Beginner9 min read

Styling Links and Link States in CSS

9 min read
354 words
16 sections12 code blocks

Browsers apply default styles to links that most users recognize:

  • Unvisited links: Blue with an underline
  • Visited links: Purple with an underline
  • Active links (while clicking): Red

These defaults are functional but rarely match your website's design. CSS gives you full control over how links look and behave.

CSS provides four pseudo-classes for different link states. They should be defined in the LVHA order to work correctly:

CSS
/* L - Link: unvisited links */
a:link { color: #3498db; }

/* V - Visited: already visited links */
a:visited { color: #8e44ad; }

/* H - Hover: mouse is over the link */
a:hover { color: #2980b9; }

/* A - Active: link is being clicked */
a:active { color: #e74c3c; }

Why Order Matters

The LVHA order is important because of CSS specificity. All four selectors have equal specificity, so the last one defined wins when multiple states apply simultaneously. A link being hovered is also still a :link (or :visited), so :hover must come after to override them.

A common mnemonic to remember the order: LoVe HAte.

Most of the time, you'll style all link states together and then override specific states:

CSS
a {
  color: #3498db;
  text-decoration: none;
  transition: color 0.2s ease;
}

a:hover {
  color: #2980b9;
  text-decoration: underline;
}

a:active {
  color: #1a5276;
}

Using a without a pseudo-class targets all link states at once.

Removing Underlines

The most common link style change is removing the default underline:

CSS
a {
  text-decoration: none;
}

/* Add underline only on hover */
a:hover {
  text-decoration: underline;
}

Custom Underlines

For more control over underlines, use text-decoration properties or border-bottom:

CSS
/* Custom underline color and style */
a {
  text-decoration: underline;
  text-decoration-color: #3498db;
  text-decoration-thickness: 2px;
  text-underline-offset: 3px;
}

/* Using border-bottom for more control */
a {
  text-decoration: none;
  border-bottom: 2px solid #3498db;
  padding-bottom: 2px;
}

a:hover {
  border-bottom-color: #e74c3c;
}

Focus Styles for Accessibility

The :focus and :focus-visible pseudo-classes are critical for keyboard navigation:

CSS
a:focus {
  outline: 2px solid #3498db;
  outline-offset: 2px;
}

/* Only show focus ring for keyboard users */
a:focus-visible {
  outline: 2px solid #3498db;
  outline-offset: 2px;
}

a:focus:not(:focus-visible) {
  outline: none;
}

Never remove focus styles without providing an alternative. Users who navigate with keyboards rely on visible focus indicators.

Subtle Hover Effect

CSS
a {
  color: #3498db;
  text-decoration: none;
  border-bottom: 1px solid transparent;
  transition: border-color 0.3s ease;
}

a:hover {
  border-bottom-color: #3498db;
}

Color Transition

CSS
a {
  color: #333;
  text-decoration: none;
  transition: color 0.2s ease;
}

a:hover {
  color: #3498db;
}

Animated Underline

CSS
a {
  color: #333;
  text-decoration: none;
  position: relative;
}

a::after {
  content: '';
  position: absolute;
  bottom: -2px;
  left: 0;
  width: 0;
  height: 2px;
  background: #3498db;
  transition: width 0.3s ease;
}

a:hover::after {
  width: 100%;
}

Transform links to look and behave like buttons:

CSS
.btn-link {
  display: inline-block;
  padding: 0.75rem 1.5rem;
  background: #3498db;
  color: white;
  text-decoration: none;
  border-radius: 4px;
  font-weight: 600;
  transition: background 0.2s ease, transform 0.1s ease;
}

.btn-link:hover {
  background: #2980b9;
  transform: translateY(-1px);
}

.btn-link:active {
  background: #1a6fa0;
  transform: translateY(0);
}

For privacy reasons, browsers limit which properties you can change on :visited links. You can only change:

  • color
  • background-color
  • border-color
  • outline-color
CSS
a:visited {
  color: #8e44ad; /* This works */
  /* font-size: 20px; -- This will be IGNORED */
}

Different sections of your page may need different link styles:

CSS
/* Navigation links */
.nav a {
  color: white;
  text-decoration: none;
  font-weight: 600;
}

/* Content links */
.content a {
  color: #3498db;
  text-decoration: underline;
}

/* Footer links */
.footer a {
  color: #aaa;
  text-decoration: none;
}

.footer a:hover {
  color: white;
}

Visually indicate links that go to external websites:

CSS
a[href^="http"]:not([href*="yourdomain.com"])::after {
  content: ' \2197'; /* Arrow symbol */
  font-size: 0.8em;
}

Summary

CSS link styling revolves around the four pseudo-classes :link, :visited, :hover, and :active (remember LVHA order). Always include :focus styles for keyboard accessibility. Use text-decoration properties for custom underlines, transitions for smooth hover effects, and pseudo-elements for animated underlines. Style links differently based on their context (navigation, content, footer) for a polished user experience.