Web/HTML/Element/center

ObsoleteThis feature is obsolete. Although it may still work in some browsers, its use is discouraged since it could be removed at any time. Try to avoid using it.

The obsolete HTML Center Element (<center>) is a block-level element that displays its block-level or inline contents centered horizontally within its containing element. The container is usually, but isn't required to be, <body>.

This tag has been deprecated in HTML 4 (and XHTML 1) in favor of the CSS text-align property, which can be applied to the <div> element or to an individual <p>. For centering blocks, use other CSS properties like margin-left and margin-right and set them to auto (or set margin to 0 auto).

DOM interface

This element implements the HTMLElement interface.

Implementation note: up to Gecko 1.9.2 inclusive, Firefox implements the HTMLSpanElement interface for this element.

Example 1

<center>This text will be centered.
<p>So will this paragraph.</p></center>

Example 2 (CSS alternative)

<div style="text-align:center">This text will be centered.
<p>So will this paragraph.</p></div>

Example 3 (CSS alternative)

<p style="text-align:center">This line will be centered.<br>
And so will this line.</p>

Note

Applying text-align:center to a <div> or <p> element centers the contents of those elements while leaving their overall dimensions unchanged.

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
`center` Deprecated'	Chrome Full support Yes	Edge Full support 12	Firefox Full support Yes Notes' Full support Yes Notes' Notes' Before Firefox 4, this element implemented the `HTMLSpanElement` interface instead of the standard `HTMLElement` interface.	IE Full support Yes	Opera Full support Yes	Safari Full support Yes	WebView Android Full support Yes	Chrome Android Full support Yes	Firefox Android Full support Yes Notes' Full support Yes Notes' Notes' Before Firefox 4, this element implemented the `HTMLSpanElement` interface instead of the standard `HTMLElement` interface.	Opera Android Full support Yes	Safari iOS Full support Yes	Samsung Internet Android Full support Yes

Legend

Full support: Full support
Deprecated. Not for use in new websites.': Deprecated. Not for use in new websites.
See implementation notes.': See implementation notes.