HTML Tags

HTML <base> Tag

The <base> tag specifies the base URL and/or target for all relative URLs in a document.
It defines a reference point so that links and resources (like images, CSS, or JavaScript files) without absolute URLs are resolved relative to the <base> URL.

Syntax

html

<base href="https://example.com/" target="_blank">

href: Specifies the base URL for all relative links in the document.
target: Defines the default target for all hyperlinks (e.g., _blank, _self, _parent, _top).

Example

html

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
  <title>Base Tag Example</title>
  <base href="https://html5andcss3.org/" target="_blank">
</head>
<body>
  <a href="learn-html/">Learn HTML</a>
  <img src="https://ik.imagekit.io/html5andcss3/browser-icons/chrome.webp" alt="Chrome Logo" width="80">
</body>
</html>

Output

Browser Output

html

<base> tag has no any visible output

Browser Support

Chrome	Edge	Firefox	Safari	Opera	IE9+
Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes

All major browser supports the <base> tag.

Notes

The <base> tag must be placed inside the <head> section.
Only one <base> tag is allowed per document.
If both href and target attributes are used, they affect all relative URLs and hyperlinks in the page.
To override the default target for specific links, use the target attribute directly on the tag.
Improper use may cause resource links to break if relative URLs are incorrectly resolved.

Conclusion

The <base> tag helps maintain consistent and predictable link behavior across a website by defining a single reference point for all relative URLs. It simplifies development when multiple relative resources share a common base path.

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