The Height Enigma (CSS)

a year ago

CSS height property sometimes doesn't work due to circular calculations between parent and child elements.
Width and height in CSS are calculated differently; width depends on the parent, while height depends on children.
Percentage-based heights require the parent to have a 'knowable' height, not dependent on children.
Using explicit heights (like px or rem) on parents allows percentage heights to work on children.
The root <html> tag can use height: 100% because it references the viewport, not a parent element.
Flexbox and Grid layouts can help avoid height issues by changing how elements fill available space.
Min-height doesn't resolve circular height issues because it still depends on children's content.
CSS layout algorithms (Flow, Flexbox, Grid) behave differently, affecting how heights are calculated.

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