margin:auto; Doesn't Work on Inline-Block Elements

In CSS, margin:auto; is commonly used to horizontally center block elements on a page. However, when applied to inline-block elements, this property becomes ineffective.

Inline-block elements flow into the page inline like inline elements but can have a specific width and height. This behavior creates difficulties when trying to center them horizontally using margin:auto;.

Old Code:

#container {
    /* Other styles... */
}
.center {
    margin-left: auto;
    margin-right: auto;
    text-align: center;
}

In this code, the #container element has a specific width and triggers the expected centering behavior.

New Code:

#container {
    /* Other styles... */
    display: inline-block;
}
.center {
    margin: 75px auto;
    position: relative;
}

Changing #container's display property to inline-block changes how it interacts with margins. Inline-block elements do not behave as block elements and lose the ability to be centered using margin:auto;.

Solution:

To center an inline-block element horizontally, use the text-align: center property on its containing element instead:

.center {
    text-align: center;
}

This will align the inline-block element to the center of its containing block element.