CSS vendor prefixes exist to allow browsers to experimentally support and avoid compatibility issues before CSS features become standard. Its core functions include: 1. Enable developers to test new features in advance; 2. Enable browser manufacturers to improve implementation without destroying existing websites; 3. Wait for the standard to stabilize before adopting unified syntax. Common prefixes are such as -webkit- (Chrome, Safari), -moz- (Firefox), -ms- (IE, old version of Edge), -o- (old version of Opera). Most projects nowadays use tools such as Autoprefixer to process automatically, without manual addition, and may only need to be manually used if they need to be compatible with extremely old browsers, maintain old projects without build tools, or use new features that have not yet been standardized. The ultimate goal is to write clean, future-oriented code.
CSS vendor prefixes are used to implement experimental or non-standard CSS features in specific browsers before they become widely supported. Browsers use them to offer new features early without breaking existing websites that might rely on stable, standardized behavior.
Why Do Vendor Prefixes Exist?
The web evolves quickly, and not all CSS features are finalized when browsers start supporting them. To avoid compatibility issues when standards change, browser vendors use prefixes like -webkit- , -moz- , -ms- , and -o- to introduce experimental versions of properties.
This way:
- Developers can test upcoming features
- Browser makers can make changes without breaking sites
- The final standard can be adopted once stable
For example, older versions of Safari and Chrome used -webkit-gradient for gradients before the standard linear-gradient() was widely supported.
Common Vendor Prefixes and Which Browsers Use Them
Here's a quick breakdown of common prefixes and their associated browsers:
-
-webkit-: Chrome, Safari, newer Edge (based on Chromium) -
-moz-: Firefox -
-ms-: Internet Explorer and older versions of Edge -
-o-: Opera (older versions)
You'll often see these in properties like transform , transition , or box-shadow in legacy codebases.
.example {
-webkit-transform: rotate(30deg);
-moz-transform: rotate(30deg);
-ms-transform: rotate(30deg);
transform: rotate(30deg);
}These days, many modern tools like Autoprefixer handle this automatically based on your target browsers, so you don't usually need to write them manually.
When Should You Still Use Them?
In most modern development workflows — especially if you're using PostCSS with Autoprefixer — you don't need to worry about writing vendor prefixes yourself.
However, there may still be edge cases where:
- You're targeting very old browsers
- You're working on a legacy project that doesn't use build tools
- A new CSS feature hasn't been fully standardized yet
Even then, it's more common to write standard CSS and let tooling handle adding the necessary prefixes.
Final Thoughts
Vendor prefixes were an important part of CSS evolution, letting browsers experiment safely. These days, they're mostly handled behind the scenes by tools, so developers can focus on writing clean, future-proof code.
Basically that's it.
The above is the detailed content of What is the purpose of vendor prefixes?. For more information, please follow other related articles on the PHP Chinese website!
Hot AI Tools
Undress AI Tool
Undress images for free
Undresser.AI Undress
AI-powered app for creating realistic nude photos
AI Clothes Remover
Online AI tool for removing clothes from photos.
Clothoff.io
AI clothes remover
Video Face Swap
Swap faces in any video effortlessly with our completely free AI face swap tool!
Hot Article
Hot Tools
Notepad++7.3.1
Easy-to-use and free code editor
SublimeText3 Chinese version
Chinese version, very easy to use
Zend Studio 13.0.1
Powerful PHP integrated development environment
Dreamweaver CS6
Visual web development tools
SublimeText3 Mac version
God-level code editing software (SublimeText3)
Hot Topics
How to use PHP to build social sharing functions PHP sharing interface integration practice
Jul 25, 2025 pm 08:51 PM
The core method of building social sharing functions in PHP is to dynamically generate sharing links that meet the requirements of each platform. 1. First get the current page or specified URL and article information; 2. Use urlencode to encode the parameters; 3. Splice and generate sharing links according to the protocols of each platform; 4. Display links on the front end for users to click and share; 5. Dynamically generate OG tags on the page to optimize sharing content display; 6. Be sure to escape user input to prevent XSS attacks. This method does not require complex authentication, has low maintenance costs, and is suitable for most content sharing needs.
PHP creates a blog comment system to monetize PHP comment review and anti-brush strategy
Jul 25, 2025 pm 08:27 PM
1. Maximizing the commercial value of the comment system requires combining native advertising precise delivery, user paid value-added services (such as uploading pictures, top-up comments), influence incentive mechanism based on comment quality, and compliance anonymous data insight monetization; 2. The audit strategy should adopt a combination of pre-audit dynamic keyword filtering and user reporting mechanisms, supplemented by comment quality rating to achieve content hierarchical exposure; 3. Anti-brushing requires the construction of multi-layer defense: reCAPTCHAv3 sensorless verification, Honeypot honeypot field recognition robot, IP and timestamp frequency limit prevents watering, and content pattern recognition marks suspicious comments, and continuously iterate to deal with attacks.
What are common CSS browser inconsistencies?
Jul 26, 2025 am 07:04 AM
Different browsers have differences in CSS parsing, resulting in inconsistent display effects, mainly including the default style difference, box model calculation method, Flexbox and Grid layout support level, and inconsistent behavior of certain CSS attributes. 1. The default style processing is inconsistent. The solution is to use CSSReset or Normalize.css to unify the initial style; 2. The box model calculation method of the old version of IE is different. It is recommended to use box-sizing:border-box in a unified manner; 3. Flexbox and Grid perform differently in edge cases or in old versions. More tests and use Autoprefixer; 4. Some CSS attribute behaviors are inconsistent. CanIuse must be consulted and downgraded.
How to build a PHP Nginx environment with MacOS to configure the combination of Nginx and PHP services
Jul 25, 2025 pm 08:24 PM
The core role of Homebrew in the construction of Mac environment is to simplify software installation and management. 1. Homebrew automatically handles dependencies and encapsulates complex compilation and installation processes into simple commands; 2. Provides a unified software package ecosystem to ensure the standardization of software installation location and configuration; 3. Integrates service management functions, and can easily start and stop services through brewservices; 4. Convenient software upgrade and maintenance, and improves system security and functionality.
Describe the `vertical-align` property and its typical use cases
Jul 26, 2025 am 07:35 AM
Thevertical-alignpropertyinCSSalignsinlineortable-cellelementsvertically.1.Itadjustselementslikeimagesorforminputswithintextlinesusingvalueslikebaseline,middle,super,andsub.2.Intablecells,itcontrolscontentalignmentwithtop,middle,orbottomvalues,oftenu
What is the accent-color property?
Jul 26, 2025 am 09:25 AM
accent-color is an attribute used in CSS to customize the highlight colors of form elements such as checkboxes, radio buttons and sliders; 1. It directly changes the default color of the selected state of the form control, such as changing the blue check mark of the checkbox to red; 2. Supported elements include input boxes of type="checkbox", type="radio" and type="range"; 3. Using accent-color can avoid complex custom styles and extra DOM structures, and maintain native accessibility; 4. It is generally supported by modern browsers, and old browsers need to be downgraded; 5. Set accent-col
How to compile SCSS to CSS?
Jul 27, 2025 am 01:58 AM
InstallDartSassvianpmafterinstallingNode.jsusingnpminstall-gsass.2.CompileSCSStoCSSusingthecommandsassinput.scssoutput.css.3.Usesass--watchinput.scssoutput.csstoauto-compileonsave.4.Watchentirefolderswithsass--watchscss:css.5.Usepartialswith_prefixfo
How to change text color in CSS?
Jul 27, 2025 am 04:25 AM
To change the text color in CSS, you need to use the color attribute; 1. Use the color attribute to set the text foreground color, supporting color names (such as red), hexadecimal codes (such as #ff0000), RGB values (such as rgb(255,0,0)), HSL values (such as hsl(0,100%,50%)), and RGBA or HSLA with transparency (such as rgba(255,0,0,0.5)); 2. You can apply colors to any element containing text, such as h1 to h6 titles, paragraph p, link a (note the color settings of different states of a:link, a:visited, a:hover, a:active), buttons, div, span, etc.; 3. Most
