Carefully Understand Bootstrap Tables & Changes

Q: How can I make a Bootstrap table responsive?

To make a Bootstrap table responsive, use the table-responsive class on a containing div element. This class enables horizontal scrolling on smaller screens, preventing the table from overflowing its container.

Q: Can I add pagination to a Bootstrap table?

Yes, you can add pagination to a Bootstrap table using plugins like DataTables. Include the necessary CSS and JavaScript files, and initialize the DataTable on your table to enable features like pagination, sorting, and searching.

Q: How do I add a hover effect to rows in a Bootstrap table?

Add the table-hover class to your <table element. This class will apply a hover effect to table rows, making it visually interactive for users.

Bootstrap Tables: Bootstrap tables have evolved significantly over the years and with the latest Bootstrap 5 release, there are some important changes to understand as you design responsive websites. While tables have historically been used widely for page layout and presentation, modern web design principles advocate a more semantic use of tables primarily for organizing and presenting tabular data.

From HTML specifications to accessibility concerns to the multitude of options available like CSS Grid or Flexbox, layout tables are discouraged. However, data tables remain a valuable tool when used appropriately. With Bootstrap 5, tables now have richer interactive functionality right out of the box with features like hover, striped rows, bordered/unbordered variants and small, large or hover sizing.

Under the hood, tables also generate more robust HTML5 markup and have been designed with accessibility best practices in mind. In this post, we will walk through the updated Bootstrap table markup, explore the available classes and styles and look at examples of how to implement accessible and responsive data tables on your next project using Bootstrap 5.

Table of Contents

Bootstrap Tables Overview

Everyone uses tables on their website for one purpose or another. Whether displaying tabular data, building layout structures, or crafting app interfaces, tables are a fundamental part of navigating and presenting information online.

However, manually writing out HTML table markup can become tedious, difficult to maintain, and a nightmare to style with CSS. This is where Bootstrap tables come in. Bootstrap is one of the most popular front-end frameworks for developing responsive, mobile-first projects on the web.

It comes bundled with a robust set of table components that make working with tabular data simpler, more intuitive and easier to style than plain HTML tables. Explore topics like basic table markup, styling options, responsive utilities, contextual classes and more below.

Highlights:

Evolution of Bootstrap Tables: Bootstrap tables have undergone significant evolution, especially with the latest Bootstrap 5 release. They are now primarily used for organizing and presenting tabular data rather than page layout and presentation.

Semantic Use of Tables: Modern web design principles emphasize a more semantic use of tables, discouraging layout tables in favor of other layout techniques like CSS Grid or Flexbox. However, tables remain valuable for organizing data effectively.

Enhanced Functionality in Bootstrap 5: Bootstrap 5 introduces richer interactive functionality for tables, including features like hover effects, striped rows, bordered/unbordered variants, and sizing options. This enhances the user experience and visual appeal.

Robust HTML5 Markup and Accessibility: Tables generated by Bootstrap 5 adhere to HTML5 markup standards and incorporate accessibility best practices. This ensures that tables are accessible to all users, including those with disabilities.

Bootstrap’s Role in Simplifying Table Creation: Bootstrap provides a comprehensive set of table components that simplify the process of creating responsive and visually appealing tables. Developers can leverage Bootstrap’s classes and styles to create tables quickly and efficiently.

Bootstrap Tables Examples

Bootstrap provides a flexible and powerful grid system that allows you to create responsive and visually appealing tables on your web pages. Below are a few examples of Bootstrap tables with different features:

Example 1: Basic Bootstrap Table

<!DOCTYPE html

<head>

<title>Basic Bootstrap Table</title>

</head>

<body>

<thead>

<tr>

<th>Email</th>

</tr>

</thead>

<tbody>

<tr>

<td>john@example.com</td>

</tr>

<tr>

<td>jane@example.com</td>

</tr>

<!– Add more rows as needed –>

</tbody>

</table>

</div>

</body>

</html>

This example demonstrates a basic Bootstrap table with a header and a few rows of data.

Example 2: Striped Bootstrap Table

<!DOCTYPE html>

<head>

<title>Striped Bootstrap Table</title>

</head>

<body>

<thead>

<tr>

<th>Email</th>

</tr>

</thead>

<tbody>

<tr>

<td>john@example.com</td>

</tr>

<tr>

<td>jane@example.com</td>

</tr>

<!– Add more rows as needed –>

</tbody>

</table>

</div>

</body>

</html

This example adds the table-striped class to the table, resulting in a striped background for alternating rows.

Example 3: Hoverable Bootstrap Table

<!DOCTYPE html

<head>

<title>Hoverable Bootstrap Table</title>

</head>

<body>

<thead>

<tr>

<th>Email</th>

</tr>

</thead>

<tbody>

<tr>

<td>john@example.com</td>

</tr>

<tr>

<td>jane@example.com</td>

</tr>

<!– Add more rows as needed –>

</tbody>

</table>

</div>

</body>

</html

This example adds the table-hover class to the table, providing a hover effect when users mouse over the rows.

Example 4: Bordered Bootstrap Table

<!DOCTYPE html

<head>

<title>Bordered Bootstrap Table</title>

</head>

<body>

<thead>

<tr>

<th>Email</th>

</tr>

</thead>

<tbody>

<tr>

Example 5: Striped Rows and Hover Effect

<!DOCTYPE html>

<html lang=”en”

<head>

<title>Striped Rows and Hover Effect</title>

</head>

<body>

<thead>

<tr>

<th>Email</th>

</tr>

</thead>

<tbody>

<tr>

<td>john@example.com</td>

</tr>

<tr>

<td>jane@example.com</td>

</tr>

<!– Add more rows as needed –>

</tbody>

</table>

</div>

</body>

</html>

Output:

This example uses the table-striped class for striped rows and table-hover for a hover effect, making the table more visually appealing.

Example 6: Bordered Table

<!DOCTYPE html>

<html lang=”en”

<head>

<title>Bordered Table</title>

</head>

<body>

<thead>

<tr>

<th>Email</th>

</tr>

</thead>

<tbody>

<tr>

<td>john@example.com</td>

</tr>

<tr>

<td>jane@example.com</td>

</tr>

<!– Add more rows as needed –>

</tbody>

</table>

</div

</body>

</html

Output:

The table-bordered class is used to add borders around the table and its cells.

Example 7: Responsive Table

<!DOCTYPE html>

<html lang=”en”

<head>

<title>Responsive Table</title>

</head>

<body>

<thead>

<tr>

<th>Email</th>

</tr>

</thead>

<tbody>

<tr>

<td>john@example.com</td>

</tr>

<tr>

<td>jane@example.com</td>

</tr>

<!– Add more rows as needed –>

</tbody>

</table>

</div>

</body>

</html

Output:

The table-responsive class is used to make the table horizontally scrollable on smaller screens.

Bootstrap Tables With Pagination

Adding pagination to a Bootstrap table allows you to display a large dataset in smaller, more manageable chunks. Here’s an example of a Bootstrap table with pagination:

<!DOCTYPE html>

<html lang=”en”

<head>

<title>Bootstrap Table with Pagination</title>

</head>

<body>

<h2>Users</h2>

<thead>

<tr>

<th>Email</th>

</tr>

</thead>

<tbody>

<!– Sample Data –>

<tr>

<td>john@example.com</td>

</tr>

<tr>

<td>jane@example.com</td>

</tr>

<!– Add more rows as needed –>

<!– Repeat the sample data to simulate a larger dataset –>

<!– Add more rows as needed –>

</tbody>

</table>

<!– Pagination –>

<a class=”page-link” href=”#” tabindex=”-1″ aria-disabled=”true”>Previous</a>

</li>

</li>

</ul>

</nav>

</div>

</body>

</html

Output:

This example includes a basic Bootstrap table with sample data and pagination at the bottom. The pagination is styled using Bootstrap’s pagination classes.

Also Read: Bootstrap Menu – Last Chance to Master Bootstrap Menu Creation

Bootstrap Tables With Search

To add search functionality to a Bootstrap table, you can use the DataTables jQuery plugin. DataTables enhances HTML tables, providing features like searching, sorting, and pagination. Here’s an example of a Bootstrap table with search using DataTables:

Include the necessary CSS and JavaScript files for Bootstrap and DataTables in the <head> section of your HTML file.
Use a table with the class table to create the base HTML table structure.
Initialize the DataTable on your table using jQuery.

Here’s the code for a simple example:

<!DOCTYPE html>

<html lang=”en”

<head>

<title>Bootstrap Table with Search</title>

</head>

<body>

<h2>Users</h2>

<thead>

<tr>

<th>Email</th>

</tr>

</thead>

<tbody>

<!– Sample Data –>

<tr>

<td>john@example.com</td>

</tr>

<tr>

<td>jane@example.com</td>

</tr>

<!– Add more rows as needed –>

<!– Repeat the sample data to simulate a larger dataset –>

<!– Add more rows as needed –>

</tbody>

</table>

</div>

$(document).ready(function() {

$(‘#userTable’).DataTable();

});

</script>

</body>

</html

Output:

This example includes a Bootstrap table with sample data and search functionality provided by DataTables. The DataTables initialization is done using jQuery.

Ensure you include the correct version of jQuery, Bootstrap, and DataTables based on your project’s requirements. Adjust the code and styling based on your specific needs.

Bootstrap Tables With Filters

To add filtering functionality to a Bootstrap table, you can use the DataTables jQuery plugin. DataTables enhances HTML tables, providing features like searching, sorting, pagination, and filtering. Here’s an example of a Bootstrap table with filters using DataTables:

Include the necessary CSS and JavaScript files for Bootstrap and DataTables in the <head> section of your HTML file.
Use a table with the class table to create the base HTML table structure.
Initialize the DataTable on your table using jQuery.
Add filter inputs above the table to allow users to filter data.

Here’s the code for a simple example:

<!DOCTYPE html>

<html lang=”en”

<head>

<title>Bootstrap Table with Filters</title>

</head>

<body>

<h2>Users</h2>

<!– Filter Inputs –>

<label for=”nameFilter” class=”form-label”>Filter by Name:</label>

</div>

<thead>

<tr>

<th>Email</th>

</tr>

</thead>

<tbody>

<!– Sample Data –>

<tr>

<td>john@example.com</td>

</tr>

<tr>

<td>jane@example.com</td>

</tr>

<!– Add more rows as needed –>

<!– Repeat the sample data to simulate a larger dataset –>

<!– Add more rows as needed –>

</tbody>

</table>

</div>

$(document).ready(function() {

// DataTable initialization with custom filter for the “Name” column

var table = $(‘#userTable’).DataTable({

“columnDefs”: [

{ type: ‘date’, targets: 0 } // Example: Apply date sorting to the first column

]

});

// Adding an event listener for the “Name” filter input

$(‘#nameFilter’).on(‘input’, function() {

table.columns(1).search(this.value).draw();

});

</script>

</body>

</html

Output:

This example includes a Bootstrap table with sample data and filter functionality provided by DataTables. The DataTables initialization is done using jQuery, and a custom filter is added for the “Name” column.

You can customize the code further based on your specific needs, including adding more filter inputs for other columns or adjusting the filtering logic.

Also Read: Bootstrap Registration Form – Read more: Dive into Bootstrap Registration Form Creation

Bootstrap Tables Responsive

To make Bootstrap tables responsive, you can use the table-responsive class along with the standard Bootstrap table class. The table-responsive class ensures that the table is horizontally scrollable on smaller screens. Here’s an example:

<!DOCTYPE html>

<html lang=”en”

<head>

<title>Responsive Bootstrap Table</title>

</head>

<body>

<h2>Users</h2>

<thead>

<tr>

<th>Email</th>

</tr>

</thead>

<tbody>

<!– Sample Data –>

<tr>

<td>john@example.com</td>

</tr>

<tr>

<td>jane@example.com</td>

</tr>

<!– Add more rows as needed –>

<!– Repeat the sample data to simulate a larger dataset –>

<!– Add more rows as needed –>

</tbody>

</table>

</div>

</body>

</html

Output:

The table-responsive class is added to the div containing the table, making it horizontally scrollable on smaller screens.

Also Read: Bootstrap Responsive Table: How to make table responsive in Bootstrap?

How to Create a Basic Bootstrap Table?

Creating a basic Bootstrap table is straightforward. Bootstrap provides a set of classes that you can use to style and structure your tables. Here’s a simple example of how to create a basic Bootstrap table:

<!DOCTYPE html>

<html lang=”en”

<head>

<title>Basic Bootstrap Table</title>

</head>

<body>

<h2>My Bootstrap Table</h2>

<thead>

<tr>

<th>Email</th>

</tr>

</thead>

<tbody>

<tr>

<td>john@example.com</td>

</tr>

<tr>

<td>jane@example.com</td>

</tr>

<!– Add more rows as needed –>

</tbody>

</table>

</div>

</body>

</html

This example demonstrates the creation of a basic Bootstrap table with a header (thead), including three columns: #, Name, and Email. The body (tbody) contains two rows of sample data.

Here’s a breakdown of the important parts:

The <table> element has the class table, which is a Bootstrap class for styling tables.
The header row is defined within the <thead> element, and each header cell (<th>) represents a column.
The table body is defined within the <tbody> element, and each row (<tr>) contains cells (<td>) with the actual data.

Make sure to include the Bootstrap CSS and JavaScript files from a CDN or download them locally for proper styling and functionality. Adjust the content and structure based on your specific requirements.

Also Read: Bootstrap Select – Discover the Power of Bootstrap Select Components

Importance of Bootstrap Tables

Bootstrap tables play a crucial role in web development due to their several advantages and contributions to creating responsive, visually appealing, and functional user interfaces. Here are some key reasons highlighting the importance of Bootstrap tables:

1) Responsive Design:

Bootstrap tables are designed to be responsive, ensuring that they adapt to different screen sizes and devices. This responsiveness is essential for providing a consistent user experience across various platforms, from desktops to mobile devices.

2) Consistent Styling:

Bootstrap provides a set of predefined styles and classes for tables, ensuring a consistent and professional look across different parts of a website or application. This consistency enhances the overall visual appeal and brand identity.

3) Ease of Use and Implementation:

Bootstrap simplifies the process of creating tables with its intuitive and easy-to-use syntax. Developers can quickly integrate Bootstrap tables into their projects, reducing development time and effort.

4) Enhanced User Experience:

Features like table striping (table-striped class), hover effects (table-hover class), and responsive design contribute to an improved user experience. Users can easily read and interact with tabular data, making the overall interface more user-friendly.

5) Flexible Styling Options:

Bootstrap tables provide flexibility in terms of styling. Developers can customize the appearance of tables using various Bootstrap utility classes, ensuring that tables align with the overall design language of the website or application.

6) Data Presentation and Organization:

Tables are a fundamental element for presenting and organizing data in a structured manner. Bootstrap tables offer options for sorting, filtering, and paginating data, making it easier for users to navigate and comprehend large datasets.

7) Pagination and Navigation:

Bootstrap tables can be easily integrated with pagination plugins like DataTables, allowing developers to implement efficient navigation through large sets of data. This is particularly important when dealing with extensive lists or tables.

8) Integration with Bootstrap Components:

Bootstrap tables seamlessly integrate with other Bootstrap components and elements. This integration ensures a cohesive design and helps maintain a unified visual style throughout the entire application.

9) Cross-Browser Compatibility:

Bootstrap is designed to be compatible with various web browsers. Bootstrap tables are tested and optimized for cross-browser compatibility, ensuring a consistent appearance and functionality across different browsers.

10) Community Support and Documentation:

Bootstrap has a vast community of developers and extensive documentation. This support network makes it easier for developers to find solutions, troubleshoot issues, and stay updated on best practices when working with Bootstrap tables.

11) Accessibility Features:

Bootstrap tables are developed with accessibility in mind. The framework incorporates features and practices that help create websites and applications that are more accessible to users with disabilities.

In summary, Bootstrap tables are essential components in web development, contributing to responsive design, consistent styling, and an overall positive user experience. Their ease of use and flexibility make them a preferred choice for developers working on projects of all sizes and complexities.

Bootstrap Tables FAQ's

What is a Bootstrap table?

A Bootstrap table is an HTML element enhanced by the Bootstrap front-end framework to provide a clean and responsive way to display tabular data. It comes with predefined styles and classes to improve the presentation of data.

How do I create a basic Bootstrap table?

To create a basic Bootstrap table, use the <table element with the table class. Add the thead and tbody elements to structure the table headers and body, respectively.

How can I make a Bootstrap table responsive?

To make a Bootstrap table responsive, use the table-responsive class on a containing div element. This class enables horizontal scrolling on smaller screens, preventing the table from overflowing its container.

Can I add pagination to a Bootstrap table?

Yes, you can add pagination to a Bootstrap table using plugins like DataTables. Include the necessary CSS and JavaScript files, and initialize the DataTable on your table to enable features like pagination, sorting, and searching.