A table row was X columns wide and exceeded the column count established by the first row (Y).

A <table> contains a <tr> row that has less <td> columns than the column count established by the first row. Check the table to ensure all rows have the same number of columns.

For example, in the following table, the first <tr> row defines that it’s 2 columns wide, but the second <tr> row tries to use only 1 column:

<table>
<!-- This first row sets the table as 2 columns wide -->

  <tr>
    <td>First</td>
    <td>Second</td>
  </tr>

<!-- This second row has only 1 column -->

  <tr>
    <td>Wrong</td>
  </tr>
</table>

A table row tr has been found, containing no td cells. Check the table and remove empty rows.

Table contents is organized in rows using the <tr> element, which must contain cells using the <td> element, as in this example:

<table>
  <thead>
    <tr>
      <th>Name</th>
      <th>Age</th>
    </tr>
  </thead>
  <tbody>
    <tr>
      <td>Liza</td>
      <td>12</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Jimmy</td>
      <td>14</td>
    </tr>
  </tbody>
</table>

A tr with no td cells on it will raise an issue, as in this example:

<table>
  <thead>
    <tr>
      <th>Name</th>
      <th>Age</th>
    </tr>
  </thead>
  <tbody>
    <tr>

    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Jimmy</td>
      <td>14</td>
    </tr>
  </tbody>
</table>

Note that self-closing <tr/> elements also count as empty rows as are like <tr></tr>.

Ensure each column in your table has at least one <td> or <th> cell starting in it. This error often occurs when using the colspan or rowspan attributes incorrectly.

Example of correct usage:

<table>
  <tr>
    <th>Header 1</th>
    <th>Header 2</th>
  </tr>
  <tr>
    <td>Row 1, Cell 1</td>
    <td>Row 1, Cell 2</td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
    <td>Row 2, Cell 1</td>
    <td>Row 2, Cell 2</td>
  </tr>
</table>

Incorrect usage example:

<table>
  <tr>
    <th>Header 1</th>
    <th>Header 2</th>
  </tr>
  <tr>
    <td colspan="2">Row 1, Cell 1</td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
    <td>Row 2, Cell 1</td>
<!-- Missing cell in column 2 -->

  </tr>
</table>

The corrected version ensuring each column has a starting cell:

<table>
  <tr>
    <th>Header 1</th>
    <th>Header 2</th>
  </tr>
  <tr>
    <td colspan="2">Row 1, spanning both columns</td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
    <td>Row 2, Cell 1</td>
    <td>Row 2, Cell 2</td>
  </tr>
</table>

A <table> contains an incoherent number of cells on one of its columns. Check the structure of the table to find the invalid column.

Example of a valid table that defines in its header that the first column is 2 cells wide:

<table>
  <thead>
    <tr>
      <th colspan="2">The table header</th>
    </tr>
  </thead>
  <tbody>
    <tr>
      <td>The table body</td>
      <td>with two columns</td>
    </tr>
  </tbody>
</table>

This same table with an empty body will be invalid because the table header cannot match any body columns:

<table>
  <thead>
    <tr>
      <th colspan="2">The table header</th>
    </tr>
  </thead>
  <tbody>
  </tbody>
</table>

A <table> contains an incoherent number of columns on one of its rows. Check the structure of the table to find the invalid row.

For example, in the following table, the first <tr> row defines that it’s 2 columns wide, but the second <tr> row tries to use 5 columns by means of a colspan attribute:

<table>
<!-- This first row sets the table as 2 columns wide -->

  <tr>
    <td>First</td>
    <td>Second</td>
  </tr>

<!-- This second row tries to use 5 columns -->

  <tr>
    <td colspan="5">Wrong</td>
  </tr>
</table>

The <table> element does not accept a height attribute. Use CSS instead.

The W3C HTML Validator issue “Misplaced non-space characters inside a table” usually occurs when there are text nodes (or other elements) that are not properly placed within table elements. In HTML, all text content should be contained within table cells.

How to Fix the Issue

To resolve this issue, ensure that all text content is placed inside <td> or <th> elements, which are the valid child elements of <table>, <tr>, and related elements. Here’s how you can identify and fix the issue:

Example of Incorrect Table Structure

<table>
  <tr>
<!-- This is misplaced content -->

    <td>First Cell</td>
    <td>Second Cell</td>
  </tr>
</table>

Corrected Table Structure

<table>
  <tr>
<!-- All text should be inside <td> or <th> -->

    <td>First Cell</td>
    <td>Second Cell</td>
  </tr>
</table>

Guidelines

• Text Content: Ensure that all text (including any headers or titles) is wrapped in <td> (for data cells) or <th> (for header cells). Keep in mind that event the non-breaking space character (&nbsp;) counts as text.

• Table Structure: Remember a typical structure for a table includes <table> containing one or more <tr> elements, which in turn contain the <td> or <th> elements.

• No Direct Text Nodes: Avoid having any direct text nodes outside of the cell elements within the table.

An <a> element has been found in an invalid place within a <table> element.

For example, the following code would cause this issue:

<table>
  <tr>
    <a href="#">link</a>
  </tr>
</table>

Instead, the <a> element should be inside a <td> element, as a <tr> can’t hold content directly:

<table>
  <tr>
    <td>
      <a href="#">link</a>
    </td>
  </tr>
</table>

A <br> element has been found in an invalid place within a <table> element.

For example, the following table has an invalid <br> between two <tr>, but the <br> that appears inside a <td> is valid.

<table>
  <tr>
    <th>Item</th>
    <th>Description</th>
  </tr>
<!-- The following br is invalid -->

  <br>
  <tr>
    <td>Book</td>
    <td>
<!-- The br in the following line is valid -->

      Title: HTML & CSS<br>
      Author: John Duckett
    </td>
  </tr>
</table>

A td (table cell) start tag must be placed inside a tr (table row) within a table.

The td element represents a cell of a table that contains data. According to HTML specifications, a td must be a child of a tr, which in turn must be a child of a table. Placing a td directly outside a tr or outside a table is invalid and causes the “stray start tag ‘td’” error in the W3C Validator.

Incorrect usage:

<table>
  <td>Cell data</td>
</table>

In the above example, the td is not inside a tr.

Correct usage:

<table>
  <tr>
    <td>Cell data</td>
  </tr>
</table>

Here, the td is nested inside a tr, which is correctly within a table. This will resolve the validation error.