In modern HTML and CSS development, keeping two divs side by side is a fundamental layout requirement. Whether you're building a responsive website or a fixed-width layout, understanding different techniques ensures your design remains flexible and user-friendly. This guide covers five popular CSS techniques to achieve this, including absolute positioning, Flexbox, CSS Grid, float, and inline list.
Each method has its own use case, and knowing when to use which can improve your web development skills. Let's go through them one by one.
The absolute positioning method is useful when you need fixed elements positioned exactly where you want. However, it is not a flexible solution for responsive design.
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
<title>Absolute Positioning Example</title>
<style>
.container {
position: relative;
width: 100%;
height: 200px;
}
.box {
width: 200px;
height: 100px;
background-color: lightblue;
position: absolute;
top: 50px;
}
.box1 {
left: 10px;
}
.box2 {
left: 220px;
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<div class="container">
<div class="box box1">Box 1</div>
<div class="box box2">Box 2</div>
</div>
</body>
</html>Flexbox is the best method for modern responsive layouts. It is easy to use and highly flexible.
<style>
.flex-container {
display: flex;
gap: 20px;
}
.flex-box {
width: 200px;
height: 100px;
background-color: lightcoral;
display: flex;
align-items: center;
justify-content: center;
}
</style>
<div class="flex-container">
<div class="flex-box">Box 1</div>
<div class="flex-box">Box 2</div>
</div>This is the most preferred method for modern layouts.
CSS Grid is another powerful tool for structuring layouts. It allows precise control over grid-based layouts.
<style>
.grid-container {
display: grid;
grid-template-columns: 200px 200px;
gap: 20px;
}
.grid-box {
width: 200px;
height: 100px;
background-color: lightgreen;
display: flex;
align-items: center;
justify-content: center;
}
</style>
<div class="grid-container">
<div class="grid-box">Box 1</div>
<div class="grid-box">Box 2</div>
</div>This method is ideal for structured layouts.
Before Flexbox and Grid, float was widely used to position elements.
<style>
.float-container {
width: 100%;
}
.float-box {
width: 200px;
height: 100px;
background-color: orange;
float: left;
margin-right: 20px;
text-align: center;
line-height: 100px;
}
</style>
<div class="float-container">
<div class="float-box">Box 1</div>
<div class="float-box">Box 2</div>
</div>Although effective, float is outdated and replaced by Flexbox/Grid.
The inline-block method allows divs to behave like inline elements while retaining block-level styling.
<style>
.inline-container div {
display: inline-block;
width: 200px;
height: 100px;
background-color: pink;
text-align: center;
line-height: 100px;
margin-right: 20px;
}
</style>
<div class="inline-container">
<div>Box 1</div>
<div>Box 2</div>
</div>Each CSS technique has its pros and cons:
| Method | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|
| Absolute Positioning | Precise control | Not flexible |
| Flexbox | Best for responsive layouts | Not ideal for grid structures |
| CSS Grid | Best for complex layouts | Overhead for simple designs |
| Float | Works in older browsers | Outdated approach |
| Inline-Block | Simple and effective | Alignment issues |
For modern HTML and CSS development, Flexbox and CSS Grid are highly recommended. Float and inline-block can be useful in legacy code but are less efficient than modern methods.
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