<small> Side comment
Side comments and fine print, like copyright lines or legal notes.
<small> marks side comments and small print: copyright lines, legal disclaimers, licensing, attribution. Browsers set it in a smaller font.
Keep it to short runs of text. Long passages do not belong in it, and neither does a heading you want to look small. Fine print is still content, so do not shrink it into unreadability with CSS.
The small element definition (opens in a new tab) describes side comments such as disclaimers, caveats and copyright lines. You will often find it in a footer.
Syntax
<small>fine print</small>When to use it
<small> is for short side comments: "Prices exclude delivery" under a buy button, a photo credit under an image, a license line at the end of an article, or "(optional)" after a form label. It works for a phrase or a sentence or two, not for whole sections.
Longer side content, such as a related tip box, belongs in aside. The credit for a figure can go inside figcaption, with small for the credit part if you like. To make ordinary text smaller for design reasons, use CSS font-size.
Small cannot demote anything. According to the standard, strong text inside it keeps its importance and em text keeps its stress. Putting a cancellation fee in small print does not make it less important to the reader, and wrapping strong text in small leaves it just as important. If a detail could change someone's decision, show it in normal-sized text.
Live example
Edit the code and watch the preview.
<p>Only $9 per month.</p>
<p><small>Prices include tax. Cancel any time.</small></p>
<footer><small>© 2026 Sunny Bakery</small></footer>More examples
Photo credit in a caption
A figure caption describes the picture, and the photo credit is a side comment, so it goes in small. Both sit inside figcaption, so they stay connected to the image.
<figure>
<img src="mountains.svg" alt="Snowy peaks above a green valley" width="400" height="200">
<figcaption>The valley in early spring. <small>Photo: Alex Kim, CC BY 4.0</small></figcaption>
</figure>Optional field note
Marking a form field as optional is a short side comment, which suits small. The note sits inside the label, so it is announced together with the field name. The required field has no note, so the difference is easy to spot.
<form>
<label for="name">Name</label>
<input id="name" name="name" required>
<label for="phone">Phone <small>(optional)</small></label>
<input id="phone" name="phone" type="tel">
<button>Send</button>
</form>Tip: small is for fine print. Any other text gets its size from CSS.
Browser support
small is supported by every browser and renders with font-size:smaller. In HTML 4 it was only a presentational font-size tag; HTML5 gave it the meaning of side comments and small print. It is fully valid in the Living Standard.
Accessibility
Small text still needs a readable size and enough contrast, and it must zoom to 200 percent without losing anything (WCAG 1.4.4). The 200 percent rule is explained in the W3C note Understanding Resize Text (opens in a new tab).
Common mistakes
Wrong
<small><h2>Subtitle</h2></small>Right
<h2 class="subtle">Subtitle</h2>small is phrasing content, so it cannot wrap a heading. Size headings with CSS.
Frequently asked questions
What is the small tag used for in HTML5?
Side comments and small print. In HTML5 <small> covers copyright lines, legal disclaimers, licensing information, caveats and attribution, always in short runs. It does not tone down text marked with <em> or <strong>, and whole paragraphs or sections are outside its scope. Wikipedia's article on fine print (opens in a new tab) describes the kind of text it is made for.
Should I use small to make text smaller?
Only when the text really is a side comment or fine print. Anything else gets smaller through CSS, for example font-size:.875rem. Mind your readers: tiny text is hard to read, and fine print with important conditions still needs a decent size and enough contrast.