CARVIEW |
CSS overflow
The CSS overflow module properties enable you to handle scrollable overflow in visual media.
Overflow happens when the content in an element box extends past one or more of the box's edges. Scrollable overflow is the content that appears outside the element box for which you might want to add a scrolling mechanism. CSS overflow properties let you control what happens when content overflows an element box, including creating carousels without JavaScript.
Painting effects that overflow the content but do not participate in the CSS box model do not affect layout. This type of overflow is also known as ink overflow. Examples of ink overflows include box shadows, border images, text decoration, overhanging glyphs, and outlines. Ink overflows do not extend the scrollable overflow region.
Overflow in action
Try the following example to see the effects of various overflow
property values on the content overflow and scrollbars in the adjacent fixed-size box.
The example includes options to change the values for the overflow-clip-margin
and width
properties, as well as to programmatically scroll the content if the overflow property creates a scroll container. Select overflow: clip
and see the effect of different overflow-clip-margin
values. Select overflow: hidden
or overflow: scroll
to check out the various ScrollLeft
and ScrollTop
slider settings.
<article>
<fieldset>
<legend>Select options:</legend>
<label
><code>overflow</code>:
<select id="overflowValue">
<option>hidden</option>
<option>clip</option>
<option>scroll</option>
<option>auto</option>
<option selected>visible</option>
<option>overlay</option>
</select>
</label>
<label>
<code>overflow-clip-margin</code>:
<input type="number" id="ocm" value="1" min="0" max="10" size="2" />
<code>em</code>
</label>
<label
><input type="checkbox" id="wide" /> <code>width</code>:
<code>20em</code> or <code>40em</code></label
>
<fieldset>
<legend>Scroll programmatically:</legend>
<label
>ScrollLeft:
<input type="range" min="0" max="100" value="0" id="scrollL"
/></label>
<label
>ScrollTop:
<input type="range" min="0" max="100" value="0" id="scrollT"
/></label>
</fieldset>
</fieldset>
<pre class="visible">
Oh, Rubber Duckie, you're the one
You make bath time lots of fun
Rubber Duckie, I'm awfully fond of you
Rubber Duckie, joy of joys
When I squeeze you, you make noise
Rubber Duckie, you're my very best friend, it's true
Oh, every day when I make my way to the tubby
I find a little fella who's cute and yellow and chubby
Rub-a-dub-dubby
<a href="#">Rubber Duckie</a>, you're so fine
And I'm lucky that you're mine
Rubber Duckie, I'm awfully fond of you
</pre>
</article>
article {
display: flex;
gap: 1em;
}
label {
display: block;
white-space: nowrap;
}
pre {
border: 2px dashed crimson;
height: 150px;
width: 20em;
margin-bottom: 3em;
overflow-clip-margin: 1em;
text-align: center;
}
.wide {
width: 40em;
}
::before {
font-weight: bold;
color: white;
background: crimson;
display: inline-block;
min-width: 50%;
padding: 3px 5px;
box-sizing: border-box;
}
.hidden {
overflow: hidden;
}
.hidden::before {
content: "hidden: ";
}
.clip {
overflow: clip;
}
.clip::before {
content: "clip: ";
}
.scroll {
overflow: scroll;
}
.scroll::before {
content: "scroll: ";
}
.auto {
overflow: auto;
}
.auto::before {
content: "auto: ";
}
.overlay {
overflow: clip;
overflow: overlay;
}
.overlay::before {
content: "overlay (or clip if not supported): ";
}
.visible {
overflow: visible;
}
.visible::before {
content: "visible: ";
}
article:not(:has(pre.clip)) > fieldset > label:nth-of-type(2),
article:not(:has(pre.hidden, pre.scroll, pre.auto, pre.overlay))
fieldset
fieldset {
opacity: 20%;
pointer-events: none;
}
const pre = document.querySelector("pre");
const val = document.getElementById("overflowValue");
const check = document.getElementById("wide");
const ocm = document.getElementById("ocm");
const scrollL = document.getElementById("scrollL");
const scrollT = document.getElementById("scrollT");
val.addEventListener("change", () => {
if (pre.classList.contains("wide")) {
pre.className = `wide ${val.value}`;
} else {
pre.className = `${val.value}`;
}
scrollExample();
clipMargin();
});
wide.addEventListener("change", () => {
pre.classList.toggle("wide");
scrollExample();
});
ocm.addEventListener("change", () => {
clipMargin();
});
scrollL.addEventListener("change", () => {
scrollExample();
});
scrollT.addEventListener("change", () => {
scrollExample();
});
function scrollExample() {
pre.scrollTo({
top: scrollT.value,
left: scrollL.value * 2,
behavior: "smooth",
});
}
function clipMargin() {
pre.style.overflowClipMargin = `${ocm.value}em`;
}
A link is included in the content box above to demonstrate the effects of keyboard focus on overflow and scroll behaviors. Try tabbing to the link or programmatically scrolling the content: the content will scroll only if the enumerated <overflow>
value creates a scroll container.
Reference
>Properties
line-clamp
overflow
shorthandoverflow-block
overflow-clip-margin
overflow-inline
overflow-x
overflow-y
scroll-behavior
scroll-marker-group
scroll-target-group
scrollbar-gutter
text-overflow
The CSS overflow level 4 module also introduces the block-ellipsis
, continue
, max-lines
, overflow-clip-margin-block
, overflow-clip-margin-block-end
, overflow-clip-margin-block-start
, overflow-clip-margin-bottom
, overflow-clip-margin-inline
, overflow-clip-margin-inline-end
, overflow-clip-margin-inline-start
, overflow-clip-margin-left
, overflow-clip-margin-right
, and overflow-clip-margin-top
properties. Currently, no browsers support these features.
Selectors and pseudo-elements
Data types
<overflow>
enumerated values
Guides
- Learn: Overflowing content
-
Learn what overflow is and how to manage it.
- Creating CSS carousels
-
Create pure-CSS carousel UI features using scroll buttons, scroll markers, and generated columns.
- Creating a named scroll progress timeline animation
-
The CSS scroll timeline
scroll-timeline-name
andscroll-timeline-axis
properties, along with thescroll-timeline
shorthand, create animations tied to the scroll offset of a scroll container.
Related concepts
::column
scrollbar-width
CSS propertyscrollbar-color
CSS propertyscrollbar-gutter
CSS propertyscroll-behavior
CSS propertyscroll-margin
CSS shorthand propertyscroll-padding
CSS shorthand propertyscroll-snap-align
CSS propertyscroll-snap-stop
CSS propertyscroll-snap-type
CSS propertytext-overflow
CSS property::-webkit-scrollbar
pseudo-elementscrollbar
ARIA role- Element
scroll()
method - Element
scrollBy()
method - Element
scrollIntoView()
method - Element
scrollTo()
method - Element
scrollTop
property - Element
scrollLeft
property - Element
scrollWidth
property - Element
scrollHeight
property - Document
scroll
event - Scroll container glossary term
- Ink overflow glossary term
Specifications
Specification |
---|
CSS Overflow Module Level 3> |
CSS Overflow Module Level 4> |
CSS Overflow Module Level 5> |
See also
- CSS scrollbars styling module
- CSS scroll snap module
- CSSOM view module
- How to debug scrollable overflow