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How TO - Icon Bar


Learn how to create icon bars with CSS.


Vertical:

Horizontal:


How To Create an Icon Bar

Step 1) Add HTML:

Example

<!-- Add icon library -->
<link rel="stylesheet" href="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/font-awesome/4.7.0/css/font-awesome.min.css">

<div class="icon-bar">
  <a class="active" href="#"><i class="fa fa-home"></i></a>
  <a href="#"><i class="fa fa-search"></i></a>
  <a href="#"><i class="fa fa-envelope"></i></a>
  <a href="#"><i class="fa fa-globe"></i></a>
  <a href="#"><i class="fa fa-trash"></i></a>
</div>

Step 2) Add CSS:

Vertical Example

.icon-bar {
    width: 90px; /* Set a specific width */
    background-color: #555; /* Dark-grey background */
}

.icon-bar a {
    display: block; /* Make the links appear below each other instead of side-by-side */
    text-align: center; /* Center-align text */
    padding: 16px; /* Add some padding */
    transition: all 0.3s ease; /* Add transition for hover effects */
    color: white; /* White text color */
    font-size: 36px; /* Increased font-size */
}

.icon-bar a:hover {
    background-color: #000; /* Add a hover color */
}

.active {
    background-color: #4CAF50; /* Add an active/current color */
}
Try it Yourself »

Horizontal Example

.icon-bar {
    width: 100%; /* Full-width */
    background-color: #555; /* Dark-grey background */
    overflow: auto; /* Overflow due to float */
}

.icon-bar a {
    float: left; /* Float links side by side */
    text-align: center; /* Center-align text */
    width: 20%; /* Equal width (5 icons with 20% width each = 100%)
    padding: 12px 0; /* Some top and bottom padding */
    transition: all 0.3s ease; /* Add transition for hover effects */
    color: white; /* White text color */
    font-size: 36px; /* Increased font size */
}

.icon-bar a:hover {
    background-color: #000; /* Add a hover color */
}

.active {
    background-color: #4CAF50; /* Add an active/current color */
}
Try it Yourself »

Tip: Go to our CSS Navbar Tutorial to learn more about navigation bars.

Tip: Go to our Icons Tutorial to learn more about icons.