<main>: The HTML Main Element

1 Description

The HTML <main> element is used to contain the primary content for a given HTML document. The <main> elemnt should contain content which is directly related to the primary topic of the webpage.

There may be only one <main> element in each HTML document. The <main> elemnt should be a child (either directly or indirectly) of the <body> element.

For example a webpage which displays a news article about a baseball game should put the writing about the baseball game in the <main> element or in child elements of the <main> element (such as <section>, or <p> elements).

2 Examples

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
    <head>
        <title>Main element example</title>
    </head>
    <body>
        <main>
            <h1>The Weather in New York City</h1>
            <h2>May 22nd, 2025</h2>
            <section>
                <h3>Morning</h3>
                <p>
                    The weather in the morning is expected to be cold with some fog that will
                    last until 9:00am.
                </p>
            </section>
            <section>
                <h3>Afternoon</h3>
                <p>
                    The weather in the afternoon is expected to be clear with a high around 68 degrees
                    Fahrenheit. No clouds are expected. Humidity around 65%.
                </p>
            </section>
            <section>
                <h3>Evening/Night</h3>
                <p>
                    Temperatures will fall in the evening, the overnight low is expected to be around
                    45 degrees Fahrenheit.
                </p>
            </section>
        </main>
    </body>
</html>

This document was last updated: