CSS defines HOW HTML elements are to be displayed.
To learn more about CSS, read our CSS tutorial.
CSS1 became a W3C Recommendation 17. December 1996.
W3C considers the CSS1 specification to be obsolete.
CSS1 is now defined as the CSS1 features (properties, values, at-rules, etc), using the syntax and definitions of CSS2.1
The CSS Style Attributes specification defines the CSS1 element-specific style attributes.
CSS2 became a W3C Recommendation 12. May 1998.
CSS2 added support for media (printers and aural devices), downloadable fonts, element-positioning, and tables.
CSS2 is technically a W3C Recommendation. But since implementation brought to light many problems, instead of expanding CSS2, CSS Level 2 Revision 1 (CSS2.1) was defined.
In case of any conflict between the two specs, CSS2.1 contains the definitive definition.
The CSS Style Attributes specification defines the CSS2.1 element-specific style attributes.
CSS3 is about breaking CSS into smaller modules.
CSS3 builds on CSS2, module by module, using the CSS2.1 specification as the core.
Each module adds functionality and/or replaces part of the CSS2.1 specification.
From CSS3, modules will be defined independently: for example CSS4 Selectors may be defined before the CSS3 Line Module.
Not all CSS implementations will implement all functionality. For example, an implementation may choose to implement only the functionality required by a specified CSS Profile.
Profiles define a subset of CSS selectors/functions considered fundamental for a specific media/device. The W3C defines the following CSS profiles:
| Specification | Draft / Proposal | Recommendation |
|---|---|---|
| CSS 1 | 17. Dec 1996 | |
| CSS 1 (Revised) | 11. Apr 2008 | |
| CSS 2 | 12. May 1998 | |
| CSS 2.1 | 07. Jun 2011 | |
| DOM Level 2 Style Specification | 13. Nov 2000 | |
| CSS Style Attributes | 12. Oct 2010 | |
| CSS 3 Namespaces Module | 29. Sep 2011 | |
| CSS 3 Selectors | 29. Sep 2011 | |
| CSS 3 User Interface Module | 17. Jan 2012 | |
| CSS 3 Fonts Module | 12. Feb 2013 | |
| CSS 3 Color Module | 07. Jun 2011 | |
| CSS 3 Backgrounds and Borders Module | 24. Jul 2012 | |
| CSS 3 Text Module | 13. Nov 2012 | |
| CSS 3 Lists and Counters Module | 24. May 2011 | |
| CSS 3 Line Module | 15. May 2002 | |
| CSS 3 Basic Box model | 09. Aug 2007 | |
| CSS 3 Multi-column Layout Module | 12. Apr 2011 | |
| CSS 3 Ruby Module | 30. Jun 2011 | |
| CSS 3 Speech Module | 20. Mar 2012 | |
| CSS 3 Paged Media Module | 10. Oct 2006 | |
| CSS 3 Generated content for Paged Media Module | 29. Nov 2011 | |
| CSS 3 Values and Units Module | 28. Aug 2012 | |
| CSS 3 Cascading and Inheritance | 03. Jan 2013 | |
| CSS 3 Template Layout Module | 29. Nov 2011 | |
| CSS 3 Media Queries | 19. Jun 2012 | |
| CSS Mobile Profile 2.0 | 10. Dec 2008 | |
| CSS TV Profile 1.0 | 14. May 2003 | |
| CSS Print Profile 1.0 | 13. Oct 2006 |
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