CSS Pseudo-classes

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What are Pseudo-classes?

A pseudo-class is used to define a special state of an element.

For example, it can be used to:

  • Style an element when a user mouses over it
  • Style visited and unvisited links differently
  • Style an element when it gets focus

Mouse Over Me


Syntax

The syntax of pseudo-classes:

selector:pseudo-class {
  property: value;
}


Anchor Pseudo-classes

Links can be displayed in different ways:

Example

/* unvisited link */
a:link {
  color: #FF0000;
}

/* visited link */
a:visited {
  color: #00FF00;
}

/* mouse over link */
a:hover {
  color: #FF00FF;
}

/* selected link */
a:active {
  color: #0000FF;
}

Try it Yourself »

Note: a:hover MUST come after a:link and a:visited in the CSS definition in order to be effective! a:active MUST come after a:hover in the CSS definition in order to be effective! Pseudo-class names are not case-sensitive.


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Pseudo-classes and HTML Classes

Pseudo-classes can be combined with HTML classes:

When you hover over the link in the example, it will change color:

Example

a.highlight:hover {
  color: #ff0000;
}

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Hover on <div>

An example of using the :hover pseudo-class on a <div> element:

Example

div:hover {
  background-color: blue;
}

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Simple Tooltip Hover

Hover over a <div> element to show a <p> element (like a tooltip):

Hover over me to show the <p> element.

Example

p {
  display: none;
  background-color: yellow;
  padding: 20px;
}

div:hover p {
  display: block;
}

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CSS – The :first-child Pseudo-class

The :first-child pseudo-class matches a specified element that is the first child of another element.

Match the first <p> element

In the following example, the selector matches any <p> element that is the first child of any element:

Example

p:first-child {
  color: blue;
}

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Match the first <i> element in all <p> elements

In the following example, the selector matches the first <i> element in all <p> elements:

Example

p i:first-child {
  color: blue;
}

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Match all <i> elements in all first child <p> elements

In the following example, the selector matches all <i> elements in <p> elements that are the first child of another element:

Example

p:first-child i {
  color: blue;
}

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CSS – The :lang Pseudo-class

The :lang pseudo-class allows you to define special rules for different languages.

In the example below, :lang defines the quotation marks for <q> elements with lang=”no”:

Example

<html>
<head>
<style>
q:lang(no) {
  quotes: “~” “~”;
}
</style>
</head>
<body>

<p>Some text <q lang=”no”>A quote in a paragraph</q> Some text.</p>

</body>
</html>

Try it Yourself »


More Examples

Add different styles to hyperlinks
This example demonstrates how to add other styles to hyperlinks.

Use of :focus
This example demonstrates how to use the :focus pseudo-class.


Test Yourself With Exercises

Exercise:

Set the background-color to red, when you mouse over a link.

<style>
 {
  background-color: red;
}
</style>

<body>

<h1>This is a header.</h1>
<p>This is a paragraph.</p>
<a href="https://w3schools.com">This is a link.</a>

</body>

Submit Answer »

Start the Exercise


All CSS Pseudo Classes

SelectorExampleExample description
:activea:activeSelects the active link
:checkedinput:checkedSelects every checked <input> element
:disabledinput:disabledSelects every disabled <input> element
:emptyp:emptySelects every <p> element that has no children
:enabledinput:enabledSelects every enabled <input> element
:first-childp:first-childSelects every <p> elements that is the first child of its parent
:first-of-typep:first-of-typeSelects every <p> element that is the first <p> element of its parent
:focusinput:focusSelects the <input> element that has focus
:hovera:hoverSelects links on mouse over
:in-rangeinput:in-rangeSelects <input> elements with a value within a specified range
:invalidinput:invalidSelects all <input> elements with an invalid value
:lang(language)p:lang(it)Selects every <p> element with a lang attribute value starting with “it”
:last-childp:last-childSelects every <p> elements that is the last child of its parent
:last-of-typep:last-of-typeSelects every <p> element that is the last <p> element of its parent
:linka:linkSelects all unvisited links
:not(selector):not(p)Selects every element that is not a <p> element
:nth-child(n)p:nth-child(2)Selects every <p> element that is the second child of its parent
:nth-last-child(n)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(n)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(n)p:nth-of-type(2)Selects every <p> element that is the second <p> element of its parent
:only-of-typep:only-of-typeSelects every <p> element that is the only <p> element of its parent
:only-childp:only-childSelects every <p> element that is the only child of its parent
:optionalinput:optionalSelects <input> elements with no “required” attribute
:out-of-rangeinput:out-of-rangeSelects <input> elements with a value outside a specified range
:read-onlyinput:read-onlySelects <input> elements with a “readonly” attribute specified
:read-writeinput:read-writeSelects <input> elements with no “readonly” attribute
:requiredinput:requiredSelects <input> elements with a “required” attribute specified
:rootrootSelects the document’s root element
:target#news:targetSelects the current active #news element (clicked on a URL containing that anchor name)
:validinput:validSelects all <input> elements with a valid value
:visiteda:visitedSelects all visited links

All CSS Pseudo Elements

SelectorExampleExample description
::afterp::afterInsert content after every <p> element
::beforep::beforeInsert content before every <p> element
::first-letterp::first-letterSelects the first letter of every <p> element
::first-linep::first-lineSelects the first line of every <p> element
::selectionp::selectionSelects the portion of an element that is selected by a user

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