CSS Selector Reference
CSS Selectors
In CSS, selectors are patterns used to select the element(s) you want to style.
Use our CSS Selector Tester to demonstrate the different selectors.
Selector | Example | Example description |
---|---|---|
.class | .intro | Selects all elements with class="intro" |
.class1.class2 | .name1.name2 | Selects all elements with both name1 and name2 set within its class attribute |
.class1 .class2 | .name1 .name2 | Selects all elements with name2 that is a descendant of an element with name1 |
#id | #firstname | Selects the element with id="firstname" |
* | * | Selects all elements |
element | p | Selects all <p> elements |
element.class | p.intro | Selects all <p> elements with class="intro" |
element,element | div, p | Selects all <div> elements and all <p> elements |
element element | div p | Selects all <p> elements inside <div> elements |
element>element | div > p | Selects all <p> elements where the parent is a <div> element |
element+element | div + p | Selects the first <p> element that is placed immediately after <div> elements |
element1~element2 | p ~ ul | Selects every <ul> element that is preceded by a <p> element |
[attribute] | [target] | Selects all elements with a target attribute |
[attribute=value] | [target="_blank"] | Selects all elements with target="_blank" |
[attribute~=value] | [title~="flower"] | Selects all elements with a title attribute containing the word "flower" |
[attribute|=value] | [lang|="en"] | Selects all elements with a lang attribute value equal to "en" or starting with "en-" |
[attribute^=value] | a[href^="https"] | Selects every <a> element whose href attribute value begins with "https" |
[attribute$=value] | a[href$=".pdf"] | Selects every <a> element whose href attribute value ends with ".pdf" |
[attribute*=value] | a[href*="w3schools"] | Selects every <a> element whose href attribute value contains the substring "w3schools" |
:active | a:active | Selects the active link |
:checked | input:checked | Selects every checked <input> element |
:default | input:default | Selects the default <input> element |
:disabled | input:disabled | Selects every disabled <input> element |
:empty | p:empty | Selects every <p> element that has no children (including text nodes) |
:enabled | input:enabled | Selects every enabled <input> element |
:first-child | p:first-child | Selects every <p> element that is the first child of its parent |
:first-of-type | p:first-of-type | Selects every <p> element that is the first <p> element of its parent |
:focus | input:focus | Selects the input element which has focus |
:fullscreen | :fullscreen | Selects the element that is in full-screen mode |
:has() | h2:has(+p) | Selects h2 elements that are immediately followed by a p element, and applies the style to h2 |
:hover | a:hover | Selects links on mouse over |
:in-range | input:in-range | Selects input elements with a value within a specified range |
:indeterminate | input:indeterminate | Selects input elements that are in an indeterminate state |
:invalid | input:invalid | Selects all input elements with an invalid value |
:is() | :is(ul, ol) | Selects all <ul> and <ol>elements |
:lang() | p:lang(it) | Selects every <p> element with a lang attribute equal to "it" (Italian) |
:last-child | p:last-child | Selects every <p> element that is the last child of its parent |
:last-of-type | p:last-of-type | Selects every <p> element that is the last <p> element of its parent |
:link | a:link | Selects all unvisited links |
:not() | :not(p) | Selects every element that is not a <p> element |
:nth-child() | p:nth-child(2) | Selects every <p> element that is the second child of its parent |
:nth-last-child() | p:nth-last-child(2) | Selects every <p> element that is the second child of its parent, counting from the last child |
:nth-last-of-type() | p:nth-last-of-type(2) | Selects every <p> element that is the second <p> element of its parent, counting from the last child |
:nth-of-type() | p:nth-of-type(2) | Selects every <p> element that is the second <p> element of its parent |
:only-of-type | p:only-of-type | Selects every <p> element that is the only <p> element of its parent |
:only-child | p:only-child | Selects every <p> element that is the only child of its parent |
:optional | input:optional | Selects input elements with no "required" attribute |
:out-of-range | input:out-of-range | Selects input elements with a value outside a specified range |
:read-only | input:read-only | Selects input elements with the "readonly" attribute specified |
:read-write | input:read-write | Selects input elements with the "readonly" attribute NOT specified |
:required | input:required | Selects input elements with the "required" attribute specified |
:root | :root | Selects the document's root element |
:target | #news:target | Selects the current active #news element (clicked on a URL containing that anchor name) |
:valid | input:valid | Selects all input elements with a valid value |
:visited | a:visited | Selects all visited links |