Tutorials References Menu

CSS Tutorial

CSS HOME CSS Introduction CSS Syntax CSS Selectors CSS How To CSS Comments CSS Colors CSS Backgrounds CSS Borders CSS Margins CSS Padding CSS Height/Width CSS Box Model CSS Outline CSS Text CSS Fonts CSS Icons CSS Links CSS Lists CSS Tables CSS Display CSS Max-width CSS Position CSS Overflow CSS Float CSS Inline-block CSS Align CSS Combinators CSS Pseudo-class CSS Pseudo-element CSS Opacity CSS Navigation Bar CSS Dropdowns CSS Image Gallery CSS Image Sprites CSS Attr Selectors CSS Forms CSS Counters CSS Website Layout CSS Units CSS Specificity CSS !important

CSS Advanced

CSS Rounded Corners CSS Border Images CSS Backgrounds CSS Colors CSS Color Keywords CSS Gradients CSS Shadows CSS Text Effects CSS Web Fonts CSS 2D Transforms CSS 3D Transforms CSS Transitions CSS Animations CSS Tooltips CSS Style Images CSS Image Reflection CSS object-fit CSS object-position CSS Buttons CSS Pagination CSS Multiple Columns CSS User Interface CSS Variables CSS Box Sizing CSS Media Queries CSS MQ Examples CSS Flexbox

CSS Responsive

RWD Intro RWD Viewport RWD Grid View RWD Media Queries RWD Images RWD Videos RWD Frameworks RWD Templates

CSS Grid

Grid Intro Grid Container Grid Item

CSS SASS

SASS Tutorial

CSS Examples

CSS Templates CSS Examples

CSS References

CSS Reference CSS Selectors CSS Functions CSS Reference Aural CSS Web Safe Fonts CSS Animatable CSS Units CSS PX-EM Converter CSS Colors CSS Color Values CSS Default Values CSS Browser Support

CSS Website Layout


Website Layout

A website is often divided into headers, menus, content and a footer:

There are tons of different layout designs to choose from. However, the structure above, is one of the most common, and we will take a closer look at it in this tutorial.


Header

A header is usually located at the top of the website (or right below a top navigation menu). It often contains a logo or the website name:

Example

.header {
  background-color: #F1F1F1;
  text-align: center;
  padding: 20px;
}

Result

Header

Try it Yourself »


Navigation Bar

A navigation bar contains a list of links to help visitors navigating through your website:

Example

/* The navbar container */
.topnav {
  overflow: hidden;
  background-color: #333;
}

/* Navbar links */
.topnav a {
  float: left;
  display: block;
  color: #f2f2f2;
  text-align: center;
  padding: 14px 16px;
  text-decoration: none;
}

/* Links - change color on hover */
.topnav a:hover {
  background-color: #ddd;
  color: black;
}

Result

Try it Yourself »

Content

The layout in this section, often depends on the target users. The most common layout is one (or combining them) of the following:

  • 1-column (often used for mobile browsers)
  • 2-column (often used for tablets and laptops)
  • 3-column layout (only used for desktops)

1-column:

 

2-column:

 

3-column:

We will create a 3-column layout, and change it to a 1-column layout on smaller screens:

Example

/* Create three equal columns that floats next to each other */
.column {
  float: left;
  width: 33.33%;
}

/* Clear floats after the columns */
.row:after {
  content: "";
  display: table;
  clear: both;
}

/* Responsive layout - makes the three columns stack on top of each other instead of next to each other on smaller screens (600px wide or less) */
@media screen and (max-width: 600px) {
  .column {
    width: 100%;
  }
}

Result

Column

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Maecenas sit amet pretium urna. Vivamus venenatis velit nec neque ultricies, eget elementum magna tristique.

Column

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Maecenas sit amet pretium urna. Vivamus venenatis velit nec neque ultricies, eget elementum magna tristique.

Column

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Maecenas sit amet pretium urna. Vivamus venenatis velit nec neque ultricies, eget elementum magna tristique.

Try it Yourself »

Tip: To create a 2-column layout, change the width to 50%. To create a 4-column layout, use 25%, etc.

Tip: Do you wonder how the @media rule works? Read more about it in our CSS Media Queries chapter.

Tip: A more modern way of creating column layouts, is to use CSS Flexbox. However, it is not supported in Internet Explorer 10 and earlier versions. If you require IE6-10 support, use floats (as shown above).

To learn more about the Flexible Box Layout Module, read our CSS Flexbox chapter.


Unequal Columns

The main content is the biggest and the most important part of your site.

It is common with unequal column widths, so that most of the space is reserved for the main content. The side content (if any) is often used as an alternative navigation or to specify information relevant to the main content. Change the widths as you like, only remember that it should add up to 100% in total:

Example

.column {
  float: left;
}

/* Left and right column */
.column.side {
  width: 25%;
}

/* Middle column */
.column.middle {
  width: 50%;
}

/* Responsive layout - makes the three columns stack on top of each other instead of next to each other */
@media screen and (max-width: 600px) {
  .column.side, .column.middle {
    width: 100%;
  }
}

Result

Side

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit...

Main Content

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Maecenas sit amet pretium urna. Vivamus venenatis velit nec neque ultricies, eget elementum magna tristique. Quisque vehicula, risus eget aliquam placerat, purus leo tincidunt eros, eget luctus quam orci in velit. Praesent scelerisque tortor sed accumsan convallis.

Side

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit...

Try it Yourself »

Footer

The footer is placed at the bottom of your page. It often contains information like copyright and contact info:

Example

.footer {
  background-color: #F1F1F1;
  text-align: center;
  padding: 10px;
}

Result

Footer
Try it Yourself »

Responsive Website Layout

By using some of the CSS code above, we have created a responsive website layout, which varies between two columns and full-width columns depending on screen width:

Try it Yourself »