coderef

::placeholderBaseline · Widely available

The ::placeholder CSS pseudo-element selects help text in <input> and <textarea> elements when no value is set.

Supported in all major browsers for at least 30 months — safe to use without fallbacks. Baseline since Jan 15, 2020. Widely available since Jul 15, 2022.

Browser support

DesktopChrome
1–56Not supported
57+Supportedsince Mar 9, 2017
Current: 155
Edge
12–18Not supported
79+Supportedsince Jan 15, 2020
Current: 154
Firefox
1–50Not supported
51+Supportedsince Jan 24, 2017
Current: 157
Safari
1–10Not supported
10.1+Supportedsince Mar 27, 2017
Current: 27
MobileChrome Android
18–56Not supported
57+Supportedsince Mar 16, 2017
Current: 155
Firefox Android
4–50Not supported
51+Supportedsince Jan 24, 2017
Current: 157
Safari iOS
1–10Not supported
10.3+Supportedsince Mar 27, 2017
Current: 27

How to use

This feature is Baseline widely available — use it freely, no fallback needed.

Example

Full syntax and examples are on MDN: ::placeholder.

Feature detection

CSS · check before using
@supports selector(::placeholder) {
  /* styles that use ::placeholder */
}

/* or in JavaScript */
if (CSS.supports("selector(::placeholder)")) {
  // use it
}