Page structure

Spacing

The Design System uses two different spacing scales – responsive and static.

Responsive spacing

The responsive spacing scale adapts based on screen size.

The spacing for ‘large screens’ is used when the screen is wider than the tablet breakpoint (640px). Spacing for the smallest units (0-3) stays the same for all screen sizes.

The responsive spacing scale
Spacing unit Small screens Large screens
0 0 0
1 5px 5px
2 10px 10px
3 15px 15px
4 15px 20px
5 15px 25px
6 20px 30px
7 25px 40px
8 30px 50px
9 40px 60px

Static spacing

The static spacing scale stays the same for all screen sizes, and uses the same spacing as ‘large screens’ in the responsive spacing scale.

The static spacing scale
Spacing unit All screens
0 0
1 5px
2 10px
3 15px
4 20px
5 25px
6 30px
7 40px
8 50px
9 60px

Applying spacing in your own CSS

If you want to reference the spacing scale in your CSS, use the spacing helpers.

Using the responsive spacing helper

To use the responsive spacing scale, include the govuk-responsive-margin or govuk-responsive-padding mixins.

For example, to apply spacing unit 6 for 30px padding on large screens and 20px on small screens, use:

@include govuk-responsive-padding(6);

You can also add an argument to apply margin or padding in a single direction.

For example, to apply spacing unit 6 for a 30px bottom margin on large screens and a 20px bottom margin on small screens, use:

@include govuk-responsive-margin(6, "bottom");

Using the static spacing helper

For the static spacing scale, use the govuk-spacing function.

For example, to apply spacing unit 6 for 30px top padding on all screens, use:

padding-top: govuk-spacing(6);

For negative spacing, use a negative spacing unit number.

For example, to apply spacing unit -3 for a negative 15px top margin all screens, use:

margin-top: govuk-spacing(-3);

Overriding spacing

Occasionally, you might need to make minor adjustments like adding or removing spacing to elements of your design. You can use the spacing override classes for this.

Responsive spacing override classes

The responsive spacing override classes start with: govuk-!-, followed by either margin- or padding-, and then a spacing unit number.

To apply spacing in a single direction, include left-, right-, top-, or bottom- just before the spacing unit.

For example, use:

  • govuk-!-margin-9 to apply a 40px margin to all sides of the element on small screens, increasing to 60px on large screens
  • govuk-!-padding-right-5 to apply 15px of padding to the right side of the element on small screens, increasing to 25px on large screens
  • govuk-!-margin-0 to remove all margins at all screen sizes

Static spacing override classes

The static spacing override classes start with govuk-!-static. Use them the same way as the responsive spacing override classes.

For example, use:

  • govuk-!-static-margin-9 to apply a 60px margin to all sides of the element at all screen sizes
  • govuk-!-static-padding-right-5 to apply 25px of padding to the right side of the element at all screen sizes
  • govuk-!-static-margin-0 to remove all margins at all screen sizes, same as govuk-!-margin-0

Examples

Open this example in a new tab: padding scale – spacing
HTML
<div class="govuk-!-padding-bottom-9"></div>
<div class="govuk-!-padding-bottom-8"></div>
<div class="govuk-!-padding-bottom-7"></div>
<div class="govuk-!-padding-bottom-6"></div>
<div class="govuk-!-padding-bottom-5"></div>
<div class="govuk-!-padding-bottom-4"></div>
<div class="govuk-!-padding-bottom-3"></div>
<div class="govuk-!-padding-bottom-2"></div>
<div class="govuk-!-padding-bottom-1"></div>
Open this example in a new tab: margin scale – spacing
HTML
<p class="govuk-body govuk-!-margin-bottom-9">A paragraph with a margin-bottom override (spacing unit 9).</p>
<p class="govuk-body govuk-!-margin-bottom-8">A paragraph with a margin-bottom override (spacing unit 8).</p>
<p class="govuk-body govuk-!-margin-bottom-7">A paragraph with a margin-bottom override (spacing unit 7).</p>
<p class="govuk-body govuk-!-margin-bottom-6">A paragraph with a margin-bottom override (spacing unit 6).</p>
<p class="govuk-body govuk-!-margin-bottom-5">A paragraph with a margin-bottom override (spacing unit 5).</p>
<p class="govuk-body govuk-!-margin-bottom-4">A paragraph with a margin-bottom override (spacing unit 4).</p>
<p class="govuk-body govuk-!-margin-bottom-3">A paragraph with a margin-bottom override (spacing unit 3).</p>
<p class="govuk-body govuk-!-margin-bottom-2">A paragraph with a margin-bottom override (spacing unit 2).</p>
<p class="govuk-body govuk-!-margin-bottom-1">A paragraph with a margin-bottom override (spacing unit 1).</p>
<p class="govuk-body govuk-!-margin-bottom-0">A paragraph with a margin-bottom override (spacing unit 0).</p>

Help improve this style

If you spot a problem with this guidance you can propose a change.

If you’re not sure how to do this, read guidance on how to propose changes in GitHub.

Need help?

If you’ve got a question about the GOV.UK Design System, contact the team.