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Understanding CSS page-break-inside for Printed Content

Learn how to use the CSS page-break-inside property to control page breaks within elements for printed content.

Explore available options like 'auto' and 'avoid' to enhance readability.

Introduction

The page-break-inside CSS property controls page breaks within elements during printing. Though deprecated and replaced by the [break-inside]WebsiteUrl property, many browsers still support it for compatibility. This article explains page-break-inside in detail, including syntax, values, and practical examples.

Description

The page-break-inside CSS property controls page breaks within elements during printing. This helps keep related content together on a single page, improving readability. Although replaced by [break-inside]WebsiteUrl, understanding page-break-inside is useful for maintaining older websites and ensuring compatibility.

Syntax

/* Keyword values */
page-break-inside: auto;
page-break-inside: avoid;

/* Global values */
page-break-inside: inherit;
page-break-inside: initial;
page-break-inside: revert;
page-break-inside: revert-layer;
page-break-inside: unset;

Keyword Values

auto: Allows automatic page breaks inside the element.
avoid: Prevents page breaks inside the element, keeping the content together on a single page if possible.

Global Values

inherit: Inherits the page-break-inside value from the parent element.
initial: Resets the property to its default value, auto.
revert: Resets the property to its inherited value if it inherits, or to the user agent’s default otherwise.
revert-layer: Resets the property to its inherited value from a user-agent stylesheet.
unset: Acts as inherit if the property is inherited, or as initial if not.

Page Break Aliases

The page-break-inside property is treated as an alias of break-inside for compatibility:

`page-break-inside` Value	`break-inside` Value
`auto`	`auto`
`avoid`	`avoid`

Formal Definition

The page-break-inside property controls page breaks within block-level elements in the normal flow of the root element.

Property	`page-break-inside`
Initial Value	`auto`
Applies To	Block-level elements in the normal flow of the root element. User agents may also apply it to other elements like `table-row` elements.
Inherited	No
Computed Value	As specified
Animation Type	Discrete

Formal Syntax

page-break-inside = avoid | auto | inherit

Examples

HTML

<div class="page">
  <p>This is the first paragraph.</p>
  <section class="list">
    <span>A list</span>
    <ol>
      <li>one</li>
      <!-- <li>two</li> -->
    </ol>
  </section>
  <ul>
    <li>one</li>
    <!-- <li>two</li> -->
  </ul>
  <p>This is the second paragraph.</p>
  <p>This is the third paragraph, it contains more text.</p>
  <p>
    This is the fourth paragraph. It has a little bit more text than the third one.
  </p>
</div>

CSS

.page {
  background-color: #8cffa0;
  height: 90px;
  width: 200px;
  columns: 1;
  column-width: 100px;
}

.list,
ol,
ul,
p {
  break-inside: avoid;
}

p {
  background-color: #8ca0ff;
}

ol,
ul,
.list {
  margin: 0.5em 0;
  display: block;
  background-color: orange;
}

p:first-child {
  margin-top: 0;
}

Result

The break-inside: avoid; property ensures that elements (.list, ol, ul, and p) are not split across page breaks when printed, keeping related content together.

Avoiding Page Breaks Inside Elements

HTML

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
  <title>CSS page-break-inside property</title>
  <style type="text/css">
    @media print {
      ul {
        page-break-inside: avoid;
      }
    }
  </style>
</head>
<body>
  <h1>Website</h1>
  <h2>CSS page-break-inside property</h2>
  <br><br><br>
  <img src="WebsiteUrl/wp-content/uploads/Website-logo.png" alt="Website Logo"/>
  <br><br><br><br>
  <p>
    Prepare for the Recruitment drive of product based companies like Microsoft, Amazon, Adobe etc with a free online placement preparation course. The course focuses on various MCQ's & Coding question likely to be asked in the interviews & make your upcoming placement season efficient and successful.
  </p>
  <br><br><br>
  <img src="WebsiteUrl/wp-content/uploads/interview-preparation-2.png" alt="Interview Preparation"/>
  <ul>
    <li>Data Structure</li>
    <li>Algorithms</li>
    <li>C Programming</li>
    <li>C++ Programming</li>
    <li>Java Programming</li>
    <li>Python Programming</li>
    <li>PHP Programming</li>
    <li>Operating System</li>
    <li>Computer Networks</li>
    <li>DBMS</li>
    <li>SQL</li>
    <li>TOC</li>
  </ul>
</body>
</html>

CSS

@media print {
  ul {
    page-break-inside: avoid;
  }
}

Output

When this page is printed, the ul list elements will not be split across pages, ensuring the list appears as a single, coherent block of content.

Avoiding Page Breaks with `none`

HTML

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
  <title>CSS page-break-inside property</title>
  <style type="text/css">
    @media print {
      ul {
        page-break-inside: avoid;
      }
    }
  </style>
</head>
<body>
  <h1>Website</h1>
  <h2>CSS page-break-inside property</h2>
  <br><br><br>
  <img src="WebsiteUrl/wp-content/uploads/Website-logo.png" alt="Website Logo"/>
  <br><br><br><br>
  <p>
    Prepare for the Recruitment drive of product based companies like Microsoft, Amazon, Adobe etc with a free online placement preparation course. The course focuses on various MCQ's & Coding question likely to be asked in the interviews & make your upcoming placement season efficient and successful.
  </p>
  <br><br><br>
  <img src="WebsiteUrl/wp-content/uploads/interview-preparation-2.png" alt="Interview Preparation"/>
  <ul>
    <li>Data Structure</li>
    <li>Algorithms</li>
    <li>C Programming</li>
    <li>C++ Programming</li>
    <li>Java Programming</li>
    <li>Python Programming</li>
    <li>PHP Programming</li>
    <li>Operating System</li>
    <li>Computer Networks</li>
    <li>DBMS</li>
    <li>SQL</li>
    <li>TOC</li>
  </ul>
</body>
</html>

CSS

@media print {
  ul {
    page-break-inside: avoid;
  }
}

Output

When this page is printed, the ul list elements will not be split across pages, ensuring the list appears as a single, coherent block of content.

Specifications

The page-break-inside property is defined in the CSS Paged Media Module Level 3 specification. This module provides rules for controlling the layout of content when printing web pages. You can find the details in the [CSS Paged Media Module Level 3]WebsiteUrl.

Browser Compatibility

The page-break-inside property is supported by a wide range of browsers, including:

Google Chrome 1.0
Edge 12.0
Internet Explorer 8.0
Firefox 19.0
Safari 1.3
Opera 7.0

Tips for Ensuring Compatibility

Test Across Browsers: Always test your web pages across different browsers to ensure that the page-break-inside property is working as expected.
Use Polyfills: If you need to support very old browsers that do not support the page-break-inside property, consider using polyfills to mimic the behavior.
Fallback Solutions: Provide fallback solutions for browsers that do not support the property, ensuring that the content remains readable even if the property is not applied.

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Understanding CSS page-break-inside for Printed Content

Introduction

Description

Syntax

Keyword Values

Global Values

Page Break Aliases

Formal Definition

Formal Syntax

Examples

HTML

CSS

Result

Avoiding Page Breaks Inside Elements

HTML

CSS

Output

Avoiding Page Breaks with none

HTML

CSS

Output

Specifications

Browser Compatibility

Tips for Ensuring Compatibility

See Also

Talk with CEO

Avoiding Page Breaks with `none`