marginLeft

margin-left is a CSS property used to specify the width of the space on the left side of an element’s outer margin. It is part of the CSS box model and determines how far the element is offset from its left neighbor or the left edge of the containing block.

Values for margin-left can be lengths (such as px, em, rem, or cm), percentages, or the keyword auto. A length or percentage creates a fixed amount of space on the left, while auto allows the browser or layout system to determine the appropriate offset in certain contexts, such as within flexbox or grid layouts.

In normal document flow, margin-left contributes to horizontal spacing and can affect the element’s position relative to others. Horizontal margins do not participate in margin collapsing, which is a behavior that applies only to vertical margins between block-level elements.

For internationalized layouts, there are logical properties margin-inline-start and margin-inline-end that adapt to writing modes and directions. When working with the DOM in JavaScript, the corresponding style property is marginLeft (camelCase) and can be read or set to adjust spacing programmatically.

Common uses of margin-left include creating indentations, aligning blocks within a container, and producing gutters between adjacent elements in a horizontal layout. It is widely supported across browsers and commonly paired with related properties such as margin-right, margin-top, and margin-bottom for full control over element spacing.