CSS STYLING TABLES

CSS Table Styling

CSS can make HTML tables more attractive by controlling borders, colors, spacing, alignment, hover effects, and sizes.

1. Basic Table Styling

<table>
  <tr>
    <th>Name</th>
    <th>Age</th>
    <th>City</th>
  </tr>
  <tr>
    <td>Ali</td>
    <td>20</td>
    <td>Abbottabad</td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
    <td>Ahmed</td>
    <td>22</td>
    <td>Islamabad</td>
  </tr>
</table>

table {
  width: 100%;
  border-collapse: collapse;
}

th,
td {
  border: 1px solid #333;
  padding: 10px;
  text-align: left;
}

th {
  background-color: #333;
  color: white;
}

2. Add Zebra Stripes

tr:nth-child(even) {
  background-color: #f2f2f2;
}

This gives alternate rows different colors.

3. Add Hover Effect

tr:hover {
  background-color: #ddd;
}

4. Center the Table Content

th,
td {
  text-align: center;
}

You can also vertically align content:

th,
td {
  vertical-align: middle;
}

5. Rounded Table

table {
  width: 100%;
  border-collapse: separate;
  border-spacing: 0;
  border: 1px solid #ccc;
  border-radius: 10px;
  overflow: hidden;
}

6. Complete Example

<table class="student-table">
  <tr>
    <th>Name</th>
    <th>Age</th>
    <th>Grade</th>
  </tr>

  <tr>
    <td>Ali</td>
    <td>20</td>
    <td>A</td>
  </tr>

  <tr>
    <td>Ahmed</td>
    <td>21</td>
    <td>B</td>
  </tr>

  <tr>
    <td>Usman</td>
    <td>19</td>
    <td>A</td>
  </tr>
</table>

.student-table {
  width: 80%;
  margin: 30px auto;
  border-collapse: collapse;
  font-family: Arial, sans-serif;
}

.student-table th {
  background-color: #2563eb;
  color: white;
  padding: 12px;
  text-align: center;
}

.student-table td {
  padding: 10px;
  border: 1px solid #ddd;
  text-align: center;
}

.student-table tr:nth-child(even) {
  background-color: #f5f5f5;
}

.student-table tr:hover {
  background-color: #dbeafe;
}

Important CSS Properties for Tables

Property	Purpose
border	Adds borders
border-collapse	Combines table borders
border-spacing	Controls space between cells
padding	Adds space inside cells
text-align	Horizontal alignment
vertical-align	Vertical alignment
background-color	Sets background color
width	Sets table/cell width
height	Sets table/cell height
:hover	Styles rows when the mouse is over them
:nth-child()	Targets specific rows/cells