HTML Block and Inline Elements

HTML elements can be categorized as either block-level elements or inline elements. Understanding the distinction between these types is crucial for creating well-structured web pages.

1. Block-Level Elements

Block-level elements start on a new line and take up the full width available. They often contain other block-level elements or inline elements.

Common block-level elements include:

• <div>
• <p>
• <h1> to <h6>
• <ul> and <ol>
• <blockquote>

<div>
    <h2>Block-Level Heading</h2>
    <p>This is a block-level paragraph. It starts on a new line and takes up the full width available.</p>
</div>

2. Inline Elements

Inline elements do not start on a new line and only take up as much width as necessary. They are typically used for formatting parts of text within block-level elements.

Common inline elements include:

• <span>
• <a>
• <img>
• <strong> and <em>
• <br>

<p>This is a <span style="color: red;">span</span> element inside a paragraph. Here is a <a href="#">link</a> and an <strong>important</strong> word.</p>

3. Inline Code Editor

Try editing the code below to see the difference between block and inline elements in action.

Conclusion

Understanding the difference between block-level and inline elements is fundamental for structuring HTML documents. Block-level elements take up the full width available and start on a new line, while inline elements take up only as much width as necessary and do not start on a new line.