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backface-visibility

Summary

Determines whether or not the “back” side of a transformed element is visible when facing the viewer.

Overview table

Initial value
visible
Applies to
transformable elements
Inherited
No
Media
visual
Computed value
Same as specified value.
Animatable
Yes
CSS Object Model Property
backfaceVisibility
Percentages
N/A

Syntax

  • backface-visibility: hidden
  • backface-visibility: visible

Values

visible
The back face of an element is a transparent background, displaying a mirror image of the front face when the back face is observable.
hidden
There are cases when we do not want the front face of an element to be visible through the back face, like when doing a flipping card effect (setting two elements side-to-side). In this case, the property should be set to hidden to make the back face of the element opaque.

Examples

backface-visibility: visible;

View live example

backface-visibility: hidden;

View live example

This property disables position: fixed on Firefox, see related bug: https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=876341

Related specifications

CSS Transforms Level 1
W3C Working Draft

See also

Related articles

Transforms

Attributions