CSS inset-block Property

Posted in CSS Tutorial

Updated on Oct 03, 2024

By Mari Selvan

👁️ 9 - Views

⏳ 4 mins

💬 1 Comment

Photo Credit to CodeToFun

🙋 Introduction

The inset-block property in CSS is part of the Logical Properties and Values specification. It allows developers to control the logical block-start and block-end offsets of an element in a single declaration.

This property is particularly useful for handling layouts in a way that adapts to different writing modes, such as left-to-right, right-to-left, and vertical text directions.

💡 Syntax

The syntax for the inset-block property is straightforward. It can take one or two values.

Syntax

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element {
  inset-block: value;
}

element {
  inset-block: block-start-value block-end-value;
}

value: Specifies the offset for both the block-start and block-end edges.
block-start-value block-end-value: Specifies the offset for the block-start and block-end edges individually.

🎛️ Default Value

The default value of the inset-block property is auto, which means the element's position will be determined by the browser's default styles or other specified properties.

🏠 Property Values

Value	Description
length	Specifies a fixed offset, such as 20px, 1em, 5%, etc.
auto	The browser calculates the offset automatically.
initial	Sets the property to its default value.
inherit	Inherits the value from its parent element.

📄 Example

In this example, we'll apply the inset-block property to position an element within its container.

index.html

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<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="UTF-8">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
  <title>CSS inset-block Example</title>
  <style>
    .container {
      position: relative;
      width: 300px;
      height: 200px;
      border: 1px solid #000;
    }
    .box {
      position: absolute;
      inset-block: 10px 20px;
      width: 100px;
      height: 50px;
      background-color: #007bff;
    }
  </style>
</head>
<body>
  <h1>Element with inset-block Property</h1>
  <div class="container">
    <div class="box"></div>
  </div>
</body>
</html>

🖥️ Browser Compatibility

The inset-block property is supported in most modern browsers, including the latest versions of Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge, and Opera. However, it is always a good practice to test your website across different browsers to ensure compatibility.

🎉 Conclusion

The inset-block property is a versatile tool for web developers looking to manage the block-level positioning of elements in a logical, writing-mode independent manner.

By understanding and using this property, you can create more flexible and robust layouts that adapt to different writing modes and languages. Experiment with different values and see how this property can enhance your web designs.