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CSS CSS Basics (2014) Understanding Values and Units Em Units

Posted by Robert Greer
Robert Greer
3,750 Points

Does default of 16px font-size automatically change depending on viewport resolution?

So if there are two screens, one having twice the resolution of the other, and the default font-size is 16px, will the screen with more resolution automatically double the default resolution (and with it the value of em units) as it does with other px units? Am I able to use relative units with the same effect across different size viewports with varying resolutions? I'll be happy with someone pointing to a site that discusses this in detail.

1 Answer

Greg Adams
Greg Adams
13,268 Points
Greg Adams
Greg Adams
13,268 Points

Hi Robert- It's a bit confusing as a pixel size has nothing to do with a real pixel on your screen. The font size will indeed react to the browser window size if you use Em. These two posts were helpful as I explored this:

https://css-tricks.com/why-ems/ https://css-tricks.com/viewport-sized-typography/

Best, Greg

Robert Greer
Robert Greer
3,750 Points

thank you!