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+---
+title: "CSS only placeholder for contenteditable elements"
+date: 2023-07-02T13:06:15-05:00
+toc: false
+images:
+tags:
+  - dev
+  - web
+---
+
+The HTML elements `input` and `textarea` include a `placeholder` property. This
+property puts a placeholder text, which then disappears once the user selects
+the input and types something in. I'm sure you've seen a placeholder before, it
+doesn't need much explanation.
+
+But what if an `input` or `textarea` doesn't fit your needs? `input` only allows
+a single line of text. While `textarea` does allow multiple lines, the height of
+the text area is fixed. If you want it to expand as the user types, you need to
+add javascript to resize it on the fly. But there is an alternative: you can use
+a `div` that is marked `contenteditable`. Div's can resize based on their
+contents, so this is an easy way to create a text area that resizes
+automatically without any javascript.
+
+But the downside to using an editable div is that basic functionality like
+`placeholder` doesn't exist. And if you duckduckgo this, you'll find a lot of
+people working around the problem with javascript. While this is certainly
+possible, I am trying to minimize the amount of javascript on this page. That's
+the whole reason why I didn't use a `textarea` in the first place! But I found a
+way to add a placeholder to a `contenteditable` span without javascript. Here it is:
+
+```html
+<span contenteditable="true" data-placeholder="click on me and type"></span>
+<style>
+/* Add the placeholder text */
+[data-placeholder]::before {
+  content: attr(data-placeholder);
+  /* Or whatever  */
+  color: gray;
+}
+/* Hide the placeholder when selected, or when there is text inside */
+[data-placeholder]:focus::before, [data-placeholder]:not(:empty)::before {
+  content: none;
+}
+</style>
+```
+
+And here what it looks like:
+
+{{<raw>}}
+<iframe width="100%" height="300" src="//jsfiddle.net/SeriousBug/t9hmgyq5/13/embedded/result,html,css/" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" allowpaymentrequest frameborder="0"></iframe>
+{{</raw>}}
+
+This also works with a `div`, but there is one caveat: If the user types
+something into the `div` then deletes it, the browser will leave a `<br/>` in
+the `div`. This means the `div` won't be empty, and the placeholder won't come
+back. Boo! The same issue doesn't happen with a `span` though, so use a `span`
+that is set to `display: block` instead.
+
+Also, remember to not only rely on just the placeholder. Make sure to add labels
+to your inputs.