HTML - Ordered Lists

An ordered list is used to display a collection of items that have a specific order or sequence. For instance, we can use an ordered list to show the steps of a recipe, the ranking of a leader board, or the chronological order of events as shown in the below figure −

html-ordered-lists

Ordered Lists in HTML

To create an ordered list in HTML, we use the <ol> element and nest <li> elements inside it. Each <li> element represents one item in the list. The numbering starts with 1 and is incremented by one for each successive ordered list element tagged with <li>. Like an unordered list, it also allows us to change the numbering style using the type attribute of the <ol> element.

Example

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
   <title>HTML Ordered List</title>
</head>
<body>
   <ol>
      <li>Beetroot</li>
      <li>Ginger</li>
      <li>Potato</li>
      <li>Radish</li>
   </ol>
</body>
</html>

If you click on Edit & Run the above example displays an ordered list.

The type Attribute of Ordered List

The type attribute for <ol> tag is used to specify the type of marker for the unordered list in HTML. By default, counting numbers are used. But, we can change this with the help of following values −

S.No Value & Description
1

1

It is the default type of marker.
2

I

List items will be displayed with roman number marker.
3

A

It will set the marker to upper case alphabets.
4

a

It sets the marker to lower case alphabets.

Example

In the following example, we are using all values of the type attribute.

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
   <title>HTML Ordered List</title>
</head>
<body>
   <p>Ordered list with counting numbers:</p>
   <ol type="1">
      <li>Beetroot</li>
      <li>Ginger</li>
      <li>Potato</li>
      <li>Radish</li>
   </ol>
   <p>Ordered list with roman numbers:</p>
   <ol type="I">
      <li>Aman</li>
      <li>Vivek</li>
      <li>Shrey</li>
      <li>Ansh</li>
   </ol>
   <p>Ordered list with upper case alphabets:</p>
   <ol type="A">
      <li>Bus</li>
      <li>Train</li>
      <li>Plane</li>
      <li>Boat</li>
   </ol>
   <p>Ordered list with lower case alphabets:</p>
   <ol type="a">
      <li>Item One</li>
      <li>Item Two</li>
      <li>Item Three</li>
      <li>Item Four</li>
   </ol>
</body>
</html>

The above example displays four ordered lists with counting numbers, roman numbers and alphabets.

The start Attribute

You can use start attribute for <ol> tag to specify the starting point of numbering you need. Following are the possible options −

<ol type="1" start="4"> - Numerals starts with 4.


<ol type="I" start="4"> - Numerals starts with IV.


<ol type="i" start="4"> - Numerals starts with iv.


<ol type="a" start="4"> - Letters starts with d.


<ol type="A" start="4"> - Letters starts with D.

Example

Following is an example where we used <ol type="i" start="4" >

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
   <title>HTML Ordered List</title>
</head>
<body>
   <ol type="i" start="4">
      <li>Beetroot</li>
      <li>Ginger</li>
      <li>Potato</li>
      <li>Radish</li>
   </ol>
</body>
</html>

Styling ordered list

Styling HTML-ordered lists with CSS allows customization of the appearance to match the design preferences of a website. The CSS styles can target both the list itself (<ol>) and the list items (<li>).

Example

Below is the program example that includes all the CSS styling for ordered list −

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
   <meta charset="UTF-8">
   <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
   <title>Styled Ordered List</title>
   <style>
      /* Basic Styling */
      ol {
         color: navy;
         font-family: 'Arial', sans-serif;
         margin-left: 20px;
      }
      li {
         font-size: 16px;
         margin-bottom: 8px;
      }
      /* Changing Numbering Style */
      ol.roman {
         list-style-type: upper-roman;
      }
      ol.letters {
         list-style-type: upper-alpha;
      }
      /* Adding Counters */
      ol.counter-list {
         counter-reset: my-counter;
      }
      ol.counter-list li {
         counter-increment: my-counter;
      }
      ol.counter-list li::before {
         content: counter(my-counter) '. ';
      }
      /* Changing Text Color on Hover */
      li.hover-effect:hover {
         color: #e44d26;
      }
   </style>
</head>
<body>
   <h1>Styled Ordered List Example</h1>
   <h2>Basic Styling</h2>
   <ol>
      <li>Item 1</li>
      <li>Item 2</li>
      <li>Item 3</li>
   </ol>
   <h2>Changing Numbering Style</h2>
   <ol class="roman">
      <li>Roman I</li>
      <li>Roman II</li>
      <li>Roman III</li>
   </ol>
   <ol class="letters">
      <li>Letter A</li>
      <li>Letter B</li>
      <li>Letter C</li>
   </ol>
   <h2>Adding Counters</h2>
   <ol class="counter-list">
      <li>Item</li>
      <li>Item</li>
      <li>Item</li>
   </ol>
   <h2>Changing Text Color on Hover</h2>
   <ol>
      <li class="hover-effect">Hover Effect 1</li>
      <li class="hover-effect">Hover Effect 2</li>
      <li class="hover-effect">Hover Effect 3</li>
   </ol>
</body>
</html>

The program creates a styled HTML document with ordered lists. It includes basic styling, changes numbering styles to Roman and letters, adds counters to items, and changes text color on hover.

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