: The Inline Frame element

The <iframe> HTML element represents a nested {{Glossary("browsing context")}}, embedding another HTML page into the current one.

html

<iframe
  id="inlineFrameExample"
  title="Inline Frame Example"
  width="300"
  height="200"
  src="https://www.openstreetmap.org/export/embed.html?bbox=-0.004017949104309083%2C51.47612752641776%2C0.00030577182769775396%2C51.478569861898606&amp;layer=mapnik">
</iframe>

css

iframe {
  border: 1px solid black;
  width: 100%; /* takes precedence over the width set with the HTML width attribute */
}

Each embedded browsing context has its own document and allows URL navigations. The navigations of each embedded browsing context are linearized into the session history of the topmost browsing context. The browsing context that embeds the others is called the parent browsing context. The topmost browsing context — the one with no parent — is usually the browser window, represented by the {{domxref("Window")}} object.

[!WARNING] Because each browsing context is a complete document environment, every <iframe> in a page requires increased memory and other computing resources. While theoretically you can use as many <iframe>s as you like, check for performance problems.

Attributes

This element includes the global attributes.

allow
- : Specifies a Permissions Policy for the <iframe>. The policy defines what features are available to the <iframe> (for example, access to the microphone, camera, battery, web-share, etc.) based on the origin of the request.
  
  See iframes in the Permissions-Policy topic for examples.
  
  [!NOTE] A Permissions Policy specified by the allow attribute implements a further restriction on top of the policy specified in the {{httpheader("Permissions-Policy")}} header. It doesn't replace it.
allowfullscreen
- : Set to true if the <iframe> can activate fullscreen mode by calling the {{domxref("Element.requestFullscreen", "requestFullscreen()")}} method.
  
  [!NOTE] This attribute is considered a legacy attribute and redefined as allow="fullscreen *".
allowpaymentrequest {{deprecated_inline}} {{non-standard_inline}}
- : Set to true if a cross-origin <iframe> should be allowed to invoke the Payment Request API.
  
  [!NOTE] This attribute is considered a legacy attribute and redefined as allow="payment *".
browsingtopics {{non-standard_inline}} {{deprecated_inline}}
- : A boolean attribute that, if present, specifies that the selected topics for the current user should be sent with the request for the <iframe>'s source. See Using the Topics API for more details.
credentialless {{Experimental_Inline}}
- : Set to true to make the <iframe> credentialless, meaning that its content will be loaded in a new, ephemeral context. It doesn't have access to the network, cookies, and storage data associated with its origin. It uses a new context local to the top-level document lifetime. In return, the {{httpheader("Cross-Origin-Embedder-Policy")}} (COEP) embedding rules can be lifted, so documents with COEP set can embed third-party documents that do not. See IFrame credentialless for more details.
csp {{experimental_inline}}
- : A Content Security Policy enforced for the embedded resource. See {{domxref("HTMLIFrameElement.csp")}} for details.
height
- : The height of the frame in CSS pixels. Default is 150.
loading
- : Indicates when the browser should load the iframe:
  - eager
    - : Load the iframe immediately on page load (this is the default value).
  - lazy
    - : Defer loading of the iframe until it reaches a calculated distance from the {{glossary("visual viewport")}}, as defined by the browser. The intent is to avoid using the network and storage bandwidth required to fetch the frame until the browser is reasonably certain that it will be needed. This improves the performance and cost in most typical use cases, in particular by reducing initial page load times.
      
      [!NOTE] Loading is only deferred when JavaScript is enabled. This is an anti-tracking measure.
name
- : A targetable name for the embedded browsing context. This can be used in the target attribute of the {{HTMLElement("a")}}, {{HTMLElement("form")}}, or {{HTMLElement("base")}} elements; the formtarget attribute of the {{HTMLElement("input")}} or {{HTMLElement("button")}} elements; or the windowName parameter in the {{domxref("Window.open()","window.open()")}} method. In addition, the name becomes a property of the {{domxref("Window")}} and {{domxref("Document")}} objects, containing a reference to the embedded window or the element itself.
privateToken {{experimental_inline}}
- : Contains a string representation of an options object representing a private state token operation; this object has the same structure as the RequestInit dictionary's privateToken property. IFrames containing this attribute can initiate operations such as issuing or redeeming tokens when their embedded content is loaded.
referrerpolicy
- : Indicates which referrer to send when fetching the frame's resource:
  - no-referrer
    - : The {{HTTPHeader("Referer")}} header will not be sent.
  - no-referrer-when-downgrade
    - : The {{HTTPHeader("Referer")}} header will not be sent to {{Glossary("origin")}}s without {{Glossary("TLS")}} ({{Glossary("HTTPS")}}).
  - origin
    - : The sent referrer will be limited to the origin of the referring page: its scheme, {{Glossary("host")}}, and {{Glossary("port")}}.
  - origin-when-cross-origin
    - : The referrer sent to other origins will be limited to the scheme, the host, and the port. Navigations on the same origin will still include the path.
  - same-origin
    - : A referrer will be sent for {{Glossary("Same-origin policy", "same origin")}}, but cross-origin requests will contain no referrer information.
  - strict-origin
    - : Only send the origin of the document as the referrer when the protocol security level stays the same (HTTPS→HTTPS), but don't send it to a less secure destination (HTTPS→HTTP).
  - strict-origin-when-cross-origin (default)
    - : Send a full URL when performing a same-origin request, only send the origin when the protocol security level stays the same (HTTPS→HTTPS), and send no header to a less secure destination (HTTPS→HTTP).
  - unsafe-url
    - : The referrer will include the origin and the path (but not the fragment, password, or username). This value is unsafe, because it leaks origins and paths from TLS-protected resources to insecure origins.
sandbox
- : Controls the restrictions applied to the content embedded in the <iframe>. The value of the attribute can either be empty to apply all restrictions, or space-separated tokens to lift particular restrictions:
  - allow-downloads
    - : Allows downloading files through an {{HTMLElement("a")}} or {{HTMLElement("area")}} element with the download attribute, as well as through the navigation that leads to a download of a file. This works regardless of whether the user clicked on the link, or JS code initiated it without user interaction.
  - allow-forms
    - : Allows the page to submit forms. If this keyword is not used, a form will be displayed as normal, but submitting it will not trigger input validation, send data to a web server, or close a dialog.
  - allow-modals
    - : Allows the page to open modal windows by {{domxref("Window.alert()")}}, {{domxref("Window.confirm()")}}, {{domxref("Window.print()")}} and {{domxref("Window.prompt()")}}, while opening a {{HTMLElement("dialog")}} is allowed regardless of this keyword. It also allows the page to receive {{domxref("BeforeUnloadEvent")}} event.
  - allow-orientation-lock
    - : Lets the resource lock the screen orientation.
  - allow-pointer-lock
    - : Allows the page to use the Pointer Lock API.
  - allow-popups
    - : Allows popups (created, for example, by {{domxref("Window.open()")}} or target="_blank"). If this keyword is not used, such functionality will silently fail.
  - allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox
    - : Allows a sandboxed document to open a new browsing context without forcing the sandboxing flags upon it. This will allow, for example, a third-party advertisement to be safely sandboxed without forcing the same restrictions upon the page the ad links to. If this flag is not included, a redirected page, popup window, or new tab will be subject to the same sandbox restrictions as the originating <iframe>.
  - allow-presentation
    - : Allows embedders to have control over whether an iframe can start a presentation session.
  - allow-same-origin
    - : If this token is not used, the resource is treated as being from a special origin that always fails the {{Glossary("same-origin policy")}} (potentially preventing access to data storage/cookies and some JavaScript APIs).
      
      [!NOTE] When allow-same-origin is present, a same-origin parent document can still access and interact with the iframe's DOM even if allow-scripts is not set. The allow-scripts token only controls script execution within the embedded browsing context and does not affect DOM access from the parent.
  - allow-scripts
    - : Allows the page to run scripts (but not create pop-up windows). If this keyword is not used, this operation is not allowed.
  - allow-storage-access-by-user-activation {{experimental_inline}}
    - : Allows a document loaded in the <iframe> to use the {{domxref("Storage Access API", "Storage Access API", "", "nocode")}} to request access to unpartitioned cookies.
  - allow-top-navigation
    - : Lets the resource navigate the top-level browsing context (the one named _top).
  - allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation
    - : Lets the resource navigate the top-level browsing context, but only if initiated by a user gesture.
  - allow-top-navigation-to-custom-protocols
    - : Allows navigations to non-http protocols built into browser or registered by a website. This feature is also activated by allow-popups or allow-top-navigation keyword.
  [!NOTE]
  - When the embedded document has the same origin as the embedding page, it is strongly discouraged to use both allow-scripts and allow-same-origin, as that lets the embedded document remove the sandbox attribute — making it no more secure than not using the sandbox attribute at all.
  - Sandboxing is useless if the attacker can display content outside a sandboxed iframe — such as if the viewer opens the frame in a new tab. Such content should be also served from a separate origin to limit potential damage.
  [!NOTE] When redirecting the user, opening a popup window, or opening a new tab from an embedded page within an <iframe> with the sandbox attribute, the new browsing context is subject to the same sandbox restrictions. This can create issues — for example, if a page embedded within an <iframe> without a sandbox="allow-forms" or sandbox="allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox" attribute set on it opens a new site in a separate tab, form submission in that new browsing context will silently fail.
src
- : The URL of the page to embed. Use a value of about:blank to embed an empty page that conforms to the same-origin policy. Also note that programmatically removing an <iframe>'s src attribute (e.g., via {{domxref("Element.removeAttribute()")}}) causes about:blank to be loaded in the frame in Firefox (from version 65), Chromium-based browsers, and Safari/iOS.
  
  [!NOTE] The about:blank page uses the embedding document's URL as its base URL when resolving any relative URLs, such as anchor links.
srcdoc
- : Inline HTML to embed, overriding the src attribute. Its content should follow the syntax of a full HTML document, which includes the doctype directive, <html>, <body> tags, etc., although most of them can be omitted, leaving only the body content. This doc will have about:srcdoc as its location. If a browser does not support the srcdoc attribute, it will fall back to the URL in the src attribute.
  
  [!NOTE] The about:srcdoc page uses the embedding document's URL as its base URL when resolving any relative URLs, such as anchor links.
width
- : The width of the frame in CSS pixels. Default is 300.

Deprecated attributes

These attributes are deprecated and may no longer be supported by all user agents. You should not use them in new content, and try to remove them from existing content.

align {{deprecated_inline}}
- : The alignment of this element with respect to the surrounding context.
frameborder {{deprecated_inline}}
- : The value 1 (the default) draws a border around this frame. The value 0 removes the border around this frame, but you should instead use the CSS property {{cssxref("border")}} to control <iframe> borders.
longdesc {{deprecated_inline}}
- : A URL of a long description of the frame's content. Due to widespread misuse, this is not helpful for non-visual browsers.
marginheight {{deprecated_inline}}
- : The amount of space in pixels between the frame's content and its top and bottom borders.
marginwidth {{deprecated_inline}}
- : The amount of space in pixels between the frame's content and its left and right borders.
scrolling {{deprecated_inline}}
- : Indicates when the browser should provide a scrollbar for the frame:
  - auto
    - : Only when the frame's content is larger than its dimensions.
  - yes
    - : Always show a scrollbar.
  - no
    - : Never show a scrollbar.

Scripting

Inline frames, like {{HTMLElement("frame")}} elements, are included in the {{domxref("window.frames")}} pseudo-array.

With the DOM {{domxref("HTMLIFrameElement")}} object, scripts can access the {{domxref("window")}} object of the framed resource via the {{domxref("HTMLIFrameElement.contentWindow", "contentWindow")}} property. The {{domxref("HTMLIFrameElement.contentDocument", "contentDocument")}} property refers to the document inside the <iframe>, same as contentWindow.document.

From the inside of a frame, a script can get a reference to its parent window with {{domxref("window.parent")}}.

Script access to a frame's content is subject to the same-origin policy. Scripts cannot access most properties in other window objects if the script was loaded from a different origin, including scripts inside a frame accessing the frame's parent. Cross-origin communication can be achieved using {{domxref("Window.postMessage()")}}.

Scripts running in a same-origin frame can access the {{domxref("Window.top")}} property and set {{domxref("Window.location","window.top.location")}} to redirect the top-level page to a new location. This behavior is referred to as "top navigation".

A cross-origin frame is allowed to redirect the top-level page using top only if the frame has {{glossary("sticky activation")}}. If top navigation is blocked, browsers may either prompt for user permission to redirect or report the error in the developer console (or both). This restriction by browsers is called framebusting intervention. What this means is that a cross-origin frame can't immediately redirect the top-level page — the user must have previously interacted with the frame or granted permission to redirect.

A sandboxed frame blocks all top navigation unless the sandbox attribute values are set to allow-top-navigation or allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation. Note that top-navigation permissions are inherited, so a nested frame can perform a top navigation only if its parent frames are also allowed to.

Positioning and scaling

Being a {{ glossary("replaced elements", "replaced element")}}, the <iframe> allows the position of the embedded document within its box to be adjusted using the {{cssxref("object-position")}} property.

[!NOTE] The {{cssxref("object-fit")}} property has no effect on <iframe> elements.

`error` and `load` event behavior

The error and load events fired on <iframe>s could be used to probe the URL space of the local network's HTTP servers. Therefore, as a security precaution user agents do not fire the error event on <iframe>s, and the load event is always triggered even if the <iframe> content fails to load.

Accessibility

People navigating with assistive technology such as a screen reader can use the title attribute on an <iframe> to label its content. The title's value should concisely describe the embedded content:

html

<iframe
  title="Wikipedia page for Avocados"
  src="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avocado"></iframe>

Without this title, they have to navigate into the <iframe> to determine what its embedded content is. This context shift can be confusing and time-consuming, especially for pages with multiple <iframe>s and/or if embeds contain interactive content like video or audio.

Examples

A basic <iframe>

This example embeds the page at https://example.org in an iframe. This is a common use case of iframes: to embed content from another site. For example, the live sample itself, and the try it example at the top, are both <iframe> embeds of content from another MDN site.

HTML

html

<iframe
  src="https://example.org"
  title="iframe Example 1"
  width="400"
  height="300">
</iframe>

Result

Embedding source code in an <iframe>

This example directly renders source code in an iframe. This can be used as a technique to prevent script injection when displaying user-generated content, when combined with the sandbox attribute.

Note that when using srcdoc, any relative URLs in the embedded content will be resolved relative to the URL of the embedding page. If you want to use anchor links that point to places in the embedded content, you need to explicitly specify about:srcdoc as the base URL.

HTML

html-nolint

<article>
  <footer>Nine minutes ago, <i>jc</i> wrote:</footer>
  <iframe
    sandbox
    srcdoc="<p>There are two ways to use the <code>iframe</code> element:</p>
<ol>
<li><a href=&quot;about:srcdoc#embed_another&quot;>To embed content from another page</a></li>
<li><a href=&quot;about:srcdoc#embed_user&quot;>To embed user-generated content</a></li>
</ol>
<h2 id=&quot;embed_another&quot;>Embedding content from another page</h2>
<p>Use the <code>src</code> attribute to specify the URL of the page to embed:</p>
<pre><code>&amp;lt;iframe src=&quot;https://example.org&quot;&amp;gt;&amp;lt;/iframe&amp;gt;</code></pre>
<h2 id=&quot;embed_user&quot;>Embedding user-generated content</h2>
<p>Use the <code>srcdoc</code> attribute to specify the content to embed. This post is already an example!</p>
"
    width="500"
    height="250"
></iframe>
</article>

Here's how to write escape sequences when using srcdoc:

First, write the HTML out, escaping anything you would escape in a normal HTML document (such as <, >, &, etc.).
< and < represent the exact same character in the srcdoc attribute. Therefore, to make it an actual escape sequence in the HTML document, replace any ampersands (&) with &. For example, < becomes &lt;, and & becomes &amp;.
Replace any double quotes (") with " to prevent the srcdoc attribute from being prematurely terminated (if you use ' instead, then you should replace ' with ' instead). This step happens after the previous one, so " generated in this step doesn't become &quot;.

Result

{{ EmbedLiveSample('Embedding_source_code_in_an_iframe', 640, 300)}}

Technical summary

<table class="properties"> <tbody> <tr> <th scope="row"> <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Guides/Content_categories" >Content categories</a > </th> <td> <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Guides/Content_categories#flow_content" >Flow content</a >, <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/HTML/Guides/Content_categories#phrasing_content" >phrasing content</a >, embedded content, interactive content, palpable content. </td> </tr> <tr> <th scope="row">Permitted content</th> <td>None.</td> </tr> <tr> <th scope="row">Tag omission</th> <td>None, both the starting and ending tags are mandatory.</td> </tr> <tr> <th scope="row">Permitted parents</th> <td>Any element that accepts embedded content.</td> </tr> <tr> <th scope="row">Implicit ARIA role</th> <td> <a href="https://w3c.github.io/html-aria/#dfn-no-corresponding-role" >No corresponding role</a > </td> </tr> <tr> <th scope="row">Permitted ARIA roles</th> <td> <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/Accessibility/ARIA/Reference/Roles/application_role"><code>application</code></a>, <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/Accessibility/ARIA/Reference/Roles/document_role"><code>document</code></a>, <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/Accessibility/ARIA/Reference/Roles/img_role"><code>img</code></a>, <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/Accessibility/ARIA/Reference/Roles/none_role"><code>none</code></a>, <a href="/en-US/docs/Web/Accessibility/ARIA/Reference/Roles/presentation_role"><code>presentation</code></a> </td> </tr> <tr> <th scope="row">DOM interface</th> <td>{{domxref("HTMLIFrameElement")}}</td> </tr> </tbody> </table>

Attributes

Deprecated attributes

Scripting

Top navigation in cross-origin frames

Positioning and scaling

`error` and `load` event behavior

Accessibility

Examples

A basic <iframe>

HTML

Result

Embedding source code in an <iframe>

HTML

Result

Technical summary

Specifications

Browser compatibility

See also

: The Inline Frame element

Attributes

Deprecated attributes

Scripting

Top navigation in cross-origin frames

Positioning and scaling

error and load event behavior

Accessibility

Examples

A basic <iframe>

HTML

Result

Embedding source code in an <iframe>

HTML

Result

Technical summary

Specifications

Browser compatibility

See also

`error` and `load` event behavior