express Tutorial: The Local Library website</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Express_Nodejs/skeleton_website\">Express Tutorial Part 2: Creating a skeleton website</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Express_Nodejs/mongoose\">Express Tutorial Part 3: Using a Database (with Mongoose)</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Express_Nodejs/routes\">Express Tutorial Part 4: Routes and controllers</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Express_Nodejs/Displaying_data\">Express Tutorial Part 5: Displaying library data</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Express_Nodejs/forms\">Express Tutorial Part 6: Working with forms</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Server-side/Express_Nodejs/deployment\">Express Tutorial Part 7: Deploying to production</a></li></ol></details></li><li class=\"section\"><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Common_questions\">Further resources</a></li><li><details><summary>Common questions</summary><ol><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Common_questions\">Common questions</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Howto\">Use HTML to solve common problems</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/CSS/Howto\">Use CSS to solve common problems</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/JavaScript/Howto\">Solve common problems in your JavaScript code</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Common_questions/Web_mechanics\">Web mechanics</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Common_questions/Tools_and_setup\">Tools and setup</a></li><li><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Common_questions/Design_and_accessibility\">Design and accessibility</a></li></ol></details></li></ol>","sidebarMacro":"LearnSidebar","body":[{"type":"prose","value":{"id":null,"title":null,"isH3":false,"content":"<ul class=\"prev-next\">\n <li><a class=\"button secondary\" href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/Dealing_with_files\"><span class=\"button-wrap\"> Previous </span></a></li>\n <li><a class=\"button secondary\" href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web\"><span class=\"button-wrap\"> Overview: Getting started with the web</span></a></li>\n <li><a class=\"button secondary\" href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/CSS_basics\"><span class=\"button-wrap\"> Next </span></a></li>\n</ul>\n<p>HTML (<strong>H</strong>yper<strong>T</strong>ext <strong>M</strong>arkup <strong>L</strong>anguage) is the code that is used to structure a web page and its content. For example, content could be structured within a set of paragraphs, a list of bulleted points, or using images and data tables. As the title suggests, this article will give you a basic understanding of HTML and its functions.</p>"}},{"type":"prose","value":{"id":"so_what_is_html","title":"So what is HTML?","isH3":false,"content":"<p>HTML is a <em>markup language</em> that defines the structure of your content. HTML consists of a series of <strong><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Glossary/Element\">elements</a></strong>, which you use to enclose, or wrap, different parts of the content to make it appear a certain way, or act a certain way. The enclosing <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Glossary/Tag\">tags</a> can make a word or image hyperlink to somewhere else, can italicize words, can make the font bigger or smaller, and so on. For example, take the following line of content:</p>\n<pre class=\"brush: plain notranslate\">My cat is very grumpy\n</pre>\n<p>If we wanted the line to stand by itself, we could specify that it is a paragraph by enclosing it in paragraph tags:</p>\n<div class=\"code-example\"><div class=\"example-header\"><span class=\"language-name\">html</span></div><pre class=\"brush: html notranslate\"><code><p>My cat is very grumpy</p>\n</code></pre></div>"}},{"type":"prose","value":{"id":"anatomy_of_an_html_element","title":"Anatomy of an HTML element","isH3":true,"content":"<p>Let's explore this paragraph element a bit further.</p>\n<p>\n <img src=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/HTML_basics/grumpy-cat-small.png\" alt=\"paragraph element including opening tag, content reading 'my cat is very grumpy', and a closing tag\" width=\"821\" height=\"255\" loading=\"lazy\">\n</p>\n<p>The main parts of our element are as follows:</p>\n<ol>\n <li><strong>The opening tag:</strong> This consists of the name of the element (in this case, p), wrapped in opening and closing <strong>angle brackets</strong>. This states where the element begins or starts to take effect — in this case where the paragraph begins.</li>\n <li><strong>The closing tag:</strong> This is the same as the opening tag, except that it includes a <em>forward slash</em> before the element name. This states where the element ends — in this case where the paragraph ends. Failing to add a closing tag is one of the standard beginner errors and can lead to strange results.</li>\n <li><strong>The content:</strong> This is the content of the element, which in this case, is just text.</li>\n <li><strong>The element:</strong> The opening tag, the closing tag, and the content together comprise the element.</li>\n</ol>\n<p>Elements can also have attributes that look like the following:</p>\n<p>\n <img src=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/HTML_basics/grumpy-cat-attribute-small.png\" alt=\"Paragraph opening tag with a class attribute highlighted: class=editor-note\" width=\"1287\" height=\"156\" loading=\"lazy\">\n</p>\n<p>\n Attributes contain extra information about the element that you don't want to appear in the actual content. Here, <code>class</code> is the attribute <em>name</em> and <code>editor-note</code> is the attribute <em>value</em>. The <code>class</code> attribute allows you to give the element a non-unique identifier that can be used to target it (and any other elements with the same <code>class</code> value) with style information and other things.\n Some attributes have no value, such as <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Attributes/required\"><code>required</code></a>.\n</p>\n<p>Attributes that set a value always have:</p>\n<ol>\n <li>A space between it and the element name (or the previous attribute, if the element already has one or more attributes).</li>\n <li>The attribute name followed by an equal sign.</li>\n <li>The attribute value wrapped by opening and closing quotation marks.</li>\n</ol>\n<div class=\"notecard note\">\n <p><strong>Note:</strong> Simple attribute values that don't contain <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Glossary/ASCII\">ASCII</a> whitespace (or any of the characters <code>\"</code> <code>'</code> <code>`</code> <code>=</code> <code><</code> <code>></code>) can remain unquoted, but it is recommended that you quote all attribute values, as it makes the code more consistent and understandable.</p>\n</div>"}},{"type":"prose","value":{"id":"nesting_elements","title":"Nesting elements","isH3":true,"content":"<p>You can put elements inside other elements too — this is called <strong>nesting</strong>. If we wanted to state that our cat is <strong>very</strong> grumpy, we could wrap the word \"very\" in a <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/strong\"><code><strong></code></a> element, which means that the word is to be strongly emphasized:</p>\n<div class=\"code-example\"><div class=\"example-header\"><span class=\"language-name\">html</span></div><pre class=\"brush: html notranslate\"><code><p>My cat is <strong>very</strong> grumpy.</p>\n</code></pre></div>\n<p>You do however need to make sure that your elements are properly nested. In the example above, we opened the <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/p\"><code><p></code></a> element first, then the <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/strong\"><code><strong></code></a> element; therefore, we have to close the <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/strong\"><code><strong></code></a> element first, then the <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/p\"><code><p></code></a> element. The following is incorrect:</p>\n<div class=\"code-example\"><div class=\"example-header\"><span class=\"language-name\">html</span></div><pre class=\"brush: html example-bad notranslate\"><code><p>My cat is <strong>very grumpy.</p></strong>\n</code></pre></div>\n<p>The elements have to open and close correctly so that they are clearly inside or outside one another. If they overlap as shown above, then your web browser will try to make the best guess at what you were trying to say, which can lead to unexpected results. So don't do it!</p>"}},{"type":"prose","value":{"id":"void_elements","title":"Void elements","isH3":true,"content":"<p>Some elements have no content and are called <strong><a href=\"/en-US/docs/Glossary/Void_element\">void elements</a></strong>. Take the <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/img\"><code><img></code></a> element that we already have in our HTML page:</p>\n<div class=\"code-example\"><div class=\"example-header\"><span class=\"language-name\">html</span></div><pre class=\"brush: html notranslate\"><code><img src=\"images/firefox-icon.png\" alt=\"My test image\" />\n</code></pre></div>\n<p>This contains two attributes, but there is no closing <code></img></code> tag and no inner content. This is because an image element doesn't wrap content to affect it. Its purpose is to embed an image in the HTML page in the place it appears.</p>"}},{"type":"prose","value":{"id":"anatomy_of_an_html_document","title":"Anatomy of an HTML document","isH3":true,"content":"<p>That wraps up the basics of individual HTML elements, but they aren't handy on their own. Now we'll look at how individual elements are combined to form an entire HTML page. Let's revisit the code we put into our <code>index.html</code> example (which we first met in the <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/Dealing_with_files\">Dealing with files</a> article):</p>\n<div class=\"code-example\"><div class=\"example-header\"><span class=\"language-name\">html</span></div><pre class=\"brush: html notranslate\"><code><!doctype html>\n<html lang=\"en-US\">\n <head>\n <meta charset=\"utf-8\" />\n <meta name=\"viewport\" content=\"width=device-width\" />\n <title>My test page</title>\n </head>\n <body>\n <img src=\"images/firefox-icon.png\" alt=\"My test image\" />\n </body>\n</html>\n</code></pre></div>\n<p>Here, we have the following:</p>\n<ul>\n <li><code><!doctype html></code> — <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Glossary/Doctype\">doctype</a>. It is a required preamble. In the mists of time, when HTML was young (around 1991/92), doctypes were meant to act as links to a set of rules that the HTML page had to follow to be considered good HTML, which could mean automatic error checking and other useful things. However, these days, they don't do much and are basically just needed to make sure your document behaves correctly. That's all you need to know for now.</li>\n <li><code><html></html></code> — the <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/html\"><code><html></code></a> element. This element wraps all the content on the entire page and is sometimes known as the root element. It also includes the <code>lang</code> attribute, setting the primary language of the document.</li>\n <li><code><head></head></code> — the <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/head\"><code><head></code></a> element. This element acts as a container for all the stuff you want to include on the HTML page that <em>isn't</em> the content you are showing to your page's viewers. This includes things like <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Glossary/Keyword\">keywords</a> and a page description that you want to appear in search results, CSS to style our content, character set declarations, and more.</li>\n <li><code><meta charset=\"utf-8\"></code> — This element sets the character set your document should use to UTF-8 which includes most characters from the vast majority of written languages. Essentially, it can now handle any textual content you might put on it. There is no reason not to set this, and it can help avoid some problems later on.</li>\n <li><code><meta name=\"viewport\" content=\"width=device-width\"></code> — This <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/Viewport_concepts#mobile_viewports\">viewport element</a> ensures the page renders at the width of viewport, preventing mobile browsers from rendering pages wider than the viewport and then shrinking them down.</li>\n <li><code><title></title></code> — the <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/title\"><code><title></code></a> element. This sets the title of your page, which is the title that appears in the browser tab the page is loaded in. It is also used to describe the page when you bookmark/favorite it.</li>\n <li><code><body></body></code> — the <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/body\"><code><body></code></a> element. This contains <em>all</em> the content that you want to show to web users when they visit your page, whether that's text, images, videos, games, playable audio tracks, or whatever else.</li>\n</ul>"}},{"type":"prose","value":{"id":"images","title":"Images","isH3":false,"content":"<p>Let's turn our attention to the <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/img\"><code><img></code></a> element again:</p>\n<div class=\"code-example\"><div class=\"example-header\"><span class=\"language-name\">html</span></div><pre class=\"brush: html notranslate\"><code><img src=\"images/firefox-icon.png\" alt=\"My test image\" />\n</code></pre></div>\n<p>As we said before, it embeds an image into our page in the position it appears. It does this via the <code>src</code> (source) attribute, which contains the path to our image file.</p>\n<p>We have also included an <code>alt</code> (alternative) attribute. In the <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/img#authoring_meaningful_alternate_descriptions\"><code>alt</code> attribute</a>, you specify descriptive text for users who cannot see the image, possibly because of the following reasons:</p>\n<ol>\n <li>They are visually impaired. Users with significant visual impairments often use tools called screen readers to read out the alt text to them.</li>\n <li>Something has gone wrong causing the image not to display. For example, try deliberately changing the path inside your <code>src</code> attribute to make it incorrect. If you save and reload the page, you should see something like this in place of the image:</li>\n</ol>\n<p>\n <img src=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/HTML_basics/alt-text-example.png\" alt=\"The words: my test image\" width=\"108\" height=\"36\" loading=\"lazy\">\n</p>\n<p>The keywords for alt text are \"descriptive text\". The alt text you write should provide the reader with enough information to have a good idea of what the image conveys. In this example, our current text of \"My test image\" is no good at all. A much better alternative for our Firefox logo would be \"The Firefox logo: a flaming fox surrounding the Earth.\"</p>\n<p>Try coming up with some better alt text for your image now.</p>\n<div class=\"notecard note\">\n <p><strong>Note:</strong> Find out more about accessibility in our <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility\">accessibility learning module</a> and <a href=\"https://www.w3.org/WAI/tutorials/images/decision-tree/\" class=\"external\" target=\"_blank\">An alt Decision Tree</a> to learn how to use an alt attribute for images in various situations.</p>\n</div>"}},{"type":"prose","value":{"id":"marking_up_text","title":"Marking up text","isH3":false,"content":"<p>This section will cover some essential HTML elements you'll use for marking up the text.</p>"}},{"type":"prose","value":{"id":"headings","title":"Headings","isH3":true,"content":"<p>Heading elements allow you to specify that certain parts of your content are headings — or subheadings. In the same way that a book has the main title, chapter titles, and subtitles, an HTML document can too. HTML contains 6 heading levels, <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/Heading_Elements\"><h1> - <h6></a>, although you'll commonly only use 3 to 4 at most:</p>\n<div class=\"code-example\"><div class=\"example-header\"><span class=\"language-name\">html</span></div><pre class=\"brush: html notranslate\"><code>\n<h1>My main title</h1>\n<h2>My top level heading</h2>\n<h3>My subheading</h3>\n<h4>My sub-subheading</h4>\n</code></pre></div>\n<div class=\"notecard note\">\n <p><strong>Note:</strong> Anything in HTML between <code></code> is an <strong>HTML comment</strong>. The browser ignores comments as it renders the code. In other words, they are not visible on the page - just in the code. HTML comments are a way for you to write helpful notes about your code or logic.</p>\n</div>\n<p>Now try adding a suitable title to your HTML page just above your <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/img\"><code><img></code></a> element.</p>\n<div class=\"notecard note\">\n <p><strong>Note:</strong> You'll see that your heading level 1 has an implicit style. Don't use heading elements to make text bigger or bold, because they are used for <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility/HTML#text_content\">accessibility</a> and <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML/Introduction_to_HTML/HTML_text_fundamentals#why_do_we_need_structure\">other reasons such as SEO</a>. Try to create a meaningful sequence of headings on your pages, without skipping levels.</p>\n</div>"}},{"type":"prose","value":{"id":"paragraphs","title":"Paragraphs","isH3":true,"content":"<p>As explained above, <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/p\"><code><p></code></a> elements are for containing paragraphs of text; you'll use these frequently when marking up regular text content:</p>\n<div class=\"code-example\"><div class=\"example-header\"><span class=\"language-name\">html</span></div><pre class=\"brush: html notranslate\"><code><p>This is a single paragraph</p>\n</code></pre></div>\n<p>Add your sample text (you should have it from <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/What_will_your_website_look_like\"><em>What will your website look like?</em></a>) into one or a few paragraphs, placed directly below your <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/img\"><code><img></code></a> element.</p>"}},{"type":"prose","value":{"id":"lists","title":"Lists","isH3":true,"content":"<p>A lot of the web's content is lists and HTML has special elements for these. Marking up lists always consists of at least 2 elements. The most common list types are ordered and unordered lists:</p>\n<ol>\n <li><strong>Unordered lists</strong> are for lists where the order of the items doesn't matter, such as a shopping list. These are wrapped in a <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/ul\"><code><ul></code></a> element.</li>\n <li><strong>Ordered lists</strong> are for lists where the order of the items does matter, such as a recipe. These are wrapped in an <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/ol\"><code><ol></code></a> element.</li>\n</ol>\n<p>Each item inside the lists is put inside an <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/li\"><code><li></code></a> (list item) element.</p>\n<p>For example, if we wanted to turn the part of the following paragraph fragment into a list</p>\n<div class=\"code-example\"><div class=\"example-header\"><span class=\"language-name\">html</span></div><pre class=\"brush: html notranslate\"><code><p>\n At Mozilla, we're a global community of technologists, thinkers, and builders\n working together…\n</p>\n</code></pre></div>\n<p>We could modify the markup to this</p>\n<div class=\"code-example\"><div class=\"example-header\"><span class=\"language-name\">html</span></div><pre class=\"brush: html notranslate\"><code><p>At Mozilla, we're a global community of</p>\n\n<ul>\n <li>technologists</li>\n <li>thinkers</li>\n <li>builders</li>\n</ul>\n\n<p>working together…</p>\n</code></pre></div>\n<p>Try adding an ordered or unordered list to your example page.</p>"}},{"type":"prose","value":{"id":"links","title":"Links","isH3":false,"content":"<p>Links are very important — they are what makes the web a web! To add a link, we need to use an element — <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/a\"><code><a></code></a> — \"a\" being the short form for \"anchor\". To make text within your paragraph into a link, follow these steps:</p>\n<ol>\n <li>\n <p>Choose some text. We chose the text \"Mozilla Manifesto\".</p>\n </li>\n <li>\n <p>Wrap the text in an <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/a\"><code><a></code></a> element, as shown below:</p>\n <div class=\"code-example\"><div class=\"example-header\"><span class=\"language-name\">html</span></div><pre class=\"brush: html notranslate\"><code><a>Mozilla Manifesto</a>\n</code></pre></div>\n </li>\n <li>\n <p>Give the <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Element/a\"><code><a></code></a> element an <code>href</code> attribute, as shown below:</p>\n <div class=\"code-example\"><div class=\"example-header\"><span class=\"language-name\">html</span></div><pre class=\"brush: html notranslate\"><code><a href=\"\">Mozilla Manifesto</a>\n</code></pre></div>\n </li>\n <li>\n <p>Fill in the value of this attribute with the web address that you want the link to point to:</p>\n <div class=\"code-example\"><div class=\"example-header\"><span class=\"language-name\">html</span></div><pre class=\"brush: html notranslate\"><code><a href=\"https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/about/manifesto/\">\n Mozilla Manifesto\n</a>\n</code></pre></div>\n </li>\n</ol>\n<p>You might get unexpected results if you omit the <code>https://</code> or <code>http://</code> part, called the <em>protocol</em>, at the beginning of the web address. After making a link, click it to make sure it is sending you where you wanted it to.</p>\n<div class=\"notecard note\">\n <p><strong>Note:</strong> <code>href</code> might appear like a rather obscure choice for an attribute name at first. If you are having trouble remembering it, remember that it stands for <em><strong>h</strong>ypertext <strong>ref</strong>erence</em>.</p>\n</div>\n<p>Add a link to your page now, if you haven't already done so.</p>"}},{"type":"prose","value":{"id":"conclusion","title":"Conclusion","isH3":false,"content":"<p>If you have followed all the instructions in this article, you should end up with a page that looks like the one below (you can also <a href=\"https://mdn.github.io/beginner-html-site/\" class=\"external\" target=\"_blank\">view it here</a>):</p>\n<p>\n <img src=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/HTML_basics/finished-test-page-small.png\" alt=\"A web page screenshot showing a Firefox logo, a heading saying Mozilla is cool, and two paragraphs of filler text\" width=\"716\" height=\"838\" loading=\"lazy\">\n</p>\n<p>If you get stuck, you can always compare your work with our <a href=\"https://github.com/mdn/beginner-html-site/blob/main/index.html\" class=\"external\" target=\"_blank\">finished example code</a> on GitHub.</p>\n<p>Here, we have only really scratched the surface of HTML. To find out more, go to our <a href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/HTML\">Learning HTML</a> topic.</p><ul class=\"prev-next\">\n <li><a class=\"button secondary\" href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/Dealing_with_files\"><span class=\"button-wrap\"> Previous </span></a></li>\n <li><a class=\"button secondary\" href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web\"><span class=\"button-wrap\"> Overview: Getting started with the web</span></a></li>\n <li><a class=\"button secondary\" href=\"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/CSS_basics\"><span class=\"button-wrap\"> Next </span></a></li>\n</ul>"}}],"toc":[{"text":"So what is HTML?","id":"so_what_is_html"},{"text":"Images","id":"images"},{"text":"Marking up text","id":"marking_up_text"},{"text":"Links","id":"links"},{"text":"Conclusion","id":"conclusion"}],"summary":"HTML (HyperText Markup Language) is the code that is used to structure a web page and its content. For example, content could be structured within a set of paragraphs, a list of bulleted points, or using images and data tables. As the title suggests, this article will give you a basic understanding of HTML and its functions.","popularity":0.2857,"modified":"2024-11-21T19:49:47.000Z","other_translations":[{"locale":"de","title":"HTML-Grundlagen","native":"Deutsch"},{"locale":"es","title":"Conceptos básicos de HTML","native":"Español"},{"locale":"fr","title":"Notions de base en HTML","native":"Français"},{"locale":"ja","title":"HTML の基本","native":"日本語"},{"locale":"ko","title":"HTML 기본","native":"한국어"},{"locale":"pt-BR","title":"HTML básico","native":"Português (do Brasil)"},{"locale":"ru","title":"Основы HTML","native":"Русский"},{"locale":"zh-CN","title":"HTML 基础","native":"中文 (简体)"},{"locale":"zh-TW","title":"HTML 基礎","native":"正體中文 (繁體)"}],"pageType":"learn-module-chapter","source":{"folder":"en-us/learn/getting_started_with_the_web/html_basics","github_url":"https://github.com/mdn/content/blob/main/files/en-us/learn/getting_started_with_the_web/html_basics/index.md","last_commit_url":"https://github.com/mdn/content/commit/93b34fcdb9cf91ff44f5dfe7f4dcd13e961962da","filename":"index.md"},"short_title":"HTML basics","parents":[{"uri":"/en-US/docs/Learn","title":"Guides"},{"uri":"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web","title":"Getting started with the web"},{"uri":"/en-US/docs/Learn/Getting_started_with_the_web/HTML_basics","title":"HTML basics"}],"pageTitle":"HTML basics - Learn web development | MDN","noIndexing":false}}</script></body></html>