Comparison between padding on parent element and margin on child element

Question

Comparison between padding on parent element and margin on child element

When trying to organize logical divs within a container with appropriate spacing, there are two main approaches to consider:

Setting the padding property of the container
Setting the margin property of the inner div

Sometimes, multiple elements need to be arranged within the same container. In such cases, it's important to distinguish between space within the elements and space surrounding them. To achieve this, using margins on the individual elements becomes necessary instead of relying solely on the container's padding.

Considering these factors, when determining the spacing between the container itself and its elements, the choice between setting margins (-left, -right, -top, -bottom) on the elements or adjusting the container's padding needs careful consideration.

Utilizing flexbox and having box-sizing: border-box; enabled provides flexibility in styling, allowing for further customization using CSS selectors like nth-child.

html css

Answer 1

Answer №1

Consider the type of gutter you wish to incorporate. Is it meant to separate elements or create space within an element?

If you want gutter on all sides of an element, similar to the blue in your example:

In this case, I recommend using padding on the container. It aligns perfectly with the desired outcome, so why complicate matters?

For creating gutter between elements in a row, like the spacing between green elements in your second instance:

In such scenarios, utilizing margin on the green elements is ideal. The presence of visible gaps necessitates the use of margins rather than padding.

However, when combining these two examples, a potential conflict may arise where the margin of green elements clashes with the parent's padding. To address this, eliminate margins from the first and last children.

Furthermore, if you intend to place more green elements on a new row, consider clearing each row using a suitable method to reset floats within an element encasing the entire row. This approach involves separating rows with a margin, dealing with the same parent padding issue by removing the margin from the final row as needed.

In summary:

Utilize padding on parent elements to create space between edges and their respective children.
Use margin to distinguish between elements sharing the same parent.
Ensure removal of margins from linked children when their margins coincide with the parent's padding (e.g., first and/or last children in a row, last child in a column).

Please note: This represents my personal methodology. While not claiming absolute efficiency, it aligns with my logical reasoning.

Answer 2

Consider the type of gutter you wish to incorporate. Is it meant to separate elements or create space within an element?

If you want gutter on all sides of an element, similar to the blue in your example:

In this case, I recommend using padding on the container. It aligns perfectly with the desired outcome, so why complicate matters?

For creating gutter between elements in a row, like the spacing between green elements in your second instance:

In such scenarios, utilizing margin on the green elements is ideal. The presence of visible gaps necessitates the use of margins rather than padding.

However, when combining these two examples, a potential conflict may arise where the margin of green elements clashes with the parent's padding. To address this, eliminate margins from the first and last children.

Furthermore, if you intend to place more green elements on a new row, consider clearing each row using a suitable method to reset floats within an element encasing the entire row. This approach involves separating rows with a margin, dealing with the same parent padding issue by removing the margin from the final row as needed.

In summary:

Utilize padding on parent elements to create space between edges and their respective children.
Use margin to distinguish between elements sharing the same parent.
Ensure removal of margins from linked children when their margins coincide with the parent's padding (e.g., first and/or last children in a row, last child in a column).

Please note: This represents my personal methodology. While not claiming absolute efficiency, it aligns with my logical reasoning.

Answer 3

Answer №2

Personally, I find it more advantageous to apply margin to the inner div within a container.

Imagine the black div as the outer container with properties like display: flex, width: 300px, and height: 200px. If you add padding: 30px to this outer div, its width will expand to 360px and height to 260px. This could disrupt the layout of surrounding elements due to unexpected stretching. Therefore, using margin on the inner div is a better approach.

By applying margin between the inner div and the container, the position of the outer div remains unchanged while affecting only the inner div's positioning. This prevents any disruption to neighboring elements.

Take into account the use of box-sizing: border-box;, which may alter outcomes based on desired element sizes. In general, utilizing margin/padding on inner elements proves to be the optimal choice.

Answer 4

Personally, I find it more advantageous to apply margin to the inner div within a container.

Imagine the black div as the outer container with properties like display: flex, width: 300px, and height: 200px. If you add padding: 30px to this outer div, its width will expand to 360px and height to 260px. This could disrupt the layout of surrounding elements due to unexpected stretching. Therefore, using margin on the inner div is a better approach.

By applying margin between the inner div and the container, the position of the outer div remains unchanged while affecting only the inner div's positioning. This prevents any disruption to neighboring elements.

Take into account the use of box-sizing: border-box;, which may alter outcomes based on desired element sizes. In general, utilizing margin/padding on inner elements proves to be the optimal choice.

Answer 5

Answer №3

There isn't a strict rule when it comes to choosing between margin and padding in web design. It all depends on the context, and sometimes using one or the other is necessary for achieving the desired layout.

However, it's generally recommended to group logically related rules together. For example, if you have two HTML elements that serve a similar purpose on a website, such as an outer <div> and another box (that shouldn't have padding), it's usually better to apply a margin to the inner <div>.

On the other hand, if you're adding multiple elements inside the outer <div>, using padding would be more efficient as it automatically applies to all inner elements. While @zzzzBov's solution works too, it relies on margin collapsing which can sometimes cause complications.

In the second scenario, I often combine padding and margin like this:

.outer {
    padding: 10px 15px 10px 5px
}

.inner {
    margin-left: 10px
}

It might seem complex, but this method ensures consistency regardless of margin collapsing and has proven effective for me.

Answer 6

There isn't a strict rule when it comes to choosing between margin and padding in web design. It all depends on the context, and sometimes using one or the other is necessary for achieving the desired layout.

However, it's generally recommended to group logically related rules together. For example, if you have two HTML elements that serve a similar purpose on a website, such as an outer <div> and another box (that shouldn't have padding), it's usually better to apply a margin to the inner <div>.

On the other hand, if you're adding multiple elements inside the outer <div>, using padding would be more efficient as it automatically applies to all inner elements. While @zzzzBov's solution works too, it relies on margin collapsing which can sometimes cause complications.

In the second scenario, I often combine padding and margin like this:

.outer {
    padding: 10px 15px 10px 5px
}

.inner {
    margin-left: 10px
}

It might seem complex, but this method ensures consistency regardless of margin collapsing and has proven effective for me.

Answer 7

Answer №4

The appearance of your subsequent content will vary based on how you want it to be displayed. If you plan to have multiple inner sections represented by green <div> elements separated by an equal amount of space, using the margin property to allow margin collapse can help create a layout like this:

+-------
|        <- blue
|  +----
|  |     <- green
|  |
|  +----
|
|  +----
|  |     <- green
|  |
|  +----
|
+-------

For more examples and options, you can check out this link.

Answer 8

The appearance of your subsequent content will vary based on how you want it to be displayed. If you plan to have multiple inner sections represented by green <div> elements separated by an equal amount of space, using the margin property to allow margin collapse can help create a layout like this:

+-------
|        <- blue
|  +----
|  |     <- green
|  |
|  +----
|
|  +----
|  |     <- green
|  |
|  +----
|
+-------

For more examples and options, you can check out this link.

Comparison between padding on parent element and margin on child element

Answer №1

Answer №2

Answer №3

Answer №4

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