HTML Formatter
Format and beautify HTML with configurable indentation, print width and structured document statistics directly in your browser.
Format HTML
Beautify HTML with consistent indentation, configurable line width and whitespace handling.
A formatting preference that influences when long lines and attribute lists are wrapped.
Indentation
2 Spaces
Print Width
100
Whitespace
CSS
Shortcut: Ctrl/Cmd + Enter to format HTML
HTML Document Overview
Inspect the basic structure of the HTML currently loaded into the formatter.
Elements
—
Attributes
—
Maximum Depth
—
HTML Doctype
—
Document Nodes
See the types of content nodes contained inside the HTML structure.
Elements
—
Text Nodes
—
Comments
—
HTML Content Statistics
Quick counts of commonly used page elements.
Links
—
Images
—
Forms
—
Inputs
—
Buttons
—
Scripts
—
Styles
—
Headings
—
Tables
—
Lists
—
Document Size
Compare the source markup with the formatted result.
Input
0
Lines
0
Characters
0
Bytes
Output
0
Lines
0
Characters
0
Bytes
HTML Formatting Example
Compact HTML
<div class="card"><h2>Hello</h2><p>Welcome to SwiftVecto.</p><button type="button">Continue</button></div>
Formatted HTML
<div class="card">
<h2>Hello</h2>
<p>Welcome to SwiftVecto.</p>
<button type="button">Continue</button>
</div>
Common HTML Element Types
| Element | Typical Purpose |
|---|---|
<header>
|
Introductory content or page/section header. |
<nav>
|
Navigation links. |
<main>
|
Primary page content. |
<section>
|
Thematic section of content. |
<article>
|
Self-contained article or content item. |
<aside>
|
Supporting or secondary content. |
<footer>
|
Footer information for a page or section. |
<form>
|
Collect user input. |
HTML Void Elements
Void elements do not contain child content and do not use ordinary closing tags.
<area>
<base>
<br>
<col>
<embed>
<hr>
<img>
<input>
<link>
<meta>
<source>
<track>
<wbr>
Formatting Tailwind-Heavy HTML
Long utility-class lists are ordinary HTML attributes and can be formatted without changing the classes themselves.
<div
class="mx-auto max-w-5xl rounded-2xl border border-slate-200 bg-white p-6 shadow-sm dark:border-slate-800 dark:bg-slate-900"
>
<h2 class="text-2xl font-bold text-slate-900 dark:text-white">
SwiftVecto
</h2>
</div>
Complete Documents & HTML Fragments
Complete Document
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>...</head>
<body>...</body>
</html>
HTML Fragment
<section>
<h2>Tools</h2>
<p>Developer utilities.</p>
</section>
The formatter can process either style; a full
<html>
document is not required.
Laravel Blade Needs Its Own Formatter
Ordinary HTML inside a Blade view can look identical to normal HTML, but Laravel Blade also introduces directives and expressions that are not part of HTML syntax.
@if($user)
{{ $user->name }}
@endif
Use the separate Laravel Blade Formatter for code containing constructs such as
@if,
@foreach,
@section,
Blade components and Blade echo expressions.
Formatting Is Not HTML Standards Validation
Web browsers intentionally recover from many malformed HTML structures, and a formatter is not the same as a standards validator.
A document may therefore format successfully while still containing accessibility issues, obsolete markup, semantic problems or other standards concerns.
Whitespace Can Affect Rendered HTML
Whitespace around inline elements can affect the visible spacing of text. Prettier therefore provides HTML whitespace-sensitivity rules rather than treating all whitespace as disposable.
The default CSS mode is the safest general-purpose setting for ordinary HTML.
Review Whitespace-Sensitive Content
Elements such as
<pre>
and
<textarea>
can contain whitespace-sensitive content.
Review important output containing preformatted text after formatting, especially when the exact spacing or line structure is part of the content.
Private Browser-Based HTML Formatting
HTML formatting and document inspection are performed directly inside your browser during normal interactive use.
- No HTML file upload is required.
- HTML content does not need to be sent to SwiftVecto's server.
- Formatting uses the installed Prettier package locally.
- Element and structure statistics are calculated with the browser DOM.
- The formatter does not execute scripts contained in the pasted HTML.
Continue with These Tools
Finished using HTML Formatter? Here are some related tools that people commonly use next to complete their workflow faster.
HTML Encoder / Decoder
Encode HTML special characters into safe entities or decode HTML entities back into readable text. Work with named, decimal and hexadecimal entities directly in your browser.
XML Formatter & Validator
Format, minify and validate XML instantly. Beautify XML with configurable indentation, detect malformed markup and inspect document statistics directly in your browser.
YAML Formatter & Validator
Format and validate YAML, convert YAML to JSON, inspect nested structure and catch syntax errors using reliable YAML parsing directly in your browser.
JSON Formatter & Validator
Format, beautify, minify and validate JSON online instantly. Detect invalid JSON, organise nested data and create clean, readable JSON directly in your browser.
CSS Formatter
Format and beautify CSS, SCSS and Less with configurable indentation, print width and quote style directly in your browser.
JavaScript Formatter
Format and beautify JavaScript, TypeScript, JSX and TSX with configurable indentation, quotes, semicolons and code style directly in your browser.
Laravel Blade Formatter
Format and beautify Laravel Blade templates with support for Blade directives, components, echo expressions and HTML directly in your browser.
How to Format and Beautify HTML
Use the SwiftVecto HTML Formatter to turn compact or inconsistently indented HTML into clean, readable markup. Choose indentation style and line width, then copy the formatted result directly from your browser.
Overview
HTML is the markup language used to structure web pages and user interfaces. Valid HTML can still become difficult to read when nested elements, attributes, scripts and styles are compressed onto long lines or indented inconsistently. The SwiftVecto HTML Formatter uses Prettier in the browser to parse and reformat HTML using consistent rules rather than relying on simple whitespace replacement. This makes the tool suitable for nested layouts, forms, semantic HTML, Tailwind-heavy markup, Blade-like HTML fragments that do not contain Blade directives, and general frontend development. The formatter also calculates useful structural statistics such as element count, attributes, links, images, forms, scripts, styles and maximum nesting depth.
Benefits
How It Works
Paste or type HTML into the input editor.
Choose the indentation style.
Choose the preferred print width.
Run Format HTML.
The browser passes the markup to Prettier using the HTML parser.
Prettier parses the document structure before producing formatted output.
Nested elements are indented consistently.
Long markup may be wrapped according to the configured print width.
Structural statistics are calculated separately from the formatted output.
The resulting HTML can be copied directly.
How to Use This Tool
-
1Paste HTML into the input area.
-
2Choose two spaces, four spaces or tabs.
-
3Choose the preferred print width.
-
4Run Format HTML.
-
5Review the formatted output.
-
6Inspect document statistics if useful.
-
7Copy the result.
-
8Use Load Sample to test the formatter quickly.
-
9Use Clear before starting another document.
Helpful Tips
- Formatting changes presentation rather than the intended HTML structure.
- Browsers recover from many malformed HTML patterns, so formatting should not be treated as standards validation.
- Use semantic elements such as header, nav, main, section and footer when they match the document structure.
- Keep accessibility attributes such as aria-label and alt text intact.
- A wider print width can reduce attribute wrapping.
- A smaller print width often makes Tailwind-heavy markup easier to scan vertically.
- Preformatted text inside <pre> should be treated as whitespace-sensitive content.
- Textarea content may also rely on whitespace and line breaks.
- Formatting ordinary HTML is different from formatting Laravel Blade templates.
- Blade directives such as @if, @foreach and @section require Blade-aware formatting rather than plain HTML formatting.
- Vue, JSX and templating syntaxes should use their own dedicated parser rather than plain HTML mode.
- Formatting does not check whether linked URLs or image sources exist.
- Formatting does not check CSS validity.
- Formatting does not check JavaScript runtime behaviour.
Common Uses
Format HTML copied from a browser inspector.
Beautify a compact landing page section.
Format Tailwind CSS markup.
Format a navigation bar.
Format a contact form.
Format nested cards and layout containers.
Format a table.
Format semantic article markup.
Format HTML email markup for easier inspection.
Format a reusable HTML component.
Inspect the number of links and images in a snippet.
Inspect nesting depth in complicated markup.
Worked Examples
The following examples demonstrate how this tool can be used in realistic scenarios.
Formatting Compact HTML
The compact markup <div class="card"><h2>Hello</h2><p>Welcome</p></div> can be reformatted so the heading and paragraph are clearly nested inside the div.
Formatting Long Attributes
An element containing many classes, data attributes and accessibility attributes can be wrapped across lines according to the selected print width.
Nested Navigation
Nested ul and li elements become significantly easier to inspect when each level is indented consistently.
HTML Form
Form labels, inputs, validation messages and buttons can be formatted into a clearer parent-child hierarchy.
Tailwind Markup
HTML containing long Tailwind class lists remains valid while the surrounding element structure is reformatted for readability.
Common Mistakes
Avoid these common mistakes to achieve the most accurate results.
- Assuming formatted HTML is automatically valid HTML.
- Using the HTML formatter for Laravel Blade directives.
- Using the HTML formatter for JSX or TSX.
- Expecting formatting to fix broken application behaviour.
- Expecting formatting to repair incorrect JavaScript.
- Expecting formatting to validate CSS classes.
- Removing accessibility attributes because they appear visually unnecessary.
- Changing whitespace-sensitive content without checking the result.
- Assuming browsers interpret every malformed HTML pattern identically.
- Treating browser error recovery as proof that markup follows HTML standards.
- Using formatting instead of semantic review.
- Assuming formatting optimizes page performance.
- Expecting fewer lines to produce faster rendering.
- Using arbitrary nested div elements where semantic HTML would be clearer.
- Formatting generated template syntax using the wrong parser.
Glossary
Definitions of the most important terms used by this tool.
HTML
HyperText Markup Language, the standard markup language used to structure web pages and interfaces.
Element
An HTML structure represented by a tag and its associated content or attributes.
Attribute
A name-value pair attached to an HTML element, such as class="card".
Semantic HTML
HTML that uses elements according to their structural meaning, such as nav, main, article and footer.
Void Element
An HTML element that does not have a closing tag, such as img, input, br and meta.
Nesting
Placing elements inside other elements to create document hierarchy.
Print Width
A formatter preference describing the approximate line width at which markup may be wrapped.
Indentation
Leading spaces or tabs used to visually represent nested markup.
Prettier
An opinionated code formatter used to consistently format multiple web development languages and markup formats.
DOM
Document Object Model, a tree representation of an HTML or XML document.
Text Node
Text content contained within the document tree between HTML elements.
Comment
HTML content enclosed using <!-- and --> that is not rendered as ordinary page content.
Accessibility
Practices that help websites remain usable by people with a wide range of abilities and assistive technologies.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an HTML formatter?
An HTML formatter parses markup and rewrites it using consistent indentation, line breaks and formatting rules to improve readability.
Does formatting change what the HTML does?
Formatting is intended to change presentation rather than the document structure or meaning. Important markup should still be reviewed after formatting.
Can this tool format Tailwind CSS HTML?
Yes. Tailwind classes are ordinary HTML attribute values, so the surrounding markup can be formatted normally.
Can this tool format Laravel Blade?
Plain HTML inside a Blade file may resemble ordinary HTML, but Blade directives and expressions require Blade-aware formatting. SwiftVecto can provide a separate Laravel Blade Formatter for that purpose.
Can this tool format JSX?
No. JSX has different syntax and should use a JSX-aware formatter.
Can this tool format Vue templates?
Plain template markup may resemble HTML, but Vue-specific syntax is better handled with a Vue-aware parser.
Does this tool validate HTML?
No. The formatter may reject or restructure certain malformed input, but it should not be treated as a complete HTML standards validator.
Why not call it HTML Formatter & Validator?
Browsers intentionally recover from many malformed HTML patterns, while true standards validation requires more specific validation rules. Formatting and validation are different tasks.
Can this formatter handle comments?
Yes. HTML comments can be preserved and reformatted as part of the document structure.
Can this formatter handle script tags?
Yes. Prettier can format HTML containing script elements, although embedded language behaviour depends on parser support and the actual script content.
Can this formatter handle style tags?
Yes. HTML containing style elements can be formatted, with embedded CSS formatting depending on Prettier support.
What print width should I use?
A value around 80 to 120 characters is common. Wider values reduce wrapping, while narrower values produce more vertical formatting.
Should HTML use tabs or spaces?
Both can work. Most teams choose one style and use it consistently. Two spaces are common in web frontend projects.
Does formatting improve SEO?
Formatting itself does not materially improve SEO. Semantic structure, content quality, accessibility, performance and metadata matter far more.
Does formatting make HTML load faster?
Pretty formatting normally increases whitespace rather than reducing it. Production optimization and minification are separate concerns.
Can formatting fix broken tags?
A parser may recover from or reject certain malformed structures, but formatting should not be relied upon as an automatic repair system.
Can I format a complete HTML document?
Yes. Complete documents containing doctype, html, head and body elements can be formatted.
Can I format an HTML fragment?
Yes. Ordinary HTML fragments can also be formatted without requiring a complete document.
Does SwiftVecto upload my HTML?
The interactive HTML Formatter is designed to perform normal formatting directly inside your browser.
Is the HTML Formatter free?
Yes. SwiftVecto provides this developer utility for formatting and inspecting HTML markup.
Things to Know
- The browser implementation uses the installed Prettier package.
- Formatting is browser-first and does not require a server request.
- The HTML parser should be used for ordinary HTML rather than Blade, JSX, Vue or another template language.
- The initial tool is a formatter rather than a full HTML standards validator.
- Print width is a formatting preference rather than a strict maximum line length.
- Whitespace-sensitive content should be reviewed after formatting.
- Document statistics are informational and separate from the Prettier formatting engine.
- Normal interactive processing is intended to happen directly inside the browser.
Disclaimer
Successful formatting does not guarantee standards-compliant HTML.
Formatting does not validate accessibility, SEO, JavaScript behaviour or CSS correctness.
Template languages such as Laravel Blade require a parser that understands their additional syntax.
Prettier may normalize presentation according to its own formatting rules rather than preserving every original whitespace choice.
Users should review important production markup after formatting.
Official References
The following official resources were used when developing this tool and are useful for further reading.