HTML Lists and Tables

Lists and tables are used to organise and display information on a webpage.

Lists are useful for displaying related items, while tables are useful for displaying data in rows and columns.

Unordered Lists

An unordered list displays items using bullet points.

<ul>
    <li>HTML</li>
    <li>CSS</li>
    <li>JavaScript</li>
</ul>

Result:

Ordered Lists

An ordered list displays items using numbers.

<ol>
    <li>Plan the website</li>
    <li>Create the HTML</li>
    <li>Add CSS styling</li>
</ol>

Result:

  1. Plan the website
  2. Create the HTML
  3. Add CSS styling

Nested Lists

Lists can be placed inside other lists.

<ul>

    <li>Web Development

        <ul>
            <li>HTML</li>
            <li>CSS</li>
            <li>JavaScript</li>
        </ul>

    </li>

</ul>

Result:

Definition Lists

Definition lists are useful for displaying terms and descriptions.

<dl>

    <dt>HTML</dt>
    <dd>Creates webpage content.</dd>

    <dt>CSS</dt>
    <dd>Controls appearance and styling.</dd>

</dl>

Result:

HTML
Creates webpage content.
CSS
Controls appearance and styling.

Creating a Table

Tables display information in rows and columns.

<table>

    <tr>
        <th>Name</th>
        <th>Score</th>
    </tr>

    <tr>
        <td>Sam</td>
        <td>90</td>
    </tr>

</table>

Result:

Name Score
Sam 90

Understanding Table Elements

Tables are made up of:

Element Purpose
<table> Creates the table
<tr> Creates a row
<th> Creates a heading cell
<td> Creates a data cell

Adding Multiple Rows

<table>

    <tr>
        <th>Name</th>
        <th>Score</th>
    </tr>

    <tr>
        <td>Sam</td>
        <td>90</td>
    </tr>

    <tr>
        <td>Alex</td>
        <td>85</td>
    </tr>

    <tr>
        <td>Jess</td>
        <td>95</td>
    </tr>

</table>

Result:

Name Score
Sam 90
Alex 85
Jess 95

Screenshot Placeholder

Insert screenshot showing a table with multiple rows.

Adding Borders

Tables often use CSS for styling.

<table border="1">

    <tr>
        <th>Name</th>
        <th>Score</th>
    </tr>

    <tr>
        <td>Sam</td>
        <td>90</td>
    </tr>

</table>

Result:

A table with visible borders.

Merging Columns

Use colspan to combine columns.

<table border="1">

    <tr>
        <th colspan="2">
            Student Results
        </th>
    </tr>

    <tr>
        <td>Sam</td>
        <td>90</td>
    </tr>

</table>

Result:

Merging Rows

Use rowspan to combine rows.

<table border="1">

    <tr>
        <td rowspan="2">
            Year 10
        </td>

        <td>Sam</td>
    </tr>

    <tr>
        <td>Alex</td>
    </tr>

</table>

Complete Example

<!DOCTYPE html>

<html>

<head>
    <title>Lists and Tables</title>
</head>

<body>

    <h1>Lists and Tables</h1>

    <h2>Favourite Subjects</h2>

    <ul>
        <li>Digital Technologies</li>
        <li>Engineering</li>
        <li>Science</li>
    </ul>

    <h2>Student Results</h2>

    <table border="1">

        <tr>
            <th>Name</th>
            <th>Score</th>
        </tr>

        <tr>
            <td>Sam</td>
            <td>90</td>
        </tr>

        <tr>
            <td>Alex</td>
            <td>85</td>
        </tr>

    </table>

</body>

</html>

Quick Reference

Unordered List

<ul>
    <li>Item</li>
</ul>

Ordered List

<ol>
    <li>Item</li>
</ol>

Definition List

<dl>
    <dt>Term</dt>
    <dd>Description</dd>
</dl>

Table

<table>

Table Row

<tr>

Table Header

<th>

Table Data

<td>

Merge Columns

colspan="2"

Merge Rows

rowspan="2"

You now know how to create lists and tables in HTML.

Next tutorial: HTML Forms

Revision #1
Created 2026-06-14 11:21:33 UTC by Mr Napper
Updated 2026-06-14 11:26:52 UTC by Mr Napper