HTML <del> Tag

The <del> tag in HTML is used to represent a portion of text that has been deleted from a document. It conveys that the content enclosed within it is no longer accurate, relevant, or valid in the context of the surrounding text, essentially marking it as removed. This is particularly useful in scenarios such as editing, version tracking, or when showing changes between document revisions.

Visually, browsers typically render <del> text with a strikethrough to indicate that the content has been deleted. This provides a clear visual cue to readers without removing the text entirely from the page. This can help maintain a historical record of changes, which can be essential for legal documents, collaborative writing, or content management systems.

The <del> tag can be used in conjunction with the <ins> tag, which represents inserted text, to display changes in a document over time. When combined, <del> and <ins> allow for clear comparison between the old and new versions of content.

Example usage:

<p>Our prices have changed from <del>$50</del> to <ins>$40</ins>.</p>

In this example, $50 is marked as deleted, while $40 is marked as the newly inserted price, making the change obvious to the reader.

The <del> element is semantic, meaning it provides meaningful information about the content's status to browsers, search engines, and assistive technologies, rather than just being a visual style. This makes it more useful than simply styling text with CSS to appear crossed out.