The :checked CSS pseudo-class selector represents any radio (<input type="radio">), checkbox (<input type="checkbox">), or option (<option> in a <select>) element that is checked or toggled to an on state.

/* Matches any checked/selected radio, checkbox, or option */ :checked {   margin-left: 25px;   border: 1px solid blue; } 

:checked

The :checked CSS pseudo-class selector represents any radio (<input type="radio">), checkbox (<input type="checkbox">), or option (<option> in a <select>) element that is checked or toggled to an on state.

/* Matches any checked/selected radio, checkbox, or option */ :checked {   margin-left: 25px;   border: 1px solid blue; } 

The user can engage this state by checking/selecting an element, or disengage it by unchecking/deselecting the element.

Note: Because browsers often treat <option>s as replaced elements, the extent to which they can be styled with the :checked pseudo-class varies from browser to browser.

Syntax

:checked

Examples

Basic example

HTML

<div>   <input type="radio" name="my-input" id="yes">   <label for="yes">Yes</label>    <input type="radio" name="my-input" id="no">   <label for="no">No</label> </div>  <div>   <input type="checkbox" name="my-checkbox" id="opt-in">   <label for="opt-in">Check me!</label> </div>  <select name="my-select" id="fruit">   <option value="opt1">Apples</option>   <option value="opt2">Grapes</option>   <option value="opt3">Pears</option> </select> 

CSS

div, select {   margin: 8px; }  /* Labels for checked inputs */ input:checked + label {   color: red; }  /* Radio element, when checked */ input[type="radio"]:checked {   box-shadow: 0 0 0 3px orange; }  /* Checkbox element, when checked */ input[type="checkbox"]:checked {   box-shadow: 0 0 0 3px hotpink; }  /* Option elements, when selected */ option:checked {   box-shadow: 0 0 0 3px lime;   color: red; } 

Result

Toggling elements with a hidden checkbox

This example utilizes the :checked pseudo-class to let the user toggle content based on the state of a checkbox, all without using JavaScript.

HTML

<input type="checkbox" id="expand-toggle" />  <table>   <thead>     <tr><th>Column #1</th><th>Column #2</th><th>Column #3</th></tr>   </thead>   <tbody>     <tr class="expandable"><td>[more text]</td><td>[more text]</td><td>[more text]</td></tr>     <tr><td>[cell text]</td><td>[cell text]</td><td>[cell text]</td></tr>     <tr><td>[cell text]</td><td>[cell text]</td><td>[cell text]</td></tr>     <tr class="expandable"><td>[more text]</td><td>[more text]</td><td>[more text]</td></tr>     <tr class="expandable"><td>[more text]</td><td>[more text]</td><td>[more text]</td></tr>   </tbody> </table>  <label for="expand-toggle" id="expand-btn">Toggle hidden rows</label> 

CSS

/* Hide the toggle checkbox */ #expand-toggle {   display: none; }  /* Hide expandable content by default */ .expandable {   visibility: collapse;   background: #ddd; }  /* Style the button */ #expand-btn {   display: inline-block;   margin-top: 12px;   padding: 5px 11px;   background-color: #ff7;   border: 1px solid;   border-radius: 3px; }  /* Show hidden content when the checkbox is checked */ #expand-toggle:checked ~ * .expandable {   visibility: visible; }  /* Style the button when the checkbox is checked */ #expand-toggle:checked ~ #expand-btn {   background-color: #ccc; } 

Result

Image gallery

You can use the :checked pseudo-class to build an image gallery with full-size images that show only when the user clicks on a thumbnail. See this demo for a possible cue.

Note: For an analogous effect, but based on the :hover pseudo-class and without hidden radioboxes, see this demo, taken from the :hover reference page.

Specifications

Specification
HTML Standard # selector-checked
Selectors Level 4 # checked

See also

Web forms — working with user data Styling web forms Related HTML elements: <input type="checkbox">, <input type="radio">, <select>, and <option> Replaced elements

Last modified: Aug 12, 2021, by MDN contributors

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