Approach 1 – flexbox
It works great for both known and unknown height elements. Make sure to set the outer div to height: 100%; and reset the default margin on body. See the browser support tables.
html, body {
height: 100%;
margin: 0;
}
.wrapper {
height: 100%;
display: flex;
flex-direction: column;
}
.header, .footer {
background: silver;
}
.content {
flex: 1;
overflow: auto;
background: pink;
}<div class="wrapper">
<div class="header">Header</div>
<div class="content">
<div style="height:1000px;">Content</div>
</div>
<div class="footer">Footer</div>
</div>Approach 2 – CSS table
For both known and unknown height elements. It also works in legacy browsers including IE8.
html, body {
height: 100%;
margin: 0;
}
.wrapper {
height: 100%;
width: 100%;
display: table;
}
.header, .content, .footer {
display: table-row;
}
.header, .footer {
background: silver;
}
.inner {
display: table-cell;
}
.content .inner {
height: 100%;
position: relative;
background: pink;
}
.scrollable {
position: absolute;
left: 0; right: 0;
top: 0; bottom: 0;
overflow: auto;
}<div class="wrapper">
<div class="header">
<div class="inner">Header</div>
</div>
<div class="content">
<div class="inner">
<div class="scrollable">
<div style="height:1000px;">Content</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="footer">
<div class="inner">Footer</div>
</div>
</div>Approach 3 – calc()
If header and footer are fixed height, you can use CSS calc().
html, body {
height: 100%;
margin: 0;
}
.wrapper {
height: 100%;
}
.header, .footer {
height: 50px;
background: silver;
}
.content {
height: calc(100% - 100px);
overflow: auto;
background: pink;
}<div class="wrapper">
<div class="header">Header</div>
<div class="content">
<div style="height:1000px;">Content</div>
</div>
<div class="footer">Footer</div>
</div>Approach 4 – % for all
If the header and footer are known height, and they are also percentage you can just do the simple math making them together of 100% height.
html, body {
height: 100%;
margin: 0;
}
.wrapper {
height: 100%;
}
.header, .footer {
height: 10%;
background: silver;
}
.content {
height: 80%;
overflow: auto;
background: pink;
}<div class="wrapper">
<div class="header">Header</div>
<div class="content">
<div style="height:1000px;">Content</div>
</div>
<div class="footer">Footer</div>
</div>