What is the precise description of the CSS property font-size when measured in pixels?

When defining the CSS property font-size, it can be set to a specified length in pixels.

What exactly does this measurement describe? Is it the width or height of a particular character (such as 'm'), is it an attribute within the font file description, or could it be something else entirely?

In my search for information, I have come across conflicting answers. Some sources suggest it represents the height of a capital 'H', while others mention combinations including lowercase 'p' measurements.

If anyone has access to an official specification outlining this detail, please share a link. As of now, the link provided by http://www.w3.org/TR/CSS2/fonts.html#font-size-props does not seem to address this specific aspect.

I am particularly interested in understanding how these metrics align with the character width in monospace typefaces.

Answer №1

The CSS 3 standard provides clear guidance on font sizes:

This property specifies the desired height of glyphs within a font. For scalable fonts, the font-size acts as a scale factor relative to the EM unit. It's important to note that some glyphs may extend beyond their EM box. In the case of non-scalable fonts, the font-size is converted into absolute units and compared to the declared font-size, using the same coordinate space for both values.

You inquired:

I've noticed in some accepted answers (on stackoverflow) references to the height of capital 'H' or capital 'I' characters, along with additional measurements related to lowercase 'p'.

This variation depends on the specific font. While CSS can define the intended height of the em box, the font designer has freedom to position glyphs within or outside this box. More information on glyph positioning can be found here.

I'm curious about how these metrics interplay with monospace typefaces' character width.

There's an indirect relationship here. Different monospace fonts exhibit varying ratios between their height and width dimensions.

Answer №2

Perhaps something along those lines? ?

Monospace fonts are unique in that the width of each character remains consistent (hence the term mono-space).

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