The :read-only CSS pseudo-class represents an element (such as input or textarea) that is not editable by the user.
/* Selects any <input> element that is read-only */
/* Supported in Firefox with a prefix */
input:-moz-read-only {
background-color: #ccc;
}
/* Supported in Blink/WebKit/Edge without a prefix */
input:read-only {
background-color: #ccc;
}
Note: This selector doesn't just select <input>/<textarea> with readonly set on them; it will select any element that cannot be edited by the user.
Syntax
:read-only
Example
HTML
<input type="text" value="Type whatever you want here."> <input type="text" value="This is a read-only field." readonly> <p>This is a normal paragraph.</p> <p contenteditable="true">You can edit this paragraph!</p>
CSS
input { min-width: 25em; }
input:-moz-read-only { background: cyan; }
input:read-only { background: cyan; }
p:-moz-read-only { background: lightgray; }
p:read-only { background: lightgray; }
p[contenteditable="true"] { color: blue; }
Result
Specifications
| Specification | Status | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| HTML Living Standard The definition of ':read-only' in that specification. |
Living Standard | No change. |
| HTML5 The definition of ':read-only' in that specification. |
Recommendation | Defines the semantics regarding HTML and constraint validation. |
| Selectors Level 4 The definition of ':read-only' in that specification. |
Working Draft | Defines the pseudo-class, but not the associated semantics. |
Browser compatibility
The compatibility table on this page is generated from structured data. If you'd like to contribute to the data, please check out https://github.com/mdn/browser-compat-data and send us a pull request.
Update compatibility data on GitHub
| Desktop | Mobile | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
:read-only | Chrome Full support 1 | Edge Full support 13 | Firefox
Full support
1.5
| IE No support No | Opera Full support Yes | Safari Full support 4 | WebView Android Full support ≤37 | Chrome Android Full support 18 | Firefox Android
Full support
4
| Opera Android Full support Yes | Safari iOS Full support 3.2 | Samsung Internet Android Full support 1.0 |
Legend
- Full support
- Full support
- No support
- No support
- See implementation notes.
- See implementation notes.
- Requires a vendor prefix or different name for use.
- Requires a vendor prefix or different name for use.
See also
:read-write- HTML
contenteditableattribute
Document Tags and Contributors
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