15 Useful CSS Properties You Should Know About 🎨

In the world of web development, the power and flexibility of CSS are becoming more pronounced by the day. However, some CSS properties are often overlooked or underappreciated. In this article, we will focus on 15 useful CSS properties that developers should know about but often go unnoticed. These properties offer powerful tools to enhance the design, performance, and user experience of websites.

1. caret-color

The caret-color property specifies the color of the caret (text cursor) in an input field or any editable text area. It allows you to customize the color of the blinking vertical line that indicates where text will be inserted.

2. accent-color

The accent-color property is used to specify the accent color for certain form controls within an element (such as radio buttons, checkboxes, etc.). This property overrides the default theme color of the browser and replaces it with the color specified by the developer.

3. pointer-events

The pointer-events property determines which events can trigger on an element. For instance, when an element’s pointer-events property is set to none , no mouse activity occurs when hovered over.

4. user-select

The user-select property, on the other hand, determines the selectability of text within an element. When set to none , users cannot select the text.

5. hyphens

The hyphens property automatically break long words at the end of lines to improve the readability of text. If a word exceeds the width of the line, it is broken at an appropriate point and moved to the next line.

6. quotes

The quotes property is used to customizethe quotation marks that are automatically added around quoted text or text inside q elements on a webpage.

7. text-emphasis

The text-emphasis property is used to emphasize certain characters within a text block. These characters are typically used to indicate the meaning or important parts of the text.

8. backdrop-filter

The backdrop-filter CSS property allows you to apply various effects to the content behind an element. It is commonly used to blur the background, change its color, or add shadows, providing a powerful tool for creating modern web designs, especially for transparent or semi-transparent backgrounds.

9. backface-visibility

The backface-visibility CSS property determines whether or not the back face of an element is visible when it's rotated in 3D space. If the back face is not visible, the browser doesn't render it, which can improve performance.

10. background-clip

The background-clip property determines how a background is clipped. This property controls whether a background extends to the edges of the content box, or if it is clipped to the padding and border areas.

11. mix-blend-mode

The mix-blend-mode propert is a CSS property used to blend the colors of two or more layers. This property mixes the colors of one layer with the layers beneath it, creating a different visual effect on the screen. It is particularly useful when working with backgrounds, overlapping elements, and images.

12. image-rendering

The image-rendering property is used to determine how an image should be rendered. It tells the browser which algorithm to use when scaling or resizing an image. This property is particularly useful for web developers to maintain quality when enlarging or reducing an image.

13. scroll-snap-type

Thescroll-snap-type property is used to enable smooth transitioning between snap points within a scroll container. This feature provides a more structured user experience by ensuring that sections of content align cleanly when the user scrolls through a page. The scroll-snap-type property controls scrolling along the horizontal or vertical axis and defines how snap points are engaged.

14. shape-outside

The shape-outside property defines how text wraps around an HTML element. This property is particularly useful for floated elements. The defined shape dictates the flow of the text around that element, enabling text to wrap smoothly around non-rectangular shapes.

15. counter

CSS user-select property is a property used to customize numbers and automatically number specific elements in HTML documents. This feature can be used to add numbers to list items or specific HTML elements.

content → Used with the ::before and ::after pseudo-elements, to insert generated content.
counter-increment → Increments one or more counter values.
counter-reset → Creates or resets one or more counters.
counter() → Returns the current value of the named counter.

Conclusion

In this article, we’ve covered 15 useful CSS properties that are often overlooked but can significantly enhance the design and functionality of modern websites. Understanding and leveraging these properties can elevate your web development skills and contribute to building more impressive and functional websites.