HTML Tags
HTML tags specify how a web page will be displayed within a browser. They begin with an opening tag <html> and end with a closing tag </html>.
They can be used to specify web page text size, weight, fonts, colors, layout and much more.
Although HTML4 was the standard for many years, it has now been updated to HTML5 and many of the tags have been deprecated. After viewing the HTML4 elements, make sure you continue on to the HTML5 elements.
Below is a complete list of html tags and descriptions listed in alphabetical order.
| Tag | Description |
| <!–…–> | Specifies a comment within a web page |
| <!DOCTYPE> | Specifies a document type |
| <a> | Specifies a hyperlink |
| <abbr> | Specifies an abbreviation |
| <acronym> | HTML5 does not support – Replace with <abbr> |
| <address> | Specifies the contact information for the owner of a document |
| <applet> | HTML5 does not support – Replace with <object> |
| <area> | Specifies a specific area within an image-map |
| <b> | Specifies bold text |
| <base> | Specifies the base URL for all links within a document |
| <basefont> | HTML5 does not support – Replace with CSS |
| <bdo> | Specifies the direction text is displayed |
| <big> | HTML5 does not support – Replace with CSS |
| <blockquote> | Specifies a quoted section |
| <body> | Specifies the document’s body |
| <br> | Specifies a single line break |
| <button> | Specifies a clickable button |
| <caption> | Specifies a table caption |
| <center> | HTML5 does not support – Replace with CSS |
| <cite> | Specifies the title of a work |
| <code> | Specifies computer code |
| <col> | Specifies the properties of a column within a <colgroup> element |
| <colgroup> | Specifies a group of columns within a table |
| <dd> | Specifies a term description within a description list |
| <del> | Specifies deleted text within a document |
| <dfn> | Defines a term |
| <dir> | HTML5 does not support – Replace with <ul> |
| <div> | Specifies a section within a document |
| <dl> | Specifies a description list |
| <dt> | Specifies a term within a description list |
| <em> | Specifies emphasized text |
| <fieldset> | Used to group related elements within a form |
| <font> | HTML5 does not support – Replace with CSS |
| <form> | Specifies an HTML form |
| <frame> | HTML5 does not support – No replacement |
| <frameset> | HTML5 does not support – No replacement |
| <noframes> | HTML5 does not support – No replacement |
| <h1> | Specifies HTML heading 1 |
| <h2> | Specifies HTML heading 2 |
| <h3> | Specifies HTML heading 3 |
| <h4> | Specifies HTML heading 4 |
| <h5> | Specifies HTML heading 5 |
| <h6> | Specifies HTML heading 6 |
| <head> | Specifies information about the document |
| <hr> | Specifies a horizontal rule within the content |
| <html> | Specifies the beginning of an HTML document |
| <i> | Specifies italicized text |
| <iframe> | Specifies an inline frame |
| <img> | Specifies an image |
| <input> | Specifies an input field |
| <ins> | Specifies inserted text |
| <kbd> | Defines keyboard input |
| <label> | Specifies an <input> element label |
| <legend> | Specifies a <fieldset> element caption |
| <li> | Specifies a list item |
| <link> | Specifies a link between a document and an external file, such as a style sheet |
| <map> | Specifies an image-map |
| <meta> | Specifies meta information about an HTML document |
| <noscript> | Specifies alternative content for those who have disabled browser scripts |
| <object> | Specifies an embedded object within an HTML document, such as audio or video |
| <ol> | Specifies an ordered list |
| <option> | Specifies an option within a drop-down list |
| <p> | Specifies a paragraph |
| <param> | Specifies parameters for an object |
| <pre> | Specifies preformatted text |
| <q> | Specifies a short quotation |
| <s> | Specifies text that is no longer correct |
| <samp> | Specifies sample code output from a computer program |
| <script> | Specifies a script |
| <select> | Specifies a drop-down list within a form |
| <small> | Specifies small text |
| <span> | Specifies a section in a document |
| <strike> | HTML5 does not support – Replace with <s>, <del> or CSS |
| <strong> | Specifies important text |
| <style> | Specifies style information within a document |
| <sub> | Specifies subscripted text |
| <sub> | Specifies subscripted text |
| <sup> | Specifies superscripted text |
| <table> | Specifies a table |
| <tbody> | Used to group the body content within a table |
| <td> | Specifies a cell within a table |
| <textarea> | Specifies a multi-line text input area |
| <tfoot> | Used to group footer content within a table |
| <th> | Specifies a header cell within a table |
| <thead> | Used to group header content within a table |
| <title> | Specifies a document title |
| <tr> | Specifies a table row |
| <tt> | HTML5 does not support – Replace with CSS |
| <u> | Specifies text that should be visibly different from normal text, such as a misspelled word |
| <ul> | Specifies an unordered list |
| <var> | Specifies a variable |
Deprecated Tags in HTML 4
| HTML 4 Tag | Replacement(s) |
| <acronym> | <abbr> – Specifies an abbreviation |
| <applet> | <object> – Specifies an embedded object |
| <basefont> | CSS – Cascading Style Sheet |
| <big> | CSS – Cascading Style Sheet |
| <center> | CSS – Cascading Style Sheet |
| <dir> | <ul> – Specifies an unordered list |
| <font> | CSS – Cascading Style Sheet |
| <frame> | No Replacement |
| <frameset> | No Replacement |
| <noframes> | No Replacement |
| <strike> | <s> – Specifies text that is no longer correct <del> – Specifies deleted text CSS – Cascading Style Sheet |
| <tt> | CSS – Cascading Style Sheet |
This concludes the HTML tags section. For additional tips and codes, visit the HTML 5 Tags section.