HTML colspan Attribute

The colspan attribute in HTML is used in table cells (<td> or <th>) to span a cell across multiple columns. It helps in merging columns to create flexible table layouts.

• Specifies the number of columns a cell should span.
• Accepts a positive integer value (default is 1).
• Used to merge cells horizontally in a table.

Note: colspan="0" spans all remaining columns, but is not reliably supported in HTML5; use a positive integer value instead.

Syntax

<td colspan = "value">table content...</td>

• Can be used with <td> and <th> elements.
• Specifies how many columns a cell spans.
• Value should be a positive integer.

Attribute Values

• number: Specifies how many columns a cell spans. Use a positive integer; colspan="0" spans remaining columns but is not reliably supported.

Using with <td> tag

The colspan attribute, when used with the <td> tag, specifies the number of columns a table cell should span.

Syntax

<td colspan="value">Table content...</td>

• The value defines how many columns the cell spans.
• The value must be a positive integer.

Example: Implementation of colspan attribute with td attribute with an example.

Using with <th> tag

The colspan attribute, when used with the <th> tag, specifies the number of columns a header cell should span.

Syntax:

<th colspan="value">Table content...</th>

• The value defines how many columns the header cell spans.
• The value must be a positive integer.

Example: The implementation of rowspan attribute with th attribute with an example.