font-variant-position CSS property
Baseline
Widely available
*
This feature is well established and works across many devices and browser versions. It’s been available across browsers since September 2023.
* Some parts of this feature may have varying levels of support.
The font-variant-position CSS property controls the use of alternate, smaller glyphs that are positioned as superscript or subscript.
The glyphs are positioned relative to the baseline of the font, which remains unchanged. These glyphs are typically used in <sub> and <sup> elements.
When the usage of these alternate glyphs is activated, if one character in the run doesn't have such a typographically-enhanced glyph, the whole set of characters of the run is rendered using a fallback method, synthesizing these glyphs.
These alternate glyphs share the same em-box and the same baseline as the rest of the font. They are merely graphically enhanced, and have no effect on the line-height and other box characteristics.
Syntax
css
/* Keyword values */
font-variant-position: normal;
font-variant-position: sub;
font-variant-position: super;
/* Global values */
font-variant-position: inherit;
font-variant-position: initial;
font-variant-position: revert;
font-variant-position: revert-layer;
font-variant-position: unset;
The font-variant-position property is specified as one of the keyword values listed below.
Values
normal-
Deactivates alternate superscript and subscript glyphs.
sub-
Activates subscript alternate glyphs. If, in a given run, one such glyph is not available for a character, all the characters in the run are rendered using synthesized glyphs.
super-
Activates superscript alternate glyphs. If, in a given run, one such glyph is not available for a character, all the characters in the run are rendered using synthesized glyphs.
Formal definition
| Initial value | normal |
|---|---|
| Applies to | all elements and text. It also applies to ::first-letter and ::first-line. |
| Inherited | yes |
| Computed value | as specified |
| Animation type | discrete |
Formal syntax
font-variant-position =
normal |
sub |
super
Examples
Setting superscript and subscript forms
HTML
html
<p class="normal">Normal!</p>
<p class="super">Super!</p>
<p class="sub">Sub!</p>
CSS
css
p {
display: inline;
}
.normal {
font-variant-position: normal;
}
.super {
font-variant-position: super;
}
.sub {
font-variant-position: sub;
}
Result
Specifications
| Specification |
|---|
| CSS Fonts Module Level 4 # font-variant-position-prop |
Browser compatibility
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normal
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sub
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super
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Legend
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- Full support
- Full support
- Partial support
- Partial support