The HTML <b> tag
The HTML <b> element renders text bold to draw attention stylistically — keywords, product names, the lead sentence — without implying extra importance. For genuinely important content, use <strong> instead.
Overview
The <b> element draws attention to a span of text stylistically without giving it any added importance or emphasis. Think keywords in an article summary, product names in a review, or the opening words of a paragraph — text you want to stand out visually, but that carries no extra meaning.
It is the bold counterpart to <i>. The key distinction is from <strong>: when the text actually is important — a warning, a critical instruction — use <strong>, which conveys that meaning to assistive technology and search engines. <b> deliberately conveys nothing semantically.
And if you simply want bold styling with no semantic role at all, the CSS font-weight property on a <span> (or any element) is the cleaner choice. Reach for <b> specifically when you want to single out text without claiming it is important.
Syntax
<p>The <b>quick brown fox</b> jumps.</p>Example
<p>Introducing <b>CodeShack Pro</b> — our new plan.</p>Best practices
- Use
<b>to draw attention to text stylistically — keywords, names, lead-ins — without implying importance. - When the text genuinely is important, use <strong> instead.
- For purely visual bold with no semantics, use the CSS font-weight property.
- Do not overuse it — if everything is bold, nothing stands out.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between b and strong?
<b> bolds text without adding meaning; <strong> marks the text as important, which assistive technology conveys.