Centering Floated Elements

Centering floated elements is a common problem in web development, especially when working with pagination or navigation menus. In this tutorial, we will explore different methods to center floated elements and discuss their strengths and weaknesses.

Understanding the Problem

When you float an element, it is removed from the normal document flow, and its parent element does not consider its width and height when calculating its own dimensions. This makes it challenging to center a group of floated elements within their parent container.

Method 1: Using Inline-Block Display

One way to center floated elements is to use the inline-block display property instead of float. This allows you to keep the block-level behavior of the elements while still being able to center them using the text-align property.

.pagination {
  text-align: center;
}

.pagination a {
  display: inline-block;
  width: 30px;
  height: 30px;
  margin-left: 3px;
  background: url(/images/structure/pagination-button.png);
}

This method is cross-browser compatible, even in older browsers like IE6, as long as the element is originally an inline element.

Method 2: Using a Wrapper Container

Another approach is to use a wrapper container with float and position properties to center the floated elements. This method involves adding two containers: one with float: left and left: 50%, and another with float: left and left: -50%.

.main-container {
  float: left;
  position: relative;
  left: 50%;
}

.fixer-container {
  float: left;
  position: relative;
  left: -50%;
}

This method is also cross-browser compatible, but it requires additional markup and can be less intuitive than other methods.

Method 3: Using Table Display

A third approach is to use the table display property on the container element, along with margin: 0 auto, to center the floated elements.

.pagination {
  display: table;
  margin: 0 auto;
}

.pagination a {
  margin: 0 2px;
}

This method is simple and effective but only works when all floating elements are in one line. It’s suitable for menus or pagination but may not work well for galleries or other multi-line layouts.

Method 4: Setting Width and Margin

Finally, you can set the width of the container element in pixels and add margin: 0 auto to center the floated elements.

.pagination {
  width: 300px;
  margin: 0 auto;
}

This method is straightforward but requires a fixed width for the container element.

Conclusion

Centering floated elements can be achieved using different methods, each with its strengths and weaknesses. By understanding the problem and exploring these solutions, you can choose the best approach for your specific use case and create more effective and flexible layouts.