CSS background-position Property

Posted in CSS Tutorial

Updated on Aug 20, 2024

By Mari Selvan

👁️ 11 - Views

⏳ 4 mins

💬 1 Comment

Photo Credit to CodeToFun

🙋 Introduction

The background-position property in CSS is used to set the initial position of a background image within its containing element.

This property allows you to control where the image is placed, whether it's in the center, top-left, bottom-right, or any other specified position. By using background-position, you can ensure that your background images appear exactly where you want them, enhancing the visual layout of your web page.

💡 Syntax

The syntax for the background-position property allows for various values, including keywords, length, and percentage values.

Syntax

Copied

element {
  background-position: value;
}

🎛️ Default Value

The default value of the background-position property is 0% 0%, which means the background image is positioned at the top-left corner of the element.

🏠 Property Values

Value	Description
keywords	top, bottom, left, right, center. These values position the image based on the specified direction.
length	Specifies the position using length units like px, em, etc. For example, 50px 100px positions the image 50 pixels from the left and 100 pixels from the top.
percentage	Specifies the position as a percentage of the element's dimensions. For example, 50% 50% centers the image both horizontally and vertically.
combination	You can combine these values, liketop 50%, which positions the image at the top and centered horizontally.

📄 Example

In this example, we'll position the background image at the center of the element.

index.html

Copied

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="UTF-8">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
  <title>CSS background-position Example</title>
  <style>
    .background-example {
      width: 300px;
      height: 200px;
      background-image: url('example.jpg');
      background-position: center;
      background-size: cover;
    }
  </style>
</head>
<body>
  <h1>Background Position Center</h1>
  <div class="background-example"></div>
</body>
</html>

🖥️ Browser Compatibility

The background-position property is widely supported in all modern browsers, including Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge, and Opera. This ensures that your background images will be positioned correctly across different platforms.

🎉 Conclusion

The background-position property is an essential tool for web developers looking to control the placement of background images.

Whether you're aligning an image to the center or positioning it at specific coordinates, this property provides the flexibility needed to create visually appealing designs. Experiment with different values to see how this property can enhance your web layouts.