Nondisplay

Nondisplay is a general term used to describe content, data, or user interface elements that exist within a system but are not shown to the user in the primary visual presentation. It denotes a distinction between what is rendered or presented and what remains hidden or non-rendered, either by design or by technical choice. The concept is applied across domains to manage content visibility, state, and data integrity without presenting everything directly to users.

In computing and web development, nondisplay often refers to elements that are present in a document object model but not rendered on screen. Techniques such as hiding with CSS (for example, display: none or visibility: hidden), off-screen positioning, or conditional rendering can produce nondisplayed content. Hidden fields in forms, accessibility considerations, and dynamic interfaces rely on nondisplayed data or markup to preserve state, enable scripting, or support tooling while keeping the user interface uncluttered.

In digital advertising, nondisplay can describe formats or inventory that do not appear as standard on-page banners. This includes search ads, video ads, native or in-feed placements, email advertising, and other non-display channels. The label helps distinguish these formats from traditional display advertising and to categorize performance measurement and targeting approaches accordingly.

In data management and publishing, nondisplay may refer to metadata, logs, or auxiliary fields that are not shown to readers or end users but are essential for processing, analytics, validation, or internal workflow.

See also: display, hidden fields, accessibility, ad formats.