CSS

background-repeat

Property

Example

Repeat a background-image only vertically:

body
{
 
background-image: url(“paper.gif”);
 
background-repeat: repeat-y;
}

Try it Yourself »

More “Try it Yourself” examples below.

Definition and Usage

The background-repeat property sets if/how a background image will be
repeated.

By default, a background-image is repeated both vertically and horizontally.

Tip: The background image is placed according to the
background-position property. If no background-position is specified, the image
is always placed at the element’s top left corner.

Show demo ❯

Default value:
repeat

Inherited:
no

Animatable:
no. Read about animatable

Version:
CSS1

JavaScript syntax:
object.style.backgroundRepeat=”repeat-x”
Try it

Browser Support

The numbers in the table specify the first browser version that fully supports the property.

Property

background-repeat
1.0
4.0
1.0
1.0
3.5

Note: IE8 and earlier do not support multiple background images
on one element.

CSS Syntax

background-repeat: repeat|repeat-x|repeat-y|no-repeat|initial|inherit;

Property Values

Value
Description
Demo

repeat
The background image is repeated both vertically and
horizontally.  The last image will be clipped if it does not fit. This is default
Demo ❯

repeat-x
The background image is repeated only horizontally
Demo ❯

repeat-y
The background image is repeated only vertically
Demo ❯

no-repeat
The background-image is not repeated. The image will only be shown
once
Demo ❯

space
The background-image is repeated as much as possible without clipping.
The first and last image is pinned to either side of the element, and
whitespace is distributed evenly between the images
Demo ❯

round
The background-image is repeated and squished or stretched to fill the
space (no gaps)
Demo ❯

initial
Sets this property to its default value. Read about initial

inherit
Inherits this property from its parent element. Read about inherit

More Examples

Example

Repeat a background image both vertically and horizontally (this is default):

body
{
 
background-image: url(“paper.gif”);
 
background-repeat: repeat;
}

Try it Yourself »

Example

Repeat a background image only horizontally:

body
{
  background-image: url(“paper.gif”);
 
background-repeat: repeat-x;
}

Try it Yourself »

Example

Do not repeat a background image. The image will only be shown once:

body
{
 
background-image: url(“paper.gif”);
 
background-repeat: no-repeat;
}

Try it Yourself »

Example

Using background-repeat: space and background-repeat: round:

#example2 {
  border: 2px solid black;
 
padding: 25px;
  background: url(“w3css.gif”);
 
background-repeat: space;
}

#example3 {
  border: 1px solid black;
  padding: 25px;
 
background: url(“w3css.gif”);
  background-repeat: round;
}

Try it Yourself »

Example

Use different background properties to create a “hero” image:

.hero-image {
  background-image: url(“photographer.jpg”); /* The
image used */
  background-color: #cccccc; /* Used if the image is
unavailable */
  height: 500px; /* You must set a specified height */
 
background-position: center; /* Center the image */
 
background-repeat: no-repeat; /* Do not repeat the image */
 
background-size: cover; /* Resize the background image to cover the entire container */
}

Try it Yourself »

Related Pages

CSS tutorial: CSS Background

CSS reference: background-position
property

HTML DOM reference:
backgroundRepeat property