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HTML: <embed> tag

This HTML tutorial explains how to use the HTML element called the <embed> tag with syntax and examples.

Description

The HTML <embed> tag is an HTML5 element that is used as a container to embed external content such as an external application or a browser plug-in. Due to compatibility issues, the <object> tag is more commonly used to embed resources than the <embed> tag. This tag is also commonly referred to as the <embed> element.

Syntax

In HTML, the syntax for the <embed> tag is:

<body>
<embed type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="movie.swf" width="400" height="300">
</body>

Attributes

In addition to the Global Attributes, the following is a list of attributes that are specific to the <embed> tag:

Attribute Description HTML Compatibility
height Height to display the resource in pixels HTML5
src URL of the resource to embed HTML5
type MIME type of the plug-in for the resource HTML5
width Width to display the resource in pixels HTML5

Note

  • The HTML <embed> element is found within the <body> tag.
  • Since the <embed> tag is only available in HTML5, use the <object> tag for HTML4 or XHTML.

Browser Compatibility

The <embed> tag has basic support with the following browsers:

  • Chrome
  • Android
  • Firefox (Gecko)
  • Firefox Mobile (Gecko)
  • Internet Explorer (IE)
  • Edge Mobile
  • Opera
  • Opera Mobile
  • Safari (WebKit)
  • Safari Mobile

Example

We will discuss the <embed> tag below, exploring examples of how to use the <embed> tag in HTML5, HTML 4.01 Transitional, XHTML 1.0 Transitional, XHTML 1.0 Strict, and XHTML 1.1.

  • HTML5
  • HTML4
  • XHTML

HTML5 Document

If you created a new web page in HTML5, your <embed> tag might look like this:

<!doctype html>
<html>

<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>HTML5 Example by www.techonthenet.com</title>
</head>

<body>
<h1>Heading 1</h1>
<embed type="application/x-shockwave-flash" src="movie.swf" width="400" height="300">
</body>

</html>

In this HTML5 Document example, we have created an <embed> tag that embeds to the resource called movie.swf with a MIME type of x-shockwave-flash. We have also set a width of 400 pixels and a height of 300 pixels for the container that displays the resource.

HTML 4.01 Transitional Document

You can not use the <embed> tag in HTML 4.01 Transitional. Use the <object> tag instead.

XHTML 1.0 Transitional Document

You can not use the <embed> tag in XHTML 1.0 Transitional. Use the <object> tag instead.

XHTML 1.0 Strict Document

You can not use the <embed> tag in XHTML 1.0 Strict. Use the <object> tag instead.

XHTML 1.1 Document

You can not use the <embed> tag in XHTML 1.1. Use the <object> tag instead.

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