What is the difference between declaring px vs percentage on the body of a website?

Question

We currently have a reset that says, body { font-size: 75%; } which translates to 12px if the standard size is 16px. I'm trying to figure out why wouldn't I just say body { font-size: 12px; } THanks!~

http://stackoverflow.com/questions/7714543/font-size62-5-vs-font-size10px — j08691, Oct 03 '14 at 15:39
There was a sound technical reason to prefer percentages in IE6. Hopefully, those days are history. — Alohci, Oct 03 '14 at 15:51

starvator · Answer 1 · 2014-10-03T15:51:53.737

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It is completely preference. You can read about all the benefits and disadvantages here > CSS Font-Size: em vs. px vs. pt vs. percent. (first link in google search)

In theory, the em unit is the new and upcoming standard for font sizes on the web, but in practice, the percent unit seems to provide a more consistent and accessible display for users. When client settings have changed, percent text scales at a reasonable rate, allowing designers to preserve readability, accessibility, and visual design.

also, check out this

edited Oct 03 '14 at 15:51

answered Oct 03 '14 at 15:46

starvator

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pt is for print. Do not use pt for the web. http://www.w3.org/Style/Examples/007/units.en.html#units – Rob Oct 03 '14 at 15:49
Thanks for the info! Will take note of that for my future projects! – starvator Oct 03 '14 at 15:52

What is the difference between declaring px vs percentage on the body of a website?

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