The break-after
CSS property defines how page, column, or region breaks should behave after a generated box. If there is no generated box, the property is ignored.
/* Generic break values */ break-after: auto; break-after: avoid; /* Page break values */ break-after: avoid-page; break-after: page; break-after: always; break-after: left; break-after: right; break-after: recto; break-after: verso; /* Column break values */ break-after: avoid-column; break-after: column; /* Region break values */ break-after: avoid-region; break-after: region; /* Global values */ break-after: inherit; break-after: initial; break-after: unset;
Each possible break point (in other words, each element boundary) is affected by three properties: the break-after
value of the previous element, the break-before
value of the next element, and the break-inside
value of the containing element.
To determine if a break must be done, the following rules are applied:
- If any of the three concerned values is a forced break value (
always
,left
,right
,page
,column
, orregion
), it has precedence. If more than one of them are such a break, the one of the element that appears the latest in the flow is taken (i.e., thebreak-before
value has precedence over thebreak-after
value, which itself has precedence over thebreak-inside
value). - If any of the three concerned values is an avoid break value (
avoid
,avoid-page
,avoid-region
, oravoid-column
), no such break will be applied at that point.
Once forced breaks have been applied, soft breaks may be added if needed, but not on element boundaries that resolve in a corresponding avoid value.
Initial value | auto |
---|---|
Applies to | block-level elements |
Inherited | no |
Media | paged |
Computed value | as specified |
Animation type | discrete |
Canonical order | the unique non-ambiguous order defined by the formal grammar |
Syntax
The break-after
property is specified as one of the keyword values from the list below.
Values
General break values
auto
- Allows, but does not force, any break (page, column, or region) to be inserted right after the principal box.
avoid
- Avoids any break (page, column, or region) from being inserted right after the principal box.
Page break values
avoid-page
- Avoids any page break right after the principal box.
page
- Forces a page break right after the principal box.
always
- Forces a page break right after the principal box. (This is an alias of
page
, and has been kept to facilitate the transition frompage-break-after
, which is a subset of this property.) left
- Forces one or two page breaks right after the principal box, whichever will make the next page into a left page.
right
- Forces one or two page breaks right after the principal box, whichever will make the next page into a right page.
recto
- Forces one or two page breaks right after the principal box, whichever will make the next page into a recto page. (A recto page is a right page in a left-to-right spread or a left page in a right-to-left spread.)
verso
- Forces one or two page breaks right after the principal box, whichever will make the next page into a verso page. (A verso page is a left page in a left-to-right spread or a left right in a right-to-left spread.)
Column break values
avoid-column
- Avoids any column break right after the principal box.
column
- Forces a column break right after the principal box.
Region break values
avoid-region
- Avoids any region break right after the principal box.
region
- Forces a region break right after the principal box.
Formal syntax
auto | avoid | avoid-page | page | left | right | recto | verso | avoid-column | column | avoid-region | region
Specifications
Specification | Status | Comment |
---|---|---|
CSS Fragmentation Module Level 3 The definition of 'break-after' in that specification. |
Candidate Recommendation | Adds the recto and verso keywords. Changes the media type of this property from paged to visual . Defines the breaking algorithm with different kinds of breaks. |
CSS Regions Module Level 1 The definition of 'break-after' in that specification. |
Working Draft | Extends the property to handle region breaks. Adds the avoid-region and region keywords. |
CSS Multi-column Layout Module The definition of 'break-after' in that specification. |
Candidate Recommendation | Initial definition. Extends the CSS 2.1 page-break-after property to handle both page and column breaks. |
Browser compatibility
Feature | Chrome | Edge | Firefox | Internet Explorer | Opera | Safari |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Basic support | No | Yes | No | 10 | 11.1 — 12.1 | No |
column and avoid-column | No | No | No | 10 | 11.1 — 12.1 | No |
recto and verso | No | No | No | No | No | No |
region and avoid-region | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Feature | Android webview | Chrome for Android | Edge mobile | Firefox for Android | IE mobile | Opera Android | iOS Safari |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Basic support | No | ? | Yes | No | ? | ? | No |
column and avoid-column | No | ? | No | No | ? | ? | No |
recto and verso | No | ? | No | No | No | No | No |
region and avoid-region | No | ? | No | No | No | No | No |