HTML <blink> Element

The <blink> element was a non-standard HTML element that caused text to repeatedly appear and disappear. Introduced by Netscape during the early years of the web, it became one of the best-known examples of browser-specific HTML and was never adopted as part of a standard HTML specification.

Obsolete Element: The <blink> element must not be used in new HTML. Although a similar visual effect can be created with CSS animation, repeatedly blinking content should generally be avoided because it can be distracting and may create accessibility problems.

Historical Syntax

Webpages written for browsers that supported the element could contain markup similar to the following:

<blink>Important! Read this message!</blink>

In a supporting browser, the enclosed text repeatedly appeared and disappeared. This code is shown for historical reference only and should not be used in modern HTML.

Attributes

The <blink> element did not have any standardized element-specific attributes. Because the element itself was never standardized, authors could not rely on consistent behavior between browsers.

Historical Use

Netscape introduced the <blink> element during the early browser wars as a way to make text attract attention by repeatedly flashing on and off. It was commonly used for announcements, warnings, advertisements, and other content that authors wanted visitors to notice immediately.

Because <blink> was a Netscape-specific extension rather than standardized HTML, webpages using it could look very different in another browser. Browsers that did not implement the feature generally displayed the enclosed text normally instead of making it blink.

Why It Became Obsolete

The <blink> element combined presentation with HTML markup, was never standardized, and depended on browser-specific behavior. CSS eventually provided standardized methods for controlling visual effects and animation without requiring proprietary HTML elements.

More importantly, continuously blinking content is generally poor interface design and can create accessibility concerns. Flashing content can make a page difficult to read and, depending on the frequency and intensity of the flashing, may present a risk for people with photosensitive seizure disorders.

Modern Alternative

CSS animation can technically reproduce the old blinking effect without using obsolete HTML. For example, the opacity of an element can alternate between visible and invisible states.

<p class="blinking-text">This text blinks using CSS.</p>

.blinking-text {
  animation: blink 1s step-end infinite;
}

@keyframes blink {
  50% {
    opacity: 0;
  }
}

Play in Editor

This example demonstrates how the historical visual effect can be recreated, not a recommended design technique. In most situations, color, font weight, borders, icons, or other non-flashing visual treatments are better ways to draw attention to important content.

Legacy Browser Support

The <blink> element was originally associated with Netscape and was never consistently supported across browsers. Some browsers later implemented blinking behavior for compatibility, while others displayed the element's contents without the blinking effect.

Modern browsers no longer implement the original blinking behavior. They may still preserve and display the text inside an unknown or obsolete <blink> element, but that does not mean the element itself is supported or valid modern HTML.

For detailed legacy browser compatibility information, see Can I Use: HTML <blink> Element .

The obsolete <blink> element has no direct modern HTML replacement because blinking is a visual effect rather than a type of content. If animation is genuinely necessary, use appropriate semantic HTML together with CSS animation.

Specifications

The <blink> element was never part of a standard HTML specification and is listed as an entirely obsolete, non-conforming feature in the WHATWG HTML Living Standard .

HTML <blink> Element