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CSS Grid areas let you describe a layout as named regions, one row at a time, then place elements into those regions with grid-area. The map makes a page’s structure easy to see in CSS, but you still need separate track sizing and every named region must be rectangular.
How do CSS Grid areas work?
Set display: grid on a container, then define its named-cell map with grid-template-areas. Each quoted string represents one row; whitespace-separated names represent cells in that row. As MDN Web Docs puts it, “The grid-template-areas CSS property specifies named grid areas, establishing the cells in the grid and assigning them names.” (MDN: grid-template-areas)
To put a child in a named region, assign the same name to its grid-area property. Naming a region in the map does not automatically place an element there. The name in the map and the child’s grid-area value must match.
A compact page layout using named areas
This example creates a two-column page with a header across both columns, navigation beside the main content, and a footer beneath the main content.
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.page {
display: grid;
grid-template-columns: 12rem 1fr;
grid-template-areas:
"header header"
"nav main"
". footer";
gap: 1rem;
}
header { grid-area: header; }
nav { grid-area: nav; }
main { grid-area: main; }
footer { grid-area: footer; }- The two
headercells are adjacent, so the header area spans both columns. - The period (
.) is a null cell: the lower-left position has no named area, leaving it empty. grid-template-columnssets the column widths, whilegapadds space between tracks. The area map names and arranges cells; it does not set track sizes. Define rows too withgrid-template-rowswhen the layout needs explicit row sizing.
How do I leave a blank space in a CSS Grid layout?
Use a period as the cell token in grid-template-areas. For example, ". footer" leaves the first cell in that row unnamed while assigning the second cell to footer. A null cell is useful when the visual map needs an intentional gap in its arrangement; it does not require every cell to have a name. See MDN’s guide to Grid template areas.
Keep every named area rectangular
All cells bearing the same area name must touch and form one rectangle. Repeating a name across adjacent cells creates a larger region, but a disconnected or L-shaped arrangement is invalid. For instance, this map is not valid because content does not form a rectangle:
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grid-template-areas:
"content content"
"content sidebar";Here, the three content cells form an L around sidebar. To fix the map, change the intended layout so each named region is a rectangle, or assign a different name to cells that should not belong to the same region.
Rearrange areas at a responsive breakpoint
A media query can replace the map so the same named elements follow a different arrangement on a narrow screen. This example stacks the header, main content, navigation, and footer in that order:
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@media (max-width: 40rem) {
.page {
grid-template-columns: 1fr;
grid-template-areas:
"header"
"main"
"nav"
"footer";
}
}The child rules remain unchanged because their names still match the map. The breakpoint changes both the column definition and the area arrangement; choose a breakpoint that suits the page’s content rather than treating this example’s width as a universal rule. MDN also shows named areas being redefined in media queries in its Grid template areas guide.
Named areas or line-based placement?
Named areas and line-based placement solve related placement problems, but emphasize different things. MDN describes named areas as an alternative approach that can also be combined with line placement (CSS grid layout).
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| Consideration | Named areas | Line-based placement |
|---|---|---|
| Readability | The row-by-row map makes the intended page regions visible in one declaration. | Placement uses grid lines and spans, which can express positions precisely but may be less immediately visual for a whole-page arrangement. |
| Precise line or span control | Useful for naming rectangular regions; the map alone does not express every line/span detail. | Useful when an item must start or end at specific grid lines or span a specific number of tracks. |
| Changing placement at breakpoints | Redefine the map to show a new arrangement, keeping child assignments tied to area names. | Change the relevant line-based placement rules at the breakpoint. |
Choose the notation that makes the layout easiest to understand and maintain. A practical layout can use named areas for its major regions and line-based placement where a particular item needs more exact control; grid-area also supports line-placement shorthand, as described in MDN’s grid-area reference.
Browser support
MDN’s support summary lists grid-template-areas as widely available across browsers since October 2017. For a project that must support particular browser versions, check the current compatibility table in the MDN property reference.
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