The Best HTML and CSS Tabs You Can Use In Your Website

Find inspiration with our curated examples of CSS tabs, showcasing innovative and responsive designs for efficient website navigation.

Imagine this: Your web project is like a bustling city, and your users? They’re tourists looking for the next attraction. CSS tabs are the sleek, efficient subway system guiding them seamlessly from one destination to the next. You’ve seen tabs around, but here’s your chance to dive deeper!

Today, we’re all about exploring CSS tabs. Every nook, every cranny. We’ll get our hands dirty with examples that pop, sizzle, and maybe even whistle while they work. By the time we surface, you’ll be the one holding the map—a wizard in the world of responsive tabs, crafting experiences as smooth as butter.

This is your all-access pass. From the hidden alleys of HTML and CSS tabs to the wide boulevards of pure CSS tabs, I’ve got the inside scoop—and you’re coming with me.

By the article’s end, you’ll have unlocked the secrets to stylish, interactive web elements that not only look good but cater to all those pesky concerns like cross-browser compatibility and usability.

So, let’s roll up our sleeves and step into the lab of modern web design. It’s time to create magic with CSS tabs examples that’ll turn your project from meh to magnificent!

Tabbed Content Section

Author: Allen Brady

This CSS tab navigation by Allen Brady is simple and elegant. It is a good option for a personal or professional website. It offers animated icons as its tabs that link to more content or media files. The selected tab is spotlighted by turning blue.

CSS Tabs

Author: Massimo

This link offers pure CSS tabs. Instead of horizontal tabs, they are vertical tabs that mimic a physical binder.

Bootstrap-tabs-x

Author: Kartik Visweswaran

This is a tab plugin built on top of Bootstrap Tabs. It offers various features and allows users to customize it in many ways. For example, users can align the tabs on the top, bottom, right, or left side of the page. Users can also customize the tab borders, rotate titles, load content with AJAX, and much more.

Glowing Tabs

Author: Simon Goellner

Simon Goellner created the majority of these glowing tabs in CSS. A JQuery function controls the slide effect. There is a light and dark skin theme.

Nav Tab

Author: Ilham Ibnu Purnomo

Nav Tab provides rounded tabs for two forms. One CSS tab is for a login form and one is for a registration form.

Design visually attractive and high-performing websites without writing a line of code

WoW your clients by creating innovative and response-boosting websites
fast with no coding experience. Slider Revolution makes it possible for you
to have a rush of clients coming to you for trendy website designs.

Material Tabs & Pages

Author: Reza

This CSS tab variation is designed with small details in mind. It uses HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. It starts with simple CSS tab icons and adds sliding effects and color effects.

Tabs. Pitaya CSS

Author: Flkt Crnpio

The tabs from this link follow a more professional design. It provides two tabs but users can customize it according to their needs. The tabs are large and have animated sliding transition effects.

Tabbed Widget

Author: CodeAlb

This CSS tab widget is simple yet effective. The whole widget runs on CSS which makes it compatible with most browsers. It highlights the activated tab with a protruding effect and a line of color.

Pure CSS Tabs with Indicator

Author: Alex

Following a modern design, this is a pure CSS tab that provides fast loading. It features a simple yet professional design. It includes both icons and text in its tabs as well as an indicator of the activated tab.

CSS Tab

Author: Wendy

Another pure CSS tab widget, this code snippet includes three tabs. It is a simple tabbed navigation design but is functional. It includes an activated tab indicator.

CSS Tab Selection

Author: Andrew Wierzba

Made with HTML and CSS, this tab widget offers basic tab navigation and transitions. The simple design imitates a physical folder with tab separators.

Aria Tabs

Author: Dan Smith

This code snippet provides five professional-looking tabs for a content-heavy website. It was designed to have a wide range of usability. These tabs run on JS and each tab has a custom CSS animation. However, the tabs are simple because it supports ARIA attributes to make it accessible to viewers with disabilities.

Tabby

Author: Chris Ferdinandi

Tabby allows users to create basic toggle tabs and includes advanced features. The tabs can show any kind of content, including media content. Tabby comes with two themes; horizontal tabs and vertical ones. Users can choose one of those themes or modify the code to their needs. Tabby supports NPM and Bower.

tabbed widget

Author: Drew Adams

This tabbed widget provides nice tabs that span the entire content container. It runs on HTML, CSS, and it uses JQuery to switch between the content. It has more than 170 lines of CSS because it includes more details than the other tabs on this list.

Tabs Widget. No JS!

Author: Dmitry Sharabin

These tabs use pure CSS and no JS. It offers large tabs with icons and text that produce a clean and organized UI. This is a nice tab widget for a modern website.

Pure CSS Tabs

Author: Wallace Erick

Here is another pure CSS tab design. It uses only HTML and CSS but produces an impressive and elegant layout. This CSS tab works well for displaying multiple posts on a single screen. It uses hues of purple to contrast the activated tab with the deactivated tabs.

Tabbed Widget

Author: Ian

The code snippet provided here is for a scheduling widget. It includes tabs for an organized design. Users can use this code to create a scheduling element with a style that suits their website. It uses HTML, CSS, and JQuery to switch between the custom tabs.

Adaptive Tabs

Author: Lewi Husey

These adaptive tabs make smooth transitions from a heavy content tab to a small content tab. It is a simple tab widget but a valuable one since it is adaptive to different sizes of content. It also includes a color switcher that gives users five color options.

Equal-width Navigation Tabs

Author: csswizardry

This code snippet offers plain CSS navigation tabs that have the same width. Users can customize its appearance but the code does not include any advanced features.

“Next” to each other, but not next to each other

Author: eightarmshq

The most impressive styling feature of these tabs is that viewers can click on a button and be directed to the adjacent tab.

Pure CSS Color Tabs (no label)

Author: ari

With about sixty lines of code, this link offers a simple and pure CSS tab navigation. These tabs do not include a label but are colored vertical tabs. An animation effect occurs during the transition from one tab to another.

Transitioning Between Variable Heights with Tabs

Author: Joseph Fusco

Joseph Fusco presents tabs with variable tab heights to fit different lengths of content. With this widget, going from a heavy content page to a short page does not cause a massive page jump. The container width is also adaptable to fit as many tabs as needed. It includes a fading effect for the content.

Just Another CSS Tab

Author: Kseso

Here is another CSS tab layout that provides a simple but organized design. The tabs use flat icons instead of text. This CSS tab design includes transition effects that zoom the content in and out of view when a tab is clicked.

Pure CSS Tabs

Author: Jay Pick

This CSS tab uses HTML, CSS, and JS. It is a basic tab design that identifies the tabs with plain text. It is a good code snippet to build from and style according to your needs.

Material Design CSS Only Tabs

Author: Ben Mildren

This tab design code offers four tabs with a blue header. It highlights the selected tab with a yellow line. It fits well with a mobile site.

Pure CSS Tabs Widget

Author: SitePoint

This is a CSS code snippet with about eighty lines of code. It provides a basic tab navigation design with a pure CSS solution so users do not have to use JS. The tabs create a good user experience for any website.

Pure CSS tab module

Author: clem

This CSS tab module demo presents a straightforward but effective tab navigation design. It includes a pink background, a black design stripe, and a selected tab indicator.

Responsive CSS Tabs & Accordions

Author: Mikestreety

This is a back-to-basics- uncomplicated CSS tab navigation design. The blue and white module produces organized and professional-looking tabs.

Simple Tab Designs

Author: Hoangbach

Hoangbach offers lightweight tabs with a universal appeal. They have a light purple border and a transition animation. When a viewer clicks on a tab, the current tab’s content slides away and the new tab’s content slides into place.

Material Design Tabs

Author: LukyVJ

The tabs featured with this link were created using Vanilla JavaScript and inspired by Material Design. It does not provide advanced features, but it is straightforward and customizable.

CSS3 Tabs by Sorax

Author: YozhEzhi

These are responsive pure CSS tabs. The selected tab is highlighted with a bright blue background and a blue border surrounds the content. When viewers click on a tab the content transitions with a swinging effect.

Simple pure css tabs

Author: Sean B

Sean B presents a pure CSS tab navigation design. The tabs use both icons and text with small animation effects and a highlighted tab feature.

Simple jQuery-CSS Tabbed Panel

Author: Aaron Macwan

These tabs use CSS styling to change the color of the tabs on hover. But it also uses JS to ensure a smooth transition from the content of one tab to another tab.

Tab controls using HTML and CSS, no JS!

Author: Nicolas Bevacqua

This pure CSS tab design presents a bright color on each tab. Users who want to style the selected tab will have to add some JS.

Pure CSS Tabs

Author: Mark Caron

This is also a pure CSS tab navigation design. It is flexible to include about two to six different tabs. It highlights the selected tab and is an excellent choice for professional websites.

FAQs about CSS tabs

How do I create basic CSS tabs?

Creating basic CSS tabs involves a mix of HTML for structure and CSS for styling. Start with an unordered list for the tabs; then, use div elements for content panels. Style the tabs with CSS, making the active tab stand out, and hide inactive content with display: none.

Can CSS tabs be responsive?

Absolutely! To make CSS tabs responsive, incorporate media queries in your CSS. These adjust tab size, stacking, and layout based on the user’s device screen. Employ flexible units like percentages or vw for widths and em or rem for padding and font sizes.

Are CSS tabs accessible to everyone?

Ensuring accessibility in CSS tabs is pivotal. Use proper ARIA roles and attributes, like role="tablist"role="tab", and role="tabpanel". This helps screen readers navigate. Keyboard navigability via Tab and arrow keys is also critical—something often achieved with a sprinkle of JavaScript.

What’s the purpose of using Pure CSS tabs?

Pure CSS tabs aim to reduce reliance on JavaScript for functionality, enhancing performance and maintaining functionality even when JavaScript is disabled. They make use of the :target or :checked pseudo-classes to control tab visibility. They’re all about keeping it sleek, fast, and simple.

How can I style my CSS tabs?

Styling CSS tabs means going beyond bare bones. Get creative with CSS properties like borderbox-shadow, and background. Use pseudo-classes like :hover and :focus to give interactive feedback. Don’t forget to experiment with transition for smooth visual effects that give life to navigation.

How do CSS and JavaScript work together for tabs?

JavaScript enhances CSS tabs by adding dynamic interactions and improving accessibility. It lets you manipulate the DOM, enabling live content updates when a tab is clicked. Need fancy effects or real-time content fetching? JS hops in, takes your static tabs, and turns them into interactive marvels.

Is it possible to create vertical CSS tabs?

Spot on! Vertical CSS tabs stack on the side of your content. Flip the script—use rows instead of columns. Style them with float: left or display: inline-block for a sidebar look. Handle the content area with margin adjustments corresponding to your tab width. Perfect for dashboards!

What are the best practices for mobile-friendly CSS tabs?

First off, aim for thumb-friendly tabs—enough padding and a generous touch target area. Collapse tabs into a dropdown or accordion on smaller screens using media queries. Keep it light, and remember: Scrolling trumps pinching and zooming. Prioritize ease and clarity over cramming everything in.

Can I nest tabs within tabs using CSS?

You bet! Nesting tabs within tabs is like inception for web content. Structure them with HTML, marking each set of tabs with different classes. Differentiate nested tab styles to avoid confusion in the cascade. Mind the styling, ensuring readability and a clean hierarchy visually and programmatically.

What are the challenges of CSS tabs, and how can I solve them?

Common hiccups include maintaining state between page loads and aligning tabs with varying content heights. Cookies or localStorage tackle the first; flexbox or grids smoothen out the latter. Above all, test across browsers and devices—consistency is queen in the realm of web design.

Conclusion

So, we’ve been on quite the journey, huh? Trawled through the maze of CSS tabs examples like pros. We’ve peeled back layers, discovered the guts—powerful HTML and CSS tabs, sturdy JavaScript-free tabs, and even dabbled in the arts of making our tabs responsive and accessible.

Here’s the cool takeaway: Your web pages, they’re not just pages. They’re adventures, stories waiting to be told. With the right tab setup, you create a rhythm, a flow that users can dance to. You’ve got the knowledge to build those pure CSS tabs now—sleek, fast, and totally in style.

Before you dash off, remember the mantra: practice, test, optimize. You’ll soon be crafting those tabbed interfaces like a chef perfecting their secret sauce. User interface components like these? They’re the silent heroes of navigation, the unsung wizards of user experience. Now go, create your own magic!

If you liked this article about HTML & CSS tabs, you should check out this article about CSS text animation.

There are also similar articles discussing CSS menus, CSS tables, CSS hover effects, and CSS checkboxes.

And let’s not forget about articles on CSS formsCSS search boxesCSS button hover effects, and CSS slideshow.

The Best HTML and CSS Tabs You Can Use In Your Website

FREE: Your Go-To Guide For Creating
Awe-Inspiring Websites

Get a complete grip on all aspects of web designing to build high-converting and creativity-oozing websites. Access our list of high-quality articles and elevate your skills.

The Author

Dirk Gavor

Slider Revolution high priest on the mission to find the line between not enough coffee and just a little too much coffee. Same with beer.

For any inquiries or additional resources related to this blog post or else, please don't hesitate to comment below or email me at [email protected].

Liked this Post?
Please Share it!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *