border-width

Baseline Widely available

This feature is well established and works across many devices and browser versions. It’s been available across browsers since July 2015.

The border-width shorthand CSS property sets the width of an element's border.

Try it

Constituent properties

This property is a shorthand for the following CSS properties:

Syntax

css
/* Keyword values */
border-width: thin;
border-width: medium;
border-width: thick;

/* <length> values */
border-width: 4px;
border-width: 1.2rem;

/* top and bottom | left and right */
border-width: 2px 1.5em;

/* top | left and right | bottom */
border-width: 1px 2em 1.5cm;

/* top | right | bottom | left */
border-width: 1px 2em 0 4rem;

/* Global values */
border-width: inherit;
border-width: initial;
border-width: revert;
border-width: revert-layer;
border-width: unset;

The border-width property may be specified using one, two, three, or four values.

  • When one value is specified, it applies the same width to all four sides.
  • When two values are specified, the first width applies to the top and bottom, the second to the left and right.
  • When three values are specified, the first width applies to the top, the second to the left and right, the third to the bottom.
  • When four values are specified, the widths apply to the top, right, bottom, and left in that order (clockwise).

Values

<line-width>

Defines the width of the border, either as an explicit nonnegative <length> or a keyword. If it's a keyword, it must be one of the following values:

  • thin
  • medium
  • thick

Note: Because the specification doesn't define the exact thickness denoted by each keyword, the precise result when using one of them is implementation-specific. Nevertheless, they always follow the pattern thin ≤ medium ≤ thick, and the values are constant within a single document.

Formal definition

Initial valueas each of the properties of the shorthand:
Applies toall elements. It also applies to ::first-letter.
Inheritedno
Computed valueas each of the properties of the shorthand:
Animation typeas each of the properties of the shorthand:

Formal syntax

border-width = 
  <line-width>{1,4}  

<line-width> = 
  <length [0,∞]>  |
  thin            |
  medium          |
  thick

Examples

A mix of values and lengths

HTML

html
<p id="one-value">one value: 6px wide border on all 4 sides</p>
<p id="two-values">
  two different values: 2px wide top and bottom border, 10px wide right and left
  border
</p>
<p id="three-values">
  three different values: 0.3em top, 9px bottom, and zero width right and left
</p>
<p id="four-values">
  four different values: "thin" top, "medium" right, "thick" bottom, and 1em
  left
</p>

CSS

css
#one-value {
  border: ridge #ccc;
  border-width: 6px;
}
#two-values {
  border: solid red;
  border-width: 2px 10px;
}
#three-values {
  border: dotted orange;
  border-width: 0.3em 0 9px;
}
#four-values {
  border: solid lightgreen;
  border-width: thin medium thick 1em;
}
p {
  width: auto;
  margin: 0.25em;
  padding: 0.25em;
}

Result

Specifications

Specification
CSS Backgrounds and Borders Module Level 3
# the-border-width

Browser compatibility

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See also