Syntax
<link rel="stylesheet" href="styles.css">Examples
Linking a Stylesheet
The most common use — connecting an external CSS file.
<link rel="stylesheet" href="/css/main.css">Favicon
Setting the small icon shown in browser tabs.
<link rel="icon" type="image/png" href="/favicon.png">Preloading a Font
Hinting the browser to fetch a critical resource earlier.
<link rel="preload" href="/fonts/main.woff2" as="font" type="font/woff2" crossorigin>Attributes
- rel (stylesheet | icon | preload | canonical): The relationship between the current document and the linked resource
- href (URL): The path to the linked resource
- type (string): The MIME type of the linked resource
Best practices
- Place stylesheet <link> tags in <head> so styles are ready before content renders, avoiding a flash of unstyled content
- Use rel="preload" sparingly, only for genuinely critical above-the-fold resources
- Always include a favicon link — browsers will request /favicon.ico by default even without one, so being explicit avoids wasted requests
- Use rel="canonical" to tell search engines the preferred URL when the same content is reachable from multiple paths
Browser compatibility
Support applies to the named feature, not every attribute or behaviour in this article. Versions refer to browsers, not operating systems.
<link>
Desktop
- Chrome
- Supported
From 1 - Firefox
- Supported
From 1 - Safari
- Supported
By 4 (possibly earlier) - Edge
- Supported
From 12 - Opera
- Supported
By 12.1 (possibly earlier)
Mobile
- Safari on iOS
- Supported
By 3.2 (possibly earlier) - Chrome for Android
- Supported
From 18 - Firefox for Android
- Supported
From 4 - Samsung Internet
- Supported
From 1.0
MDN BCD record for this feature · MDN reference
Support history and limitations
Chrome
- From 1
Firefox
- From 1
Safari
- By 4 (possibly earlier)
Edge
- From 12
Opera
- By 12.1 (possibly earlier)
Safari on iOS
- By 3.2 (possibly earlier)
Chrome for Android
- From 18
Firefox for Android
- From 4
Samsung Internet
- From 1.0
<link> rel
Desktop
- Chrome
- Supported
From 1 - Firefox
- Supported
From 1 - Safari
- Supported
From 1 - Edge
- Supported
From 12 - Opera
- Supported
From 9
Mobile
- Safari on iOS
- Supported
From 1 - Chrome for Android
- Supported
From 18 - Firefox for Android
- Supported
From 4 - Samsung Internet
- Supported
From 1.0
MDN BCD record for this feature · MDN reference
Support history and limitations
Chrome
- From 1
Firefox
- From 1
Safari
- From 1
Edge
- From 12
Opera
- From 9
Safari on iOS
- From 1
Chrome for Android
- From 18
Firefox for Android
- From 4
Samsung Internet
- From 1.0
<link> href
Desktop
- Chrome
- Supported
From 1 - Firefox
- Supported
From 1 - Safari
- Supported
By 4 (possibly earlier) - Edge
- Supported
From 12 - Opera
- Supported
By 12.1 (possibly earlier)
Mobile
- Safari on iOS
- Supported
By 3.2 (possibly earlier) - Chrome for Android
- Supported
From 18 - Firefox for Android
- Supported
From 4 - Samsung Internet
- Supported
From 1.0
MDN BCD record for this feature
Support history and limitations
Chrome
- From 1
Firefox
- From 1
Safari
- By 4 (possibly earlier)
Edge
- From 12
Opera
- By 12.1 (possibly earlier)
Safari on iOS
- By 3.2 (possibly earlier)
Chrome for Android
- From 18
Firefox for Android
- From 4
Samsung Internet
- From 1.0
<link> type
Desktop
- Chrome
- Supported
From 1 - Firefox
- Supported
From 1 - Safari
- Supported
By 4 (possibly earlier) - Edge
- Supported
From 12 - Opera
- Supported
By 12.1 (possibly earlier)
Mobile
- Safari on iOS
- Supported
By 3.2 (possibly earlier) - Chrome for Android
- Supported
From 18 - Firefox for Android
- Supported
From 4 - Samsung Internet
- Supported
From 1.0
MDN BCD record for this feature
Support history and limitations
Chrome
- From 1
Firefox
- From 1
Safari
- By 4 (possibly earlier)
Edge
- From 12
Opera
- By 12.1 (possibly earlier)
Safari on iOS
- By 3.2 (possibly earlier)
Chrome for Android
- From 18
Firefox for Android
- From 4
Samsung Internet
- From 1.0
<link> rel · icon
Desktop
- Chrome
- Supported
From 4 - Firefox
- Supported
From 2 - Safari
- Supported
From 3.1 - Edge
- Supported
From 12 - Opera
- Supported
From 9
Mobile
- Safari on iOS
- Not supported
- Chrome for Android
- Supported
From 18 - Firefox for Android
- Supported
From 4 - Samsung Internet
- Supported
From 4.0
MDN BCD record for this feature
Support history and limitations
Chrome
- From 4 · If both ICO and PNG are available, will use ICO over PNG if ICO has better matching sizes set. (Per caniuse.com.).
Firefox
- From 2 · Before Firefox 83, the crossorigin attribute is not supported for rel="icon". · The media attribute is not supported for rel="icon", see bug 1603885.
Safari
- From 3.1 · If both ICO and PNG are available, will ALWAYS use ICO file, regardless of sizes set. (Per caniuse.com.)
Edge
- From 12 · In version 79 and later (Blink-based Edge), if both ICO and PNG are available, will use ICO over PNG if ICO has better matching sizes set. (Per caniuse.com.)
Opera
- From 9 · In version 15 and later (Blink-based Opera), if both ICO and PNG are available, will use ICO over PNG if ICO has better matching sizes set. (Per caniuse.com.)
Safari on iOS
- Not supported · Does not use favicons at all (but may have alternative for bookmarks, etc.). (Per caniuse.com.)
Chrome for Android
- From 18
Firefox for Android
- From 4
Samsung Internet
- From 4.0
<link> rel · preload
Desktop
- Chrome
- Supported
From 50 - Firefox
- Supported
From 85 - Safari
- Supported
From 11.1 - Edge
- Supported
From 79 - Opera
- Supported
From 37
Mobile
- Safari on iOS
- Supported
From 11.3 - Chrome for Android
- Supported
From 50 - Firefox for Android
- Supported
From 85 - Samsung Internet
- Supported
From 5.0
MDN BCD record for this feature · MDN reference
Support history and limitations
Chrome
- From 50
Firefox
- From 85
- From 56 · Removed in 57 · Last supported version: 56 · Partial implementation · Disabled due to various web compatibility issues (e.g. bug 1405761).
Safari
- From 11.1
Edge
- From 79
Opera
- From 37
Safari on iOS
- From 11.3
Chrome for Android
- From 50
Firefox for Android
- From 85
- From 56 · Removed in 57 · Last supported version: 56 · Partial implementation · Disabled due to various web compatibility issues (e.g. bug 1405761).
Samsung Internet
- From 5.0
<link> as
Desktop
- Chrome
- Supported
From 50 - Firefox
- Supported
From 56 - Safari
- Supported
From 10 - Edge
- Supported
From 17 - Opera
- Supported
From 37
Mobile
- Safari on iOS
- Supported
From 10 - Chrome for Android
- Supported
From 50 - Firefox for Android
- Supported
From 56 - Samsung Internet
- Supported
From 5.0
MDN BCD record for this feature
Support history and limitations
Chrome
- From 50
Firefox
- From 56
Safari
- From 10
Edge
- From 17
Opera
- From 37
Safari on iOS
- From 10
Chrome for Android
- From 50
Firefox for Android
- From 56
Samsung Internet
- From 5.0
<link> crossorigin
Desktop
- Chrome
- Supported
From 34 - Firefox
- Supported
From 18 - Safari
- Supported
From 10 - Edge
- Supported
From 17 - Opera
- Supported
From 21
Mobile
- Safari on iOS
- Supported
From 10 - Chrome for Android
- Supported
From 34 - Firefox for Android
- Supported
From 18 - Samsung Internet
- Supported
From 2.0
MDN BCD record for this feature · MDN reference
Support history and limitations
Chrome
- From 34
Firefox
- From 18 · Before Firefox 83, crossorigin is not supported for rel="icon".
Safari
- From 10
Edge
- From 17
Opera
- From 21
Safari on iOS
- From 10
Chrome for Android
- From 34
Firefox for Android
- From 18 · Before Firefox for Android 83, crossorigin is not supported for rel="icon".
Samsung Internet
- From 2.0
MDN BCD 8.1.5 · Dataset built 2026-10-08 · Mapping reviewed 2026-10-21. These dates are not individual browser-test or claim-verification dates. Unknown means the data does not establish support.