---
title: content
slug: Web/CSS/content
translation_of: Web/CSS/content
---
<div>{{CSSRef}}</div>

<p class="summary">The <strong><code>content</code></strong> <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/CSS">CSS</a> property replaces an element with a generated value. Objects inserted using the <code>content</code> property are <strong>anonymous <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/Replaced_element">replaced elements</a></strong><em>.</em></p>

<pre class="brush:css no-line-numbers notranslate">/* Keywords that cannot be combined with other values */
content: normal;
content: none;

/* <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/image">&lt;image&gt;</a> values */
content: url("http://www.example.com/test.png");
content: linear-gradient(#e66465, #9198e5);

/* alt text for generated content, added in the Level 3 specification */
content: url("http://www.example.com/test.png") / "This is the alt text";

/* values below can only be applied to generated content using ::before and ::after */

/* &lt;string&gt; value */
content: "prefix";

/* <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/counter">&lt;counter&gt;</a> values, optionally with <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/list-style-type">&lt;list-style-type&gt; </a>*/
content: counter(chapter_counter);
content: counter(chapter_counter, upper-roman);
content: counters(section_counter, ".");
content: counters(section_counter, ".", <code>decimal-leading-zero</code>);

/* <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/attr">attr()</a> value linked to the HTML attribute value */
content: attr(value string);

/* Language- and position-dependent keywords */
content: open-quote;
content: close-quote;
content: no-open-quote;
content: no-close-quote;

/* Except for normal and none, several values can be used simultaneously */
content: open-quote chapter_counter;

/* Global values */
content: inherit;
content: initial;
content: unset;
</pre>

<h2 id="Syntax">Syntax</h2>

<h3 id="Values">Values</h3>

<dl>
 <dt><code>none</code></dt>
 <dd>The pseudo-element is not generated.</dd>
 <dt><code>normal</code></dt>
 <dd>Computes to <code>none</code> for the <code>::before</code> and <code>::after</code> pseudo-elements.</dd>
 <dt>{{cssxref("&lt;string&gt;")}}</dt>
 <dd>Specifies the "alt text" for the element. This value can be any number of text characters. Non-Latin characters must be encoded using their Unicode escape sequences: for example, <code>\000A9</code> represents the copyright symbol.</dd>
 <dt>{{cssxref("&lt;image&gt;")}}</dt>
 <dd>An {{cssxref("&lt;image&gt;")}}, denoted by the {{cssxref("&lt;url&gt;")}} or {{cssxref("&lt;gradient&gt;")}} data type, or part of the webpage, defined by the {{cssxref("element", "element()")}} function, denoting the content to display.</dd>
 <dt>{{cssxref("&lt;counter&gt;")}}</dt>
 <dd>The value of a <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/CSS_Lists_and_Counters/Using_CSS_counters">CSS counter</a>, generally a number produced by computations defined by {{cssxref("&lt;counter-reset&gt;")}} and {{cssxref("&lt;counter-increment&gt;")}} properies. It can be displayed using either the {{cssxref("counter")}} or {{cssxref("counters")}} function.</dd>
 <dd>
 <p>The {{cssxref("counter")}} function has two forms: 'counter(<var>name</var>)' or 'counter(<var>name</var>, style)'. The generated text is the value of the innermost counter of the given name in scope at the given pseudo-element. It is formatted in the specified {{cssxref("&lt;list-style-type&gt;")}} (<code>decimal</code> by default).</p>

 <p>The {{cssxref("counters")}} function also has two forms: 'counters(<var>name</var>, <var>string</var>)' or 'counters(<var>name</var>, <var>string</var>, <var>style</var>)'. The generated text is the value of all counters with the given name in scope at the given pseudo-element, from outermost to innermost, separated by the specified string. The counters are rendered in the indicated {{cssxref("&lt;list-style-type&gt;")}} (<code>decimal</code> by default).</p>
 </dd>
 <dt><code>attr(x)</code></dt>
 <dd>The value of the element's attribute <code>x</code> as a string. If there is no attribute <code>x</code>, an empty string is returned. The case-sensitivity of attribute names depends on the document language.</dd>
 <dt><code>open-quote</code> | <code>close-quote</code></dt>
 <dd>These values are replaced by the appropriate string from the {{cssxref("quotes")}} property.</dd>
 <dt><code>no-open-quote</code> | <code>no-close-quote</code></dt>
 <dd>Introduces no content, but increments (decrements) the level of nesting for quotes.</dd>
</dl>

<h2 id="Accessibility_concerns">Accessibility concerns</h2>

<p>CSS-generated content is not included in the <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/API/Document_Object_Model/Introduction">DOM</a>. Because of this, it will not be represented in the <a href="/en-US/docs/Learn/Accessibility/What_is_accessibility#Accessibility_APIs">accessibility tree</a> and certain assistive technology/browser combinations will not announce it. If the content conveys information that is critical to understanding the page's purpose, it is better to include it in the main document.</p>

<ul>
 <li><a href="https://tink.uk/accessibility-support-for-css-generated-content/">Accessibility support for CSS generated content – Tink</a></li>
 <li><a href="/en-US/docs/Web/Accessibility/Understanding_WCAG/Perceivable#Guideline_1.3_%E2%80%94_Create_content_that_can_be_presented_in_different_ways">Explanation of WCAG, Guideline 1.3 – MDN</a></li>
 <li><a href="https://www.w3.org/TR/UNDERSTANDING-WCAG20/content-structure-separation-programmatic.html">Understanding Success Criterion 1.3.1 | W3C Understanding WCAG 2.0</a></li>
</ul>

<h2 id="Formal_definition">Formal definition</h2>

<p>{{cssinfo}}</p>

<h2 id="Formal_syntax">Formal syntax</h2>

<pre class="syntaxbox notranslate">{{csssyntax}}</pre>

<h2 id="Examples">Examples</h2>

<h3 id="Headings_and_quotes">Headings and quotes</h3>

<p>This example inserts quotation marks around quotes, and adds the word "Chapter" before headings.</p>

<h4 id="HTML">HTML</h4>

<pre class="brush: html notranslate">&lt;h1&gt;5&lt;/h1&gt;
&lt;p&gt;According to Sir Tim Berners-Lee,
  &lt;q cite="http://www.w3.org/People/Berners-Lee/FAQ.html#Internet"&gt;I was
    lucky enough to invent the Web at the time when the Internet
    already existed - and had for a decade and a half.&lt;/q&gt;
  We must understand that there is nothing fundamentally wrong
  with building on the contributions of others.
&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;h1&gt;6&lt;/h1&gt;
&lt;p&gt;According to the Mozilla Manifesto,
  &lt;q cite="http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/about/manifesto/"&gt;Individuals
    must have the ability to shape the Internet and
    their own experiences on the Internet.&lt;/q&gt;
  Therefore, we can infer that contributing to the open web
  can protect our own individual experiences on it.
&lt;/p&gt;</pre>

<h4 id="CSS">CSS</h4>

<pre class="brush: css notranslate">q {
  color: blue;
}

q::before {
  content: open-quote;
}

q::after {
  content: close-quote;
}

h1::before  {
  content: "Chapter ";  /* The trailing space creates separation
                           between the added content and the
                           rest of the content */
}</pre>

<h4 id="Result">Result</h4>

<p>{{EmbedLiveSample('Headings_and_quotes', '100%', 200)}}</p>

<h3 id="Image_combined_with_text">Image combined with text</h3>

<p>This example inserts an image before the link. If the image is not found, it inserts text instead.</p>

<h4 id="HTML_2">HTML</h4>

<pre class="brush: html notranslate">&lt;a href="http://www.mozilla.org/en-US/"&gt;Mozilla Home Page&lt;/a&gt;</pre>

<h4 id="CSS_2">CSS</h4>

<pre class="brush: css notranslate">a::before {
  content: url("https://mozorg.cdn.mozilla.net/media/img/favicon.ico") / " MOZILLA: ";
  font: x-small Arial, sans-serif;
  color: gray;
}</pre>

<h4 id="Result_2">Result</h4>

<p>{{EmbedLiveSample('Image_combined_with_text', '100%', 60)}}</p>

<h3 id="Targeting_classes">Targeting classes</h3>

<p>This example inserts additional text after special items in a list.</p>

<h4 id="HTML_3">HTML</h4>

<pre class="brush: html notranslate">&lt;h2&gt;Paperback Best Sellers&lt;/h2&gt;
&lt;ol&gt;
  &lt;li&gt;Political Thriller&lt;/li&gt;
  &lt;li class="new-entry"&gt;Halloween Stories&lt;/li&gt;
  &lt;li&gt;My Biography&lt;/li&gt;
  &lt;li class="new-entry"&gt;Vampire Romance&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ol&gt;</pre>

<h4 id="CSS_3">CSS</h4>

<pre class="brush: css notranslate">.new-entry::after {
  content: " New!";  /* The leading space creates separation
                        between the added content and the
                        rest of the content */
  color: red;
}</pre>

<h4 id="Result_3">Result</h4>

<p>{{EmbedLiveSample('Targeting_classes', '100%', 160)}}</p>

<h3 id="Images_and_element_attributes">Images and element attributes</h3>

<p>This example inserts an image before each link, and adds its <code>id</code> attribute after.</p>

<h4 id="HTML_4">HTML</h4>

<pre class="brush: html notranslate">&lt;ul&gt;
  &lt;li&gt;&lt;a id="moz" href="http://www.mozilla.org/"&gt;
    Mozilla Home Page&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
  &lt;li&gt;&lt;a id="mdn" href="https://developer.mozilla.org/"&gt;
    Mozilla Developer Network&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;</pre>

<h4 id="CSS_4">CSS</h4>

<pre class="brush: css notranslate">a {
  text-decoration: none;
  border-bottom: 3px dotted navy;
}

a::after {
  content: " (" attr(id) ")";
}

#moz::before {
  content: url("https://mozorg.cdn.mozilla.net/media/img/favicon.ico");
}

#mdn::before {
  content: url("https://mdn.mozillademos.org/files/7691/mdn-favicon16.png");
}

li {
  margin: 1em;
}
</pre>

<h4 id="Result_4">Result</h4>

<p>{{EmbedLiveSample('Images_and_element_attributes', '100%', 160)}}</p>

<h3 id="Element_replacement">Element replacement</h3>

<p>This example replaces an element's content with an image. You can replace the contents of an element with either a {{cssxref("&lt;url&gt;")}} or an {{cssxref("&lt;image&gt;")}} value. Content added with <code>::before</code> or <code>::after</code> will not be generated as the contents of the element have been replaced.</p>

<h4 id="HTML_5">HTML</h4>

<pre class="brush: html notranslate">&lt;div id="replaced"&gt;Mozilla&lt;/div&gt;
</pre>

<h4 id="CSS_5">CSS</h4>

<pre class="brush: css notranslate">#replaced {
  content: url("https://mdn.mozillademos.org/files/12668/MDN.svg");
}

#replaced::after { /* will not show if element replacement is supported */
  content: " (" attr(id) ")";
}</pre>

<h4 id="Result_5">Result</h4>

<p>{{EmbedLiveSample('Element_replacement', '100%', 200)}}</p>

<h2 id="Specifications">Specifications</h2>

<table class="standard-table">
 <thead>
  <tr>
   <th scope="col">Specification</th>
   <th scope="col">Status</th>
   <th scope="col">Comment</th>
  </tr>
 </thead>
 <tbody>
  <tr>
   <td>{{SpecName("CSS3 Content", "#content-property", "content")}}</td>
   <td>{{Spec2("CSS3 Content")}}</td>
   <td>Adds support for alt-text</td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
   <td>{{SpecName("CSS2.1", "generate.html#content", "content")}}</td>
   <td>{{Spec2("CSS2.1")}}</td>
   <td>Initial definition</td>
  </tr>
 </tbody>
</table>

<h2 id="Browser_compatibility">Browser compatibility</h2>



<p>{{Compat("css.properties.content")}}</p>

<h2 id="See_also">See also</h2>

<ul>
 <li><a href="/en-US/docs/Web/CSS/Replaced_element">Replaced elements</a></li>
 <li>{{Cssxref("::after")}}</li>
 <li>{{Cssxref("::before")}}</li>
 <li>{{Cssxref("::marker")}}</li>
 <li>{{Cssxref("quotes")}}</li>
 <li>{{cssxref("url()", "url()")}} function</li>
</ul>