text-align

The text-align CSS property describes how inline content like text is aligned in its parent block element. text-align does not control the alignment of block elements, only their inline content.

/* Keyword values */
text-align: left;
text-align: right;
text-align: center;
text-align: justify;
text-align: justify-all;
text-align: start;
text-align: end;
text-align: match-parent;

/* Block alignment values (Non-standard syntax) */
text-align: -moz-center;
text-align: -webkit-center;

/* Global values */
text-align: inherit;
text-align: initial;
text-align: unset;

<div class="grid">
  <div class="col">
    <div class="row">
      <div class="cell">
        left
        <p class="taLeft">Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Nam pellen tesque vehicu la con vallis.</p>
      </div>
      <div class="cell">
        start (ltr)
        <p class="taStart ltr">Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Nam pellen tesque vehicu la con vallis.</p>
      </div>
      <div class="cell">
        start (rtl)
        <p class="taStart rtl">Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Nam pellen tesque vehicu la con vallis.</p>
      </div>
    </div>
    <div class="row">
      <div class="cell">
        right
        <p class="taRight">Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Nam pellen tesque vehicu la con vallis.</p>
      </div>
      <div class="cell">
        end (ltr)
        <p class="taEnd ltr">Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Nam pellen tesque vehicu la con vallis.</p>
      </div>
      <div class="cell">
        end (rtl)
        <p class="taEnd rtl">Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Nam pellen tesque vehicu la con vallis.</p>
      </div>
    </div>
    <div class="row">
      <div class="cell">
        center
        <p class="taCenter">Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Nam pellen tesque vehicu la con vallis.</p>
      </div>
      <div class="cell">
        justify
        <p class="taJustify">Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Nam pellen tesque vehicu la con vallis.</p>
      </div>
      <div class="cell">
        justify-all
        <p class="taJustifyAll">Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Nam pellen tesque vehicu la con vallis.</p>
      </div>
    </div>
  </div>
</div>

html,body {
  height: 100%;
  box-sizing: border-box;
}

.grid {
  width: 100%;
  height: 100%;
  display: flex;
  background: #EEE;
  font: 1em monospace;
}

.row {
  display: flex;
  flex: 1 auto;
  flex-direction: row;
}

.col {
  display: flex;
  flex: 1 auto;
  flex-direction: column;
}

.cell {
  width: calc(33.33% - 1em);
  box-sizing: border-box;
  margin: .5em;
  padding: .5em;
  background-color: #FFF;
  overflow: hidden;
}

@media (max-width: 30em) {
  .row {
    flex-direction: column;
  }
}

p {
  font: .8em sans-serif;
  max-width: 100%;
  box-sizing: border-box;
  overflow: hidden;
  resize: horizontal;
  background: #E4F0F5;
  padding: .5em;
  margin: .5em 0 0;
}

.taLeft       { text-align: left;        }
.taRight      { text-align: right;       }
.taCenter     { text-align: center;      }
.taJustify    { text-align: justify;     }
.taJustifyAll { text-align: justify-all; }
.taStart      { text-align: start;       }
.taEnd        { text-align: end;         }

.rtl { direction: rtl; }
.ltr { direction: ltr; }

Syntax

The text-align property is specified as a single keyword chosen from the list of values below.

Values

start

The same as left if direction is left-to-right and right if direction is right-to-left.

end

The same as right if direction is left-to-right and left if direction is right-to-left.

left

The inline contents are aligned to the left edge of the line box.

right

The inline contents are aligned to the right edge of the line box.

center

The inline contents are centered within the line box.

justify

The inline contents are justified. Text should be spaced to line up its left and right edges to the left and right edges of the line box, except for the last line.

justify-all

Same as justify, but also forces the last line to be justified.

match-parent

Similar to inherit, but the values start and end are calculated according to the parent's direction and are replaced by the appropriate left or right value.

Formal syntax

start | end | left | right | center | justify | match-parent

Examples

Left alignment

HTML

<p class="example">
  Integer elementum massa at nulla placerat varius.
  Suspendisse in libero risus, in interdum massa.
  Vestibulum ac leo vitae metus faucibus gravida ac in neque.
  Nullam est eros, suscipit sed dictum quis, accumsan a ligula.
</p>

CSS

.example {
  text-align: left;
  border: solid;
}

Result

Centered text

HTML

<p class="example">
  Integer elementum massa at nulla placerat varius.
  Suspendisse in libero risus, in interdum massa.
  Vestibulum ac leo vitae metus faucibus gravida ac in neque.
  Nullam est eros, suscipit sed dictum quis, accumsan a ligula.
</p>

CSS

.example {
  text-align: center;
  border: solid;
}

Result

Justify

HTML

<p class="example">
  Integer elementum massa at nulla placerat varius.
  Suspendisse in libero risus, in interdum massa.
  Vestibulum ac leo vitae metus faucibus gravida ac in neque.
  Nullam est eros, suscipit sed dictum quis, accumsan a ligula.
</p>

CSS

.example {
  text-align: justify;
  border: solid;
}

Result

Notes

The standard-compatible way to center a block itself without centering its inline content is setting the left and right margin to auto, e.g.:

.something {
  margin: auto;
}

.something {
  margin: 0 auto;
}

.something {
  margin-left: auto;
  margin-right: auto;
}

Specifications

Browser compatibility

[1] Both WebKit and Gecko support a prefixed version of left, center, and right, that applies not only to inline content but also to block elements. This is used to implement the legacy align attributes on table elements and <center>. Do not use these on production Web sites.

See also

• margin:auto, margin-left:auto, vertical-align