In HTML, the href attribute is used within an <a> tag to specify the URL of the page the link goes to. If the href attribute is not present, the <a> tag will not function as a hyperlink¹.

Example

Usage

The href attribute can contain an absolute URL that points to another website, a relative URL that points to a file within the same website, or a fragment identifier that points to an element with a specified id within the page¹².

Special Cases

• Emails: You can create a link that opens the user's email program using mailto: in the href attribute. <a href="mailto:[email protected]">Send email</a>

• Telephone Numbers: You can create a link that starts a phone call using tel: in the href attribute. <a href="tel:+1234567890">Call Us</a>

• JavaScript: You can execute JavaScript by using javascript: in the href attribute. <a href="javascript:alert('Hello World!');">Execute JavaScript</a>

• Images as Links: An image can be used as a link by nesting an <img> tag inside an <a> tag. <a href="https://www.example.com"> <img src="image.jpg" alt="Example"> </a>

• Linking to Same Page: Use an anchor (#) followed by an id to link to another section on the same page. <a href="#section2">Go to Section 2</a>

Note: The appearance of hyperlinks can be styled with CSS, and you can use the target attribute to specify where to open the linked document (e.g., _blank for a new tab or window).