The HTML elements span and div are both used for bringing similar components on a web page. They do, however, have distinct purposes.
A div element organizes and styles page components at the block level, whereas a span element organizes and styles page elements inline. Both can be used as containers, but they don’t function in the same manner.
Key Takeaways
- DIV is a block-level element used for creating sections, while SPAN is an inline element for styling text or other inline elements.
- DIV can contain block-level and inline elements, whereas SPAN only contains inline elements.
- Changing layout and positioning is more straightforward with DIV, while SPAN is better suited for applying styles to specific text.
Div vs Span
The difference between div and span is that the div tags element is a block element that is most commonly used to split the content into blocks on a page whereas the span tag is a general inline component that may be used to style a chunk of inline content.
The HTML tag div stands for ‘division’ and is an acronym for it (otherwise known as an element). It is given a unique id to differentiate it from other div elements on the same page.
It is used to build containers around the groupings of content on Web pages.
The span element is an inline container for highlighting a portion of text or a page. The class and id attributes of the span element may be easily modified using CSS or controlled with JavaScript.
Small pieces of text, links, pictures, and other HTML components that display in line with the surrounding content are marked with span tags.
Comparison Table
| Parameters of Comparison | Div | Span |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | The div (division) tags element is a block-level element that is most commonly used to split the content into blocks on a page. | The span tag element is a generic inline element that is commonly used to style a section of inline material. |
| Use | It is used to divide block-line components, essentially a line break before and after it. | It’s used in HTML documents to inline group components. |
| Nested Tags | For HTML pages with many styles, the nested div tag is utilized. | HTML pages do not utilize nested span tags. |
| Styles | For the inner side of the div element, the paragraph tag is sometimes used. | The span element is used in a paragraph to apply a CSS style to specific words using the supplied font settings. |
| For emphasizing | To emphasize the front end page, we utilize borders with width and height and given colour pixels in the div tag. | We use the Span tag with colour coding to emphasise the front-end document. |
What is Div?
The division tag is also known as the div tag. The div tag is an HTML tag used to divide the content of a web page (text, image, header, footer, navigation bar, etc.).
Because the div element has both an opening and a closing tag, it must be closed.
The div element is the most commonly used tag in web design because it allows us to organize data on the site and build sections for specific content or functions.
The block-level tag is the Div tag. It’s a container tag that may be used for anything. It’s a term that refers to a collection of HTML tags that may be used to build sections and apply styles to them.
Div tags are block-level tags. It is a generic container tag. It is utilized for the grouping of different elements of HTML so that segments can be made and style can be applied to them.
The div tag is truly modifiable when making a web design, and it is easy to change. The syntax for the div tag is <div> content or other tags </div>.
Any content can be put inside the <div> tag. By default, the program always puts a line break before and after the <div> component.
What is Span?
The span tag is an inline container that may be used to mark up a section of text or a document. The class and id attributes of the span element may be easily modified using CSS or controlled with JavaScript.
The span tag is similar to the div element, except span is an inline element, whereas div is a block-level element.
When no other large element is available, this is a better approach to use. It is used to style objects by grouping them together (by utilizing the class or id properties).
Div is a block element, and span is an inline tag, though they have similarities. Because the span tag is a paired tag meaning it has both an opening(<) and a closing (>) tag), it must be closed.
This tag accepts all global and event attributes. Inline components are grouped using the span tag. The span tag has no effect on the page’s look.
Div is a block element, and span is an inline tag, although they have similarities.
Syntax for span tag :<span class=””> text</span>. In any case, <span> labels are incredible in that they let us allot any worldwide HTML quality to a segment of text or other inline page content.
The most widely recognized characteristics you’ll see utilized with length are the selector’s id and class used to apply styling to explicit words.
Main Differences between Div and Span
- The div (division) tags element is a block-level element that is most commonly used to split the content into blocks on a page, whereas the span tag element is a generic inline element that is commonly used to style a section of inline material.
- Div is used to divide block-line components, essentially a line break before and after it, whereas span is used in HTML documents to inline group components.
- For HTML pages with many styles, the nested div tag is utilized while, in the span is used in HTML documents to inline group components.
- For the inner side of the div element, the paragraph tag <p> is sometimes used, whereas the span element is used in a paragraph to apply a CSS style to specific words using the supplied font settings.
- To emphasize the front end page, we utilize borders with width and height and given colour pixels in the div tag, while, in span, to emphasize the front end document, we utilize the Span tag with colour-coding.
Last Updated : 11 June, 2023
I’ve put so much effort writing this blog post to provide value to you. It’ll be very helpful for me, if you consider sharing it on social media or with your friends/family. SHARING IS ♥️
Sandeep Bhandari holds a Bachelor of Engineering in Computers from Thapar University (2006). He has 20 years of experience in the technology field. He has a keen interest in various technical fields, including database systems, computer networks, and programming. You can read more about him on his bio page.
This post is very well-written and insightful, thank you for sharing this valuable information.
This article provides a comprehensive comparison of div and span elements, great job on breaking it down so clearly.
I don’t see the point of using span elements at all, it seems redundant to me.
I agree with Ledwards, I hardly ever use span elements.
I think span elements are useful for applying styles to specific text, so I disagree with you.
I couldn’t agree more, this post is incredibly useful for anyone working with HTML elements.
Absolutely, the in-depth analysis is very beneficial.
I’m glad I came across this, it’s provided a lot of insight.
To be honest, I’ve been using div and span elements without really knowing the distinction, so this article was extremely helpful to me.
Same here, Green Rowena. This cleared up a lot for me.
Agreed, I found this to be a valuable explanation.
I had never thought about the difference between div and span elements until reading this. Very enlightening!
I agree, this was a very interesting read.
I found the comparison table to be particularly helpful, this will definitely aid me in my web design work.
Very informative content, thank you for explaining the difference between div and span elements in such detail!
Yes, I totally agree. This has been very helpful for me.