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Figure out CSS specificity in seconds.

Paste any CSS selector and see its (a, b, c) score, a token-by-token breakdown of every contributing part, and a plain-English explanation. Compare two selectors to find out which one wins and why.

Paste your selector
Type or pick a preset example to start
See the score instantly
ID, class, and type counts update as you type
Compare to find the winner
Switch to compare mode for two conflicting selectors

Specificity quick reference

Selector type	Example	Score	Column
Inline style	style="color:red"	(1, 0, 0)	a — highest
ID	#header	(1, 0, 0)	a
Class	.button	(0, 1, 0)	b
Attribute	[type="text"]	(0, 1, 0)	b
Pseudo-class	:hover, :nth-child(2)	(0, 1, 0)	b
Type selector	div, p, a	(0, 0, 1)	c
Pseudo-element	::before, ::after	(0, 0, 1)	c
Universal	*	(0, 0, 0)	—
:where()	:where(.nav)	(0, 0, 0)	— zero specificity
:not() / :is() / :has()	:not(.active)	argument's score	b or c
!important	color: red !important	Overrides cascade	— not a score

Combinators > + ~ and whitespace contribute zero specificity and are ignored in the calculation.

Common specificity problems and fixes

My class won't override a component's ID style

#id beats .class

IDs always beat classes — no number of classes can win. Refactor: remove the ID selector from your stylesheet and use a class instead. Or wrap the component in :where(#id) to strip the ID's specificity to zero.

I'm using !important everywhere and it's escalating

Specificity creep

You're in a specificity war. Use CSS @layer to establish a clear priority order: wrap library styles in one layer and your overrides in another. Your layer always wins without any !important.

I can't override a third-party library's styles

Library overrides

Wrap the library import in a @layer: @layer library { @import 'lib.css'; } — then write your overrides outside any layer. Un-layered CSS always beats layered CSS.

I need base styles that are always easy to override

Design system resets

Use :where() to write base styles at zero specificity: :where(h1, h2, h3) { margin: 0; }. Any single class override will beat it without needing !important.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CSS specificity?

CSS specificity is a three-number score (a, b, c) that determines which CSS rule wins when two rules target the same element. Selectors are compared left to right — column A always beats column B.

Column	What counts	Example	Score
a	ID selectors	#header	(1, 0, 0)
b	Class, attribute, pseudo-class	.btn, [type], :hover	(0, 1, 0)
c	Type selectors, pseudo-elements	div, p, ::before	(0, 0, 1)

How do I calculate CSS specificity by hand?

Count each part separately: IDs → column A, classes/attributes/pseudo-classes → column B, types/pseudo-elements → column C.

css

/* nav > ul li.active:hover — step by step */
nav         /* type     → (0, 0, 1) */
ul          /* type     → (0, 0, 1) */
li          /* type     → (0, 0, 1) */
.active     /* class    → (0, 1, 0) */
:hover      /* pseudo   → (0, 1, 0) */
/* >  +  ~  space — combinators ignored */

/* Total: (0, 2, 3) */

Does !important affect specificity?

!important does not change the specificity score — it bypasses the cascade entirely, regardless of score.

A rule marked !important wins over any non-!important rule, even one with a higher score.
Two competing !important rules fall back to comparing specificity normally.
Avoid !important in application CSS — it can only be overridden by more !important rules, causing escalating stylesheet debt.

What is :where() and why does it have zero specificity?

:where() applies styles based on its argument selector but contributes zero specificity — (0, 0, 0) — regardless of how complex the argument is.

css

/* Zero specificity — any single class can override */
:where(h1, h2, h3) { margin: 0; }

/* This wins without !important */
.custom-title { margin: 1.5rem; }

Can 100 class selectors ever beat 1 ID selector?

No. The columns (a, b, c) are compared left to right and never overflow into each other.

	#header (1 ID)	.a.b.c × 100 classes
Score	(1, 0, 0)	(0, 100, 0)
Column A	1	0
Winner?	Yes — column A decides	No — loses on column A

To avoid this trap: don't use ID selectors in stylesheets. Use classes and :where() instead.

Figure out CSS specificity in seconds.

Paste any CSS selector and see its (a, b, c) score, a token-by-token breakdown of every contributing part, and a plain-English explanation. Compare two selectors to find out which one wins and why.

Paste your selector

Type or pick a preset example to start

See the score instantly

ID, class, and type counts update as you type

Compare to find the winner

Switch to compare mode for two conflicting selectors

CSS Selector

Examples

0IDs

2Classes

3Types

High specificity(0, 2, 3)

Breakdown

nav

Type

+0,0,1

Type

+0,0,1

Type

+0,0,1

.active

Class

+0,1,0

:hover

Pseudo-class

+0,1,0

This selector has 2 classes, attributes, or pseudo-classes, 3 type selectors or pseudo-elements.

Specificity quick reference

Selector type	Example	Score	Column
Inline style	style="color:red"	(1, 0, 0)	a — highest
ID	#header	(1, 0, 0)	a
Class	.button	(0, 1, 0)	b
Attribute	[type="text"]	(0, 1, 0)	b
Pseudo-class	:hover, :nth-child(2)	(0, 1, 0)	b
Type selector	div, p, a	(0, 0, 1)	c
Pseudo-element	::before, ::after	(0, 0, 1)	c
Universal	*	(0, 0, 0)	—
:where()	:where(.nav)	(0, 0, 0)	— zero specificity
:not() / :is() / :has()	:not(.active)	argument's score	b or c
!important	color: red !important	Overrides cascade	— not a score

Combinators > + ~ and whitespace contribute zero specificity and are ignored in the calculation.

Common specificity problems and fixes

My class won't override a component's ID style

#id beats .class

I'm using !important everywhere and it's escalating

Specificity creep

You're in a specificity war. Use CSS @layer to establish a clear priority order: wrap library styles in one layer and your overrides in another. Your layer always wins without any !important.

I can't override a third-party library's styles

Library overrides

Wrap the library import in a @layer: @layer library { @import 'lib.css'; } — then write your overrides outside any layer. Un-layered CSS always beats layered CSS.

I need base styles that are always easy to override

Design system resets

Use :where() to write base styles at zero specificity: :where(h1, h2, h3) { margin: 0; }. Any single class override will beat it without needing !important.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CSS specificity?

Column	What counts	Example	Score
a	ID selectors	#header	(1, 0, 0)
b	Class, attribute, pseudo-class	.btn, [type], :hover	(0, 1, 0)
c	Type selectors, pseudo-elements	div, p, ::before	(0, 0, 1)

How do I calculate CSS specificity by hand?

Count each part separately: IDs → column A, classes/attributes/pseudo-classes → column B, types/pseudo-elements → column C.

css

/* nav > ul li.active:hover — step by step */
nav         /* type     → (0, 0, 1) */
ul          /* type     → (0, 0, 1) */
li          /* type     → (0, 0, 1) */
.active     /* class    → (0, 1, 0) */
:hover      /* pseudo   → (0, 1, 0) */
/* >  +  ~  space — combinators ignored */

/* Total: (0, 2, 3) */

Does !important affect specificity?

!important does not change the specificity score — it bypasses the cascade entirely, regardless of score.

A rule marked !important wins over any non-!important rule, even one with a higher score.
Two competing !important rules fall back to comparing specificity normally.
Avoid !important in application CSS — it can only be overridden by more !important rules, causing escalating stylesheet debt.

What is :where() and why does it have zero specificity?

:where() applies styles based on its argument selector but contributes zero specificity — (0, 0, 0) — regardless of how complex the argument is.

css

/* Zero specificity — any single class can override */
:where(h1, h2, h3) { margin: 0; }

/* This wins without !important */
.custom-title { margin: 1.5rem; }

Can 100 class selectors ever beat 1 ID selector?

No. The columns (a, b, c) are compared left to right and never overflow into each other.

	#header (1 ID)	.a.b.c × 100 classes
Score	(1, 0, 0)	(0, 100, 0)
Column A	1	0
Winner?	Yes — column A decides	No — loses on column A

To avoid this trap: don't use ID selectors in stylesheets. Use classes and :where() instead.