Forms

Basic example

Individual form controls automatically receive some global styling. All textual <input>, <textarea>, and <select> elements with .form-control are set to width: 100%; by default. Wrap labels and controls in .form-group for optimum spacing.

Example block-level help text here.

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Example block-level help text here.

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Don't mix form groups with input groups

Do not mix form groups directly with input groups. Instead, nest the input group inside of the form group.

Inline form

Add .form-inline to your <form> for left-aligned and inline-block controls. This only applies to forms within viewports that are at least 768px wide.

Requires custom widths

Inputs, selects, and textareas are 100% wide by default in Bootstrap. To use the inline form, you'll have to set a width on the form controls used within.

Always add labels

Screen readers will have trouble with your forms if you don't include a label for every input. For these inline forms, you can hide the labels using the .sr-only class.

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Horizontal form

Use Bootstrap's predefined grid classes to align labels and groups of form controls in a horizontal layout by adding .form-horizontal to the form. Doing so changes .form-groups to behave as grid rows, so no need for .row.

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Supported controls

Examples of standard form controls supported in an example form layout.

Inputs

Most common form control, text-based input fields. Includes support for all HTML5 types: text, password, datetime, datetime-local, date, month, time, week, number, email, url, search, tel, and color.

Type declaration required

Inputs will only be fully styled if their type is properly declared.

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Input groups

To add integrated text or buttons before and/or after any text-based <input>, check out the input group component.

Textarea

Form control which supports multiple lines of text. Change rows attribute as necessary.

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Checkboxes and radios

Checkboxes are for selecting one or several options in a list while radios are for selecting one option from many.

Default (stacked)


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Inline checkboxes and radios

Use the .checkbox-inline or .radio-inline classes on a series of checkboxes or radios for controls that appear on the same line.


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Selects

Use the default option, or add multiple to show multiple options at once.


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Static control

When you need to place plain text next to a form label within a horizontal form, use the .form-control-static class on a <p>.

email@example.com

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email@example.com

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Input focus

We remove the default outline styles on some form controls and apply a box-shadow in its place for :focus.

Demo :focus state

The above example input uses custom styles in our documentation to demonstrate the :focus state on a .form-control.

Disabled inputs

Add the disabled boolean attribute on an input to prevent user input and trigger a slightly different look.

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Disabled fieldsets

Add the disabled attribute to a <fieldset> to disable all the controls within the <fieldset> at once.

Caveat about link functionality of <a>

Our styles use pointer-events: none to try to disable the link functionality of <a class="btn btn-*"> buttons in this case, but that CSS property is not yet standardized and isn't fully supported in Opera 18 and below, or in Internet Explorer 11. So to be safe, use custom JavaScript to disable such links.

Cross-browser compatibility

While Bootstrap will apply these styles in all browsers, Internet Explorer 9 and below don't actually support the disabled attribute on a <fieldset>. Use custom JavaScript to disable the fieldset in these browsers.

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Readonly inputs

Add the readonly boolean attribute on an input to prevent user input and style the input as disabled.

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Validation states

Bootstrap includes validation styles for error, warning, and success states on form controls. To use, add .has-warning, .has-error, or .has-success to the parent element. Any .control-label, .form-control, and .help-block within that element will receive the validation styles.

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With optional icons

You can also add optional feedback icons with the addition of .has-feedback and the right icon.

Icons, labels, and input groups

Manual positioning of feedback icons is required for inputs without a label and for input groups with an add-on on the right. For inputs without labels, adjust the topvalue. For input groups, adjust the right value to an appropriate pixel value depending on the width of your addon.

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Optional icons also work on horizontal and inline forms.

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Control sizing

Set heights using classes like .input-lg, and set widths using grid column classes like .col-lg-*.

Height sizing

Create taller or shorter form controls that match button sizes.

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Column sizing

Wrap inputs in grid columns, or any custom parent element, to easily enforce desired widths.

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Help text

Block level help text for form controls.

A block of help text that breaks onto a new line and may extend beyond one line.
{% highlight html %} A block of help text that breaks onto a new line and may extend beyond one line. {% endhighlight %}