Universal Selector

Basic

*

Matches every element in the document. Often used for CSS resets to remove default margins and padding.

Example

* {
  margin: 0;
  padding: 0;
  box-sizing: border-box;
}

Specificity

0-0-0

Browser Support

All browsers

About the Universal Selector

The * CSS selector belongs to the Basic category.Matches every element in the document. Often used for CSS resets to remove default margins and padding. Understanding CSS selector specificity and combinators is essential for writing maintainable stylesheets that behave predictably.

The specificity of this selector is 0-0-0. CSS specificity determines which styles are applied when multiple rules target the same element. Higher specificity values take precedence. The specificity hierarchy from lowest to highest is: universal (*) → type/element → class/attribute/pseudo-class → ID → inline styles → !important.

Browser support for Universal Selector is: All browsers. When using newer CSS selectors like :has(), :is(), or CSS nesting, consider providing fallback styles for older browsers. Use @supports to progressively enhance your stylesheets with modern features while maintaining backward compatibility.

Related Selectors

element .classname #idname