The <style> HTML element contains style information for a document, or part of a document. It contains CSS, which is applied to the contents of the document containing the <style> element.

Try it

<style>
  p {
    color: #26b72b;
  }
  code {
    font-weight: bold;
  }
</style>

<p>
  This text will be green. Inline styles take precedence over CSS included
  externally.
</p>

<p style="color: blue">
  The <code>style</code> attribute can override it, though.
</p>

p {
  color: red;
}

Attributes

This element includes the global attributes.

blocking

This attribute explicitly indicates that certain operations should be blocked on the fetching of critical subresources and the application of the stylesheet to the document. @import-ed stylesheets are generally considered as critical subresources, whereas background-image and fonts are not. The operations that are to be blocked must be a space-separated list of blocking tokens listed below. Currently there is only one token:

• render: The rendering of content on the screen is blocked.

Note: Only style elements in the document's <head> can possibly block rendering. By default, a style element in the <head> blocks rendering when the browser discovers it during parsing. If such a style element is added dynamically via script, you must additionally set blocking = "render" for it to block rendering.

media

This attribute defines which media the style should be applied to. Its value is a media query, which defaults to all if the attribute is missing.

nonce

A cryptographic nonce (number used once) used to allow inline styles in a style-src Content-Security-Policy. The server must generate a unique nonce value each time it transmits a policy. It is critical to provide a nonce that cannot be guessed as bypassing a resource's policy is otherwise trivial.

title

This attribute specifies alternative style sheet sets.

Deprecated attributes

type

This attribute should not be provided: if it is, the only permitted values are the empty string or a case-insensitive match for text/css.

Usage notes

The <style> element is typically included inside the <head> of the document. It can also be used in the template contents of a <template> element, which can include any elements. In the <body>, it can be used as the first child of its parent element (see Using <style> in the body).

If you include multiple <style> and <link> elements in your document, they will be applied to the DOM in the order they are included in the document — make sure you include them in the correct order, to avoid unexpected cascade issues.

In the same manner as <link> elements, <style> elements can include media attributes that contain media queries, allowing you to selectively apply internal stylesheets to your document depending on media features such as viewport width.

Using <style> in the body

A <style> element can be used where flow content is expected, such as in the <body>, as long as it is the first child of its parent element and its stylesheet only styles that parent element and its descendants:

• Every style rule must be inside an @scope rule without a scope root selector, such as @scope { ... } or @scope to (.x) { ... }. Such an @scope rule is scoped to the <style> element's parent. It can itself be nested inside rules such as @media, @supports, @container, @starting-style, or @layer.
• An @scope rule with a scope root selector, such as @scope (.card) { ... }, must likewise be nested inside an @scope rule without a scope root selector.
• The stylesheet must not contain @import rules.

Browsers apply any <style> element in the body, but one that doesn't follow these rules is invalid HTML. The rules ensure that a <style> element in the body can't restyle content that the browser might already have rendered, other than its parent element.

At-rules such as @font-face, @keyframes, and @property define names for the whole document. To avoid restyling content that might already have been rendered, only use such names within the <style> element's parent, and pick names that aren't used elsewhere in the document.

Examples

A basic stylesheet

In the following example, we apply a short stylesheet to a document:

<!doctype html>
<html lang="en-US">
  <head>
    <meta charset="UTF-8" />
    <title>Test page</title>
    <style>
      p {
        color: red;
      }
    </style>
  </head>
  <body>
    <p>This is my paragraph.</p>
  </body>
</html>

Result

Using <style> inside <template>

A <style> element can also be placed inside a <template> element. The styles remain inactive until the template content is instantiated and inserted into the document.

<template id="card-template">
  <style>
    .card {
      border: 1px solid #cccccc;
      padding: 1rem;
      border-radius: 0.5rem;
    }
  </style>

  <div class="card">Template content</div>
</template>

Multiple style elements

In this example we've included two <style> elements — notice how the conflicting declarations in the later <style> element override those in the earlier one, if they have equal specificity.

<!doctype html>
<html lang="en-US">
  <head>
    <meta charset="UTF-8" />
    <title>Test page</title>
    <style>
      p {
        color: white;
        background-color: blue;
        padding: 5px;
        border: 1px solid black;
      }
    </style>
    <style>
      p {
        color: blue;
        background-color: yellow;
      }
    </style>
  </head>
  <body>
    <p>This is my paragraph.</p>
  </body>
</html>

Result

Including a media query

In this example we build on the previous one, including a media attribute on the second <style> element so it is only applied when the viewport is less than 500px in width.

<!doctype html>
<html lang="en-US">
  <head>
    <meta charset="UTF-8" />
    <title>Test page</title>
    <style>
      p {
        color: white;
        background-color: blue;
        padding: 5px;
        border: 1px solid black;
      }
    </style>
    <style media="(width < 500px)">
      p {
        color: blue;
        background-color: yellow;
      }
    </style>
  </head>
  <body>
    <p>This is my paragraph.</p>
  </body>
</html>

Result

Scoped styles in the body

In this example, a <style> element is the first child of an <aside> element. Its rules are inside an @scope rule without a scope root selector, so they only apply to the <aside> and its descendants.

<aside>
  <style>
    @scope {
      :scope {
        background-color: lightyellow;
        padding: 0 1rem;
      }
      p {
        font-weight: bold;
      }
    }
  </style>
  <p>Did you know? Octopuses have three hearts.</p>
</aside>
<p>This paragraph isn't styled, because it's outside the aside.</p>

Adding a rule such as p { margin: 0; } outside the @scope rule would make the HTML invalid, because it isn't limited to the <aside>.

Result

Technical summary

Specifications

Browser compatibility

See also

• The <link> element, which allows us to apply external stylesheets to a document.
• Alternative Style Sheets