How to Set HTML Table Width for Responsive Design

This post covers how to get an ideal table width in HTML. You need to take into account factors like responsiveness, content size, and overall design alignment. We cover these considerations below so keep reading.

How to set the width of an HTML table?

To control a table's width, you can use the width attribute within the <table> tag or apply CSS. CSS offers more flexibility and aligns with modern web development practices, making it the preferred method.

Using the width attribute

<table width="500">
  <!-- Table rows and cells -->
</table>

Using CSS

Apply the width directly in the table's style attribute for a quick fix:

<table style="width: 500px;">
  <!-- Table rows and cells -->
</table>

For a cleaner approach, define the width in an external CSS file:

.myTable {
  width: 500px;
}

Then, link this class in your HTML table:

<table class="myTable">
  <!-- Table rows and cells -->
</table>

How to set the width of table columns?

Adjusting individual column widths can fine-tune how your data displays. You can set these widths by targeting the cells in the first row or utilizing <colgroup> and <col> elements for predefining widths.

Using the first row's cells

<table>
  <tr>
    <td style="width: 200px;">Column 1</td>
    <td style="width: 300px;">Column 2</td>
  </tr>
  <!-- More rows and cells -->
</table>

Using <colgroup> and <col>

<table>
  <colgroup>
    <col style="width: 200px;">
    <col style="width: 300px;">
  </colgroup>
  <!-- Table rows and cells -->
</table>

Making table width responsive

To ensure your table adapts to different screen sizes, consider using percentages for width or CSS media queries for a more tailored approach.

Using percentages

<table style="width: 100%;">
  <!-- Table rows and cells -->
</table>

Using CSS media queries

Adapt your table's width based on the viewport width for enhanced responsiveness:

.myTable {
  width: 100%;
}

@media (min-width: 600px) {
  .myTable {
    width: 600px; /* Switch to a fixed width on larger screens */
  }
}