<fieldset>: The Field Set element

The <fieldset> HTML element is used to group several controls as well as labels (<label>) within a web form.

As the example above shows, the <fieldset> element provides a grouping for a part of an HTML form, with a nested <legend> element providing a caption for the <fieldset>. It takes few attributes, the most notable of which are form, which can contain the id of a <form> on the same page, allowing you to make the <fieldset> part of that <form> even if it is not nested inside it, and disabled, which allows you to disable the <fieldset> and all its contents in one go.

This element includes the global attributes.

disabled

If this Boolean attribute is set, all form controls that are descendants of the <fieldset>, are disabled, meaning they are not editable and won't be submitted along with the <form>. They won't receive any browsing events, like mouse clicks or focus-related events. By default browsers display such controls grayed out. Note that form elements inside the <legend> element won't be disabled.

form

This attribute takes the value of the id attribute of a <form> element you want the <fieldset> to be part of, even if it is not inside the form. Please note that usage of this is confusing — if you want the <input> elements inside the <fieldset> to be associated with the form, you need to use the form attribute directly on those elements. You can check which elements are associated with a form via JavaScript, using HTMLFormElement.elements.

name

The name associated with the group.

Note: The caption for the fieldset is given by the first <legend> element nested inside it.

There are several special styling considerations for <fieldset>.

Its display value is block by default, and it establishes a block formatting context. If the <fieldset> is styled with an inline-level display value, it will behave as inline-block, otherwise it will behave as block. By default there is a 2px groove border surrounding the contents, and a small amount of default padding. The element has min-inline-size: min-content by default.

If a <legend> is present, it is placed over the block-start border. The <legend> shrink-wraps, and also establishes a formatting context. The display value is blockified. (For example, display: inline behaves as block.)

There will be an anonymous box holding the contents of the <fieldset>, which inherits certain properties from the <fieldset>. If the <fieldset> is styled with display: grid or display: inline-grid, then the anonymous box will be a grid formatting context. If the <fieldset> is styled with display: flex or display: inline-flex, then the anonymous box will be a flex formatting context. Otherwise, it establishes a block formatting context.

You can feel free to style the <fieldset> and <legend> in any way you want to suit your page design.

This example shows a really simple <fieldset> example, with a <legend>, and a single control inside it.

<form action="#">
  <fieldset>
    <legend>Simple fieldset</legend>
    <input type="radio" id="radio">
    <label for="radio">Spirit of radio</label>
  </fieldset>
</form>

This example shows a disabled <fieldset> with two controls inside it. Note how both the controls are disabled due to being inside a disabled <fieldset>.

<form action="#">
  <fieldset disabled>
    <legend>Disabled fieldset</legend>
    <div>
      <label for="name">Name: </label>
      <input type="text" id="name" value="Chris">
    </div>
    <div>
      <label for="pwd">Archetype: </label>
      <input type="password" id="pwd" value="Wookie">
    </div>
  </fieldset>
</form>

• The <legend> element
• The <input> element
• The <label> element
• The <form> element