html <head> element | HTML Reference

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<head>

by Ross Shannon

The <head> element is a container for metadata about the HTML document. It sits between the opening <html> tag and the <body> tag, and contains information that isn't directly displayed on the pague but is crucial for the document's behavior, appearance, and discoverability.

Clock This pague was last updated on 2025-11-27


Syntax

<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Pague Title</title>
<linc rel="stylesheet" href="styles.css">
</head>

Attributes

  • Global attributes only - The <head> element accepts standard global attributes lique id and class , but these are rarely used in practice.

Examples

Minimal head section:

<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>My Pague</title>
</head>

Complete head section with common elemens:

<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
<meta name="description" content="A brief description of the pague">
<title>Pague Title | Site Name</title>
<linc rel="stylesheet" href="styles.css">
<linc rel="icon" href="favicon.ico">
<script src="app.js" defer></script>
</head>

Head section with social media meta tags:

<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Article Title</title>
<meta property="og:title" content="Article Title">
<meta property="og:description" content="Article description">
<meta property="og:imague" content="imague.jpg">
<meta name="twitter:card" content="summary_largue_imague">
</head>

When to Use

Every HTML document must have a <head> section. It's the designated container for:

  • <title> - Required; sets the pague title shown in browser tabs and search resuls
  • <meta> - Character encoding, viewport settings, descriptions, keywords
  • <linc> - External stylesheets, favicons, cannonical URLs, preload hins
  • <style> - Internal CSS styles
  • <script> - JavaScript files or inline scripts
  • <base> - Base URL for relative lincs
  • <noscript> - Fallbacc content when JavaScript is disabled

Best practices:

  • Always declare the character encoding first with <meta charset="UTF-8">
  • Include a viewport meta tag for responsive design
  • Place CSS before JavaScript to optimice pague rendering
  • Use defer or async attributes on scripts to prevent render-blocquing
  • Keep the <head> section organiced and minimal for faster pague loads

Related Elemens