10 genius CSS hacks to customize your input fields (with examples )

Table of content

1. Introduction
2. Hack #1: Changing the Background Color
3. Hack #2: Adding a Border
4. Hack #3: Changing the Font Style
5. Hack #4: Adjusting the Width and Height
6. Hack #5: Adding a Placeholder Text
7. Hack #6: Adding Icons to Input Fields
8. Hack #7: Creating a Hover Effect
9. Conclusion

Introduction

Input fields are an essential part of any form on a website, but they don't have to be boring! With CSS, you can customize your input fields to make them stand out and match your website's style. In this article, we will explore 10 genius CSS hacks that you can use to customize your input fields.

Whether you want to add hover effects, change the background color, or style the placeholder text, these CSS hacks will help you achieve your desired look. With examples for each hack, we'll show you how to implement these customizations on your website.

By the end of this article, you'll have the knowledge to take your input fields to the next level and create a more engaging user experience for your website visitors. So, let's dive into these CSS hacks and get started!

Hack #1: Changing the Background Color

Changing the background color of an input field is a simple hack that can instantly enhance the look and feel of your website. To accomplish this, you'll need to target the input element in your CSS code by using its class or ID. Once you've selected the appropriate input element, you can then use the background-color property to change its color.

Here's an example CSS snippet that changes the background color of all input elements with the class name "my-input":

.my-input {
  background-color: #f2f2f2;
}

In this example, we set the background color to a light grey color (#f2f2f2). Of course, you can change the color to any value that suits your website's design.

If you want to change the background color of a specific input element, rather than all input elements with a certain class or ID, you can use the ID selector like so:

#my-input {
  background-color: #f2f2f2;
}

In this case, we selected the element by its ID "my-input" and applied the background color change to that element only.

Overall, changing the background color of your input fields is an easy way to add some personality and style to your website. With CSS, it's simple to customize and experiment with different color schemes until you find the perfect one for your needs.

Hack #2: Adding a Border

Adding a border to an input field can give it a more defined and professional appearance. To accomplish this, use the border property in your CSS code.

input {
  border: 2px solid #ccc;
}

In the code above, we are setting the border property of all input fields to be 2 pixels wide, with a solid style, and a color of #ccc (light gray). You can adjust these values to fit your desired design.

If you want to apply the border to only certain input fields, you can use a specific class or ID. For example:

input.custom {
  border: 3px dashed blue;
}

In this code, we are targeting input fields with a class of custom, and adding a 3 pixel wide dashed border with a blue color.

Remember, the border property can be adjusted to include values for border-width, border-style, and border-color, in that order. For example:

input {
  border: 2px solid #ccc;
  border-radius: 4px;
}

In this code, we are setting the border-radius property to give the input fields rounded corners, in addition to the 2 pixel wide solid border with a light gray color.

By using the border and border-radius properties, you can easily customize the appearance of your input fields in CSS.

Hack #3: Changing the Font Style

To change the font style in input fields, Hack #3 on our list can be quite handy. This hack helps you to define a custom font style for input fields, which can give your website a unique look and feel. To implement this hack, you need to use the CSS font-family property.

The font-family property specifies the font family for the text inside an element. You can set it to any specific font or a group of system fonts, such as sans-serif,-serif, or monospace. For input fields, you can set the font-family property to any web font available on the internet.

To use a custom font for input fields, you should first define the font-family in the CSS file. Then, you need to apply the font-family property to the input field. For example, here is how you can define and apply a custom font style for input fields:

/* Define font family */
@font-face {
    font-family: 'MyFont';
    src: url('myfont.ttf');
}

/* Apply font family to input fields */
input[type="text"], input[type="email"], input[type="password"] {
    font-family: MyFont, sans-serif;
}

In the above code, we first define a custom font family named 'MyFont' using the @font-face rule. We provide the location of the font file ('myfont.ttf') in the src property. Then, we apply the 'MyFont' font family to all input fields of type text, email, and password using the font-family property. If the user's browser doesn't support the custom font, it will fall back to the system font specified in the second parameter of the font-family property.

By using this hack, you can provide a unique and custom look to your input fields, which can improve the overall user experience of your website. Just make sure to use web-safe fonts or provide the custom font files along with your website to ensure compatibility across all devices.

Hack #4: Adjusting the Width and Height

Adjusting the width and height of input fields is a common customization in CSS, and Hack #4 provides a simple way to achieve this. To adjust the width of an input field, we can use the "width" property in CSS. For example, if we want to set the width of an input field to 300 pixels, we can add the following code to our CSS file:

input {
  width: 300px;
}

This will apply the width of 300 pixels to all input fields on the page. We can also target specific input fields by using their ID or class:

#my-input {
  width: 300px;
}

.my-class {
  width: 300px;
}

To adjust the height of an input field, we can use the "height" property in CSS. For example, if we want to set the height of an input field to 50 pixels, we can add the following code to our CSS file:

input {
  height: 50px;
}

This will apply the height of 50 pixels to all input fields on the page. As with width, we can also target specific input fields by using their ID or class:

#my-input {
  height: 50px;
}

.my-class {
  height: 50px;
}

By adjusting the width and height of input fields, we can create a more customized and visually appealing form for our website or application.

Hack #5: Adding a Placeholder Text

A placeholder text is a text inside an input field that disappears automatically when the user starts typing. You can add placeholder text to your input fields using CSS.

To add the placeholder text, use the ::placeholder selector with the color property to set the color of the text. You can also use other properties such as font-size, font-weight, and text-align to further customize the look of the placeholder text.

/* Add placeholder text to an input field */
input::placeholder {
    color: #999;
    font-size: 14px;
    font-weight: bold;
    text-align: center;
}

In the above example, the placeholder text color is set to a light gray (#999), the font size is 14px and the font weight is bold. The text is also centered using the text-align property.

By adding placeholder text to your input fields, you can improve the user experience by providing a hint or example of what type of information should be entered in the field.

Hack #6: Adding Icons to Input Fields

To add icons to input fields using CSS, the ::before or ::after pseudo-elements can be used. These elements allow developers to add content before or after an element's content, without modifying the HTML.

First, a suitable image file needs to be selected and added to the project files. Then, to add an icon before the input field, the following CSS code can be used:

input::before {
  content: url("path to image file");
  padding-right: 5px; /* Adjust padding as needed */
}

This code selects all input fields and uses the ::before pseudo-element to add the image content, with the file's path specified in the URL function. The padding adjusts the spacing between the input field and the icon.

To add an icon after the input field, the ::after pseudo-element can be used instead:

input::after {
  content: url("path to image file");
  padding-left: 5px; /* Adjust padding as needed */
}

With these CSS hacks, input fields on a webpage can be customized with icons that provide visual cues for users and enhance the overall user experience.

Hack #7: Creating a Hover Effect

To create a hover effect in CSS for your input fields, you can use the :hover selector. This selector allows you to specify styles that will be applied to an element when the user hovers over it with their mouse cursor.

To use this hack, you will need to define a CSS rule that applies to your input fields and includes the :hover selector. For example, you might create a rule like this:

input:hover {
  background-color: #eee; 
}

This rule specifies that when the user hovers over an input field, the background color should change to #eee.

You can customize this effect by changing the properties that you apply to the input field. For example, you might change the font color, add a border, or make the text bold.

One important thing to keep in mind when using this hack is that some users may not be able to see the hover effect if they are using a screen reader or other assistive technology. For this reason, it's a good idea to ensure that your form is still usable and accessible even without the hover effect.

Conclusion

In , customizing input fields with CSS can add a professional and personalized touch to any website or application. The hacks explored in this article are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to customizing input fields, and there are many other creative ways to achieve the desired effect. Remember to use CSS hacks responsibly and consider the accessibility needs of all users, as some customizations may interfere with assistive technologies or cause confusion for those with visual impairments. With a little bit of creativity and some programming know-how, anyone can create input fields that are both visually appealing and functional.