HTML Validation

The “type” attribute for the “style” element is not needed and should be omitted.

About This HTML Issue

The HTML <style> element contains style information for a document, or part of a document, defined in CSS. This element does not need the type attribute anymore, so it should be omitted.

For example, this style defines that <p> elements should be in red color.

<style type="text/css">
p {
  color: red;
}
</style>
<p>This text will be red.</p>

But, the type attribute is not used anymore, so we can just use this:

<style>
p {
  color: red;
}
</style>
<p>This text will be red.</p>

Learn more:

Last reviewed: September 02, 2024

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Reading time

1 min read

Category

HTML Validation

Engine

W3C Validator

Last reviewed

September 02, 2024

Resources

Related W3C Validator Issues (95)

A “script” element with a “defer” attribute must not have a “type” attribute with the value “module”.

The combination of type="module" and defer is not allowed. The type="module" attribute itself implies that the script should be executed in a deferred way, hence using the defer attribute is unnecessary and invalid.

Steps to Fix the Issue:

Remove the defer Attribute: When you use type="module", you should not include the defer attribute since module scripts defer automatically.

Incorrect Code:

<script type="module" defer src="example.js"></script>

Corrected Code:

<script type="module" src="example.js"></script>

A “script” element with a “src” attribute must not have a “type” attribute whose value is anything other than the empty string, a JavaScript MIME type, or “module”.

The <script> tag allows authors to include dynamic scripts and data blocks in their documents. When the src is present, this tag accepts a type attribute which must be either:

an empty string
text/javascript (that’s the default, so it can be omitted)
module

Examples:

<!-- This is valid, without a type it defaults to JavaScript -->

<script src="app.js"></script>

<!-- This is valid, but will warn that it can be omitted -->

<script type="text/javascript" src="app.js"></script>

<!-- An empty attribute is valid, but will warn that it can be omitted -->

<script type="" src="app.js"></script>

<!-- The module keyword is also valid as a type -->

<script type="module" src="app.js"></script>

<!-- Any other type is invalid -->

<script type="wrong" src="app.js"></script>
<script type="text/html" src="app.js"></script>
<script type="image/jpeg" src="app.js"></script>

A “source” element that has a following sibling “source” element or “img” element with a “srcset” attribute must have a “media” attribute and/or “type” attribute.

A <source> element inside a <picture> that is followed by another <source> or an <img> with srcset must include a media and/or type attribute.

The <source> element is used inside <picture> for responsive images, allowing different resources to be loaded based on conditions such as viewport width (media) or image format (type). According to the HTML standard, when multiple <source> elements are present (or a following <img> with srcset), each <source> must provide a media and/or type attribute so the browser can choose the appropriate resource based on those hints.

Without media or type, the browser cannot distinguish when to use each source, which can lead to validation errors and unexpected rendering behavior.

Incorrect example (causes the validator error):

<picture>
  <source srcset="image1.webp">
  <source srcset="image2.jpg">
  <img alt="" src="fallback.jpg" srcset="fallback2x.jpg 2x">
</picture>

Correct examples (fixing the error):

<picture>
  <source srcset="image1.webp" type="image/webp">
  <source srcset="image2.jpg" type="image/jpeg">
  <img alt="" src="fallback.jpg" srcset="fallback2x.jpg 2x">
</picture>

<picture>
  <source srcset="image-small.jpg" media="(max-width: 600px)">
  <source srcset="image-large.jpg" media="(min-width: 601px)">
  <img alt="" src="fallback.jpg" srcset="fallback2x.jpg 2x">
</picture>

By specifying the media and/or type attributes for each <source>, you satisfy the HTML standard and resolve the W3C validator issue.

Attribute “height” not allowed on element “table” at this point.

Attribute “type” not allowed on element “textarea” at this point.

Bad value “datetime” for attribute “type” on element “input”.

type="datetime" is obsolete; it was removed from HTML and is not valid in modern browsers or validators.

Explanation

The input element’s type attribute accepts specific keywords defined by the HTML Living Standard. The keyword datetime was dropped; use either:

type="datetime-local" for a local date and time without timezone.
type="date" or type="time" when collecting them separately.
type="text" with a pattern or a JS widget when timezone-aware datetime is required.

Relevant attributes that still apply include name, value, min, max, and step (e.g., seconds for datetime-local).

HTML examples

Example reproducing the error

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <title>Invalid input type</title>
</head>
<body>
  <form>
    <label>
      Meeting:
      <input type="datetime" name="meeting">
    </label>
  </form>
</body>
</html>

Valid fix with datetime-local

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <title>Valid input type</title>
</head>
<body>
  <form>
    <label>
      Meeting:
      <input type="datetime-local" name="meeting" step="60">
    </label>
  </form>
</body>
</html>

Bad value “dob” for attribute “type” on element “input”.

The type dob is not valid for an input. If you want to build a date picker field, you can use the native HTML input elements with type date, datetime-local, or a generic text input decorated with JavaScript and CSS.

In HTML, the type attribute for the <input> element specifies the type of input control that is to be displayed. The type attribute can have values like text, password, email, date, etc. Using an unsupported or invalid value like dob (which presumably stands for “date of birth”) will cause this validation error.

Here’s an example of how you can correct this issue by using a supported type attribute value for the date of birth input:

<label for="dob">Date of Birth:</label>
<input type="date" id="dob" name="dob">

In this corrected example, we’ve used the type="date" attribute value for the date of birth input. This is a valid type for handling dates in HTML forms. Replace the input type with a supported type according to the specific data you need to capture.

Alternatively you can use a JavaScript library to build a date picker on a generic text input. For example, the popular bootstrap-datepicker library will generate a date picker around a text input.

Bad value “favicon” for attribute “type” on element “link”: Subtype missing.

The type attribute value for the <link> element must be a valid MIME type, such as image/png, not favicon.

The type attribute in a <link rel="icon"> specifies the MIME type of the linked resource. MIME types must follow the standard format, such as image/png for PNG images or image/x-icon for .ico files. Using favicon is incorrect because it is not a registered MIME type, leading to validation errors.

Correct usage for linking a PNG favicon:

<link rel="icon" href="img/favicon.png" type="image/png">

Correct usage for linking an ICO favicon:

<link rel="icon" href="img/favicon.ico" type="image/x-icon">

The type attribute is optional when the server sends the correct Content-Type HTTP header, but it can be included for explicitness and clarity.

Bad value “” for attribute “type” on element “a”: Expected a MIME type but saw the empty string.

Empty type attributes are invalid on the <a> element; you must either remove the type attribute or provide a valid MIME type value.

The type attribute on an <a> (anchor) element specifies the MIME type of the linked resource. According to the WHATWG HTML specification and W3C validator, the value of the type attribute cannot be an empty string. It should be a valid MIME type, such as application/pdf or text/html. If you do not know the MIME type or it’s not relevant, you should omit the attribute.

Incorrect HTML example (causes validation error):

<a href="document.pdf" type="">Download PDF</a>

Correct HTML example (remove the invalid attribute):

<a href="document.pdf">Download PDF</a>

Correct HTML example (provide a valid MIME type):

<a href="document.pdf" type="application/pdf">Download PDF</a>

If the type is unknown or unnecessary, leaving it out is preferred to using an empty value.

Bad value “numeric” for attribute “type” on element “input”.

The input element does not support a type attribute value of numeric; the correct attribute value is number.

HTML input elements have a type attribute that specifies the kind of data that the input is expected to contain. When creating a form field for numeric input, you should use type="number", which provides an input control with features like increment/decrement controls, depending on the browser. This allows browsers to render the appropriate interface for numeric inputs and also provides built-in client-side validation to ensure that the entered data is a numerical value.

Here’s an example of how to correctly define an input for numeric values:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="UTF-8">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
  <title>Number Input Example</title>
</head>
<body>
  <form>
    <label for="quantity">Quantity:</label>
    <input type="number" id="quantity" name="quantity" min="1" max="10">
    <input type="submit" value="Submit">
  </form>
</body>
</html>

In this example, the input element has a type of number, allowing users to input or select a numeric value within the specified range of 1 to 10. Using type="number" instead of any incorrect value, like numeric, ensures that your HTML is compliant with W3C standards.

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