Web/CSS/ invalid

The :invalid CSS pseudo-class represents any <input> or other <form> element whose contents fail to validate.

/* Selects any invalid <input> */
input:invalid {
  background-color: pink;
}

This pseudo-class is useful for highlighting field errors for the user.

Syntax

:invalid

Examples

A form that colors elements green when they validate and red when they don't.

HTML

<form>
  <div class="field">
    <label for="url_input">Enter a URL:</label>
    <input type="url" id="url_input">
  </div>

  <div class="field">
    <label for="email_input">Enter an email address:</label>
    <input type="email" id="email_input" required>
  </div>
</form>

CSS

label {
  display: block;
  margin: 1px;  
  padding: 1px;
}

.field {
  margin: 1px;
  padding: 1px;
}

input:invalid {
  background-color: #ffdddd;
}

form:invalid {
  border: 5px solid #ffdddd;
}

input:valid {
  background-color: #ddffdd;
}

form:valid {
  border: 5px solid #ddffdd;
}
  
input:required {
  border-color: #800000;
  border-width: 3px;
}

input:required:invalid {
  border-color: #c00000;
}

Result

Accessibility concerns

The color red is commonly used to indicate invalid input. People who have certain types of color blindness will be unable to determine the input's state unless it is accompanied by an additional indicator that does not rely on color to convey meaning. Typically, descriptive text and/or an icon are used.

Notes

Radio buttons

If any one of the radio buttons in a group is required, the :invalid pseudo-class is applied to all of them if none of the buttons in the group is selected. (Grouped radio buttons share the same value for their name attribute.)

Gecko defaults

By default, Gecko does not apply a style to the :invalid pseudo-class. However, it does apply a style (a red "glow" using the box-shadow property) to the :-moz-ui-invalid pseudo-class, which applies in a subset of cases for :invalid.

Specifications

Specification	Status	Comment
HTML Living StandardThe definition of ':invalid' in that specification.	Living Standard	No change.
HTML5The definition of ':invalid' in that specification.	Recommendation	Defines the semantics of HTML and constraint validation.
Selectors Level 4The definition of ':invalid' in that specification.	Working Draft	Initial definition.

Browser compatibility

Update compatibility data on GitHub

	Desktop						Mobile
	Chrome	Edge	Firefox	Internet Explorer	Opera	Safari	Android webview	Chrome for Android	Firefox for Android	Opera for Android	Safari on iOS	Samsung Internet
`:invalid`	Chrome Full support 10	Edge Full support 12	Firefox Full support 4	IE Full support 10	Opera Full support 10	Safari Full support 5	WebView Android Full support 37	Chrome Android Full support 18	Firefox Android Full support 4	Opera Android Full support 10.1	Safari iOS Full support 5	Samsung Internet Android Full support 1.0
Applies to `<form>` elements	Chrome Full support 40	Edge Full support 79	Firefox Full support 13	IE No support No	Opera Full support 27	Safari Full support 9	WebView Android Full support 40	Chrome Android Full support 40	Firefox Android Full support 14	Opera Android Full support 27	Safari iOS Full support 9	Samsung Internet Android Full support 4.0

Legend

Full support: Full support
No support: No support