The :not()
CSS pseudo-class represents elements that do not match a list of selectors. Since it prevents specific items from being selected, it is known as the negation pseudo-class.
/* Selects any element that is NOT a paragraph */ :not(p) { color: blue; }
The :not()
pseudo-class has a number of quirks, tricks, and unexpected results that you should be aware of before using it.
Syntax
The :not()
pseudo-class requires a comma-separated list of one or more selectors as its argument. The list must not contain another negation selector or a pseudo-element.
The ability to list more than one selector is experimental and not yet widely supported.
:not( <complex-selector-list> )where
<complex-selector-list> = <complex-selector>#
where
<complex-selector> = <compound-selector> [ <combinator>? <compound-selector> ]*
where
<compound-selector> = [ <type-selector>? <subclass-selector>* [ <pseudo-element-selector> <pseudo-class-selector>* ]* ]!
<combinator> = '>' | '+' | '~' | [ '|' ]where
<type-selector> = <wq-name> | <ns-prefix>? '*'
<subclass-selector> = <id-selector> | <class-selector> | <attribute-selector> | <pseudo-class-selector>
<pseudo-element-selector> = ':' <pseudo-class-selector>
<pseudo-class-selector> = ':' <ident-token> | ':' <function-token> <any-value> ')'where
<wq-name> = <ns-prefix>? <ident-token>
<ns-prefix> = [ <ident-token> | '*' ]? |
<id-selector> = <hash-token>
<class-selector> = '.' <ident-token>
<attribute-selector> = '[' <wq-name> ']' | '[' <wq-name> <attr-matcher> [ <string-token> | <ident-token> ] <attr-modifier>? ']'where
<attr-matcher> = [ '~' | | | '^' | '$' | '*' ]? '='
<attr-modifier> = i | s
Description
There are several unusual effects and outcomes when using :not()
that you should keep in mind when using it:
- The
:not
pseudo-class may not be nested, which means that:not(:not(...))
is invalid. - Since pseudo-elements are not simple selectors, they are not valid arguments to
:not()
; thus, selectors like:not(p::before)
will not work. - Useless selectors can be written using this pseudo-class. For example,
:not(*)
matches any element which is not an element, which is obviously nonsense, so the accompanying rule will never be applied. - This pseudo-class can increase the specificity of a rule. For example,
#foo:not(#bar)
will match the same element as the simpler#foo
, but has a higher specificity. :not(.foo)
will match anything that isn't.foo
, including<html>
and<body>
.- This selector only applies to one element; you cannot use it to exclude all ancestors. For instance,
body :not(table) a
will still apply to links inside of a table, since<tr>
will match with the:not()
part of the selector.
Examples
HTML
<p>I am a paragraph.</p> <p class="fancy">I am so very fancy!</p> <div>I am NOT a paragraph.</div>
CSS
.fancy { text-shadow: 2px 2px 3px gold; } /* <p> elements that are not in the class `.fancy` */ p:not(.fancy) { color: green; } /* Elements that are not <p> elements */ body :not(p) { text-decoration: underline; } /* Elements that are not <div> and not <span> elements */ body :not(div):not(span) { font-weight: bold; } /* Elements that are not `.crazy` or `.fancy` */ /* Note that this syntax is not well supported yet. */ body :not(.crazy, .fancy) { font-family: sans-serif; }
Result
Specifications
Specification | Status | Comment |
---|---|---|
Selectors Level 4 The definition of ':not()' in that specification. |
Working Draft | Extends its argument to allow some non-simple selectors. |
Selectors Level 3 The definition of ':not()' in that specification. |
Recommendation | Initial definition. |
Browser compatibility
Desktop | Mobile | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Negation pseudo-class selector (:not() ) | Chrome Full support 1 | Edge Full support 12 | Firefox Full support 1 | IE Full support 9 | Opera Full support 9.5 | Safari Full support 3.2 | WebView Android Full support 2 | Chrome Android Full support 18 | Firefox Android Full support 4 | Opera Android Full support 10.1 | Safari iOS Full support 3.2 | Samsung Internet Android Full support 1.0 |
Selector list argument | Chrome No support No | Edge No support No | Firefox No support No | IE No support No | Opera No support No | Safari Full support 9 | WebView Android No support No | Chrome Android No support No | Firefox Android No support No | Opera Android No support No | Safari iOS Full support 9 | Samsung Internet Android No support No |
Legend
- Full support
- Full support
- No support
- No support
See also
- Pseudo-classes
- Pseudo-classes and pseudo-elements
- Related CSS pseudo-classes: