Definition

The HTML <br> tag defines a line break. Unlike the <p> tag defining a paragraph, an empty indent is not added before the line.

br exemple

Syntax

The <br> tag is empty, which means that the closing tag isn’t required. But in XHTML, the (<br>) tag must be closed (<br/>).

Example of the HTML <br> tag:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
  <head>
    <title>Title of the document</title>
  </head>
  <body>
    <h1>Example of the &lt;br&gt; tag usage.</h1>
    <p> Inside the paragraph, we can put the tag &lt;br /&gt;, <br> to transfer a part of the text to another line if necessary.</p>
  </body>
</html>

Usage

The <br> tag is used to enter line breaks. It is useful for writing addresses, poems or song lyrics.

Do not use <br> tag to separate paragraphs. It is very problematic to use <br> tag to separate the paragraph for the people who navigate through the screen reading technology. Use <p> elements and CSS margin property to control spacing.

Example of the HTML <br> tag for entering line breaks:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
  <head>
    <title>Title of the document</title>
  </head>
  <body>
    <h1>Example of the &lt;br&gt; tag usage</h1>
    <blockquote>
      But I'm not the only one<br>
      I hope some day you'll join us<br>
      And the world will live as one.<br>
    </blockquote>
    <cite>John Lennon "imagine"</cite>
  </body>
</html>

Attributes

Attributes Value Description
clear Specifies how to process the next line if the text wraps around the floating element.
Not used in HTML5.
all Reverses the flow around the element from the right and left edges at the same time.
left Reverses the flow from the left side of the element placed after the <br> tag.
right Reverses the flow from the right side.
none Cancels the action of an attribute.

The <br> tag supports the Global Attributes and the Event Attributes.

Browser support

chrome edge firefox safari opera

Practice Your Knowledge

What is the purpose of the HTML <br> tag and how is it used?

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