HTML & CSS reference

<audio>

Embeds an audio player.

Syntax

<audio src="file.mp3" controls></audio>

Attributes

Parameter	Type	Description
src	URL	The audio file address (or use `<source>`).
controls	—	Show the player. Without it the element is invisible.
loop	—	Optional. Play in a loop.
preload	none \| metadata \| auto	Optional. How much to load in advance.

Examples

A player with the standard controls:

<p>Listen to a T-rex:</p>
<audio src="/media/t-rex-roar.mp3" controls></audio>

A fallback for old browsers:

<audio controls preload="none">
  <source src="/media/t-rex-roar.mp3" type="audio/mpeg">
  <a href="/media/t-rex-roar.mp3">Download the sound</a>
</audio>

Notes

Without controls the player is invisible and sound can only be started from JavaScript. The standard player looks different in each browser and can hardly be styled with CSS.

Related recipes

How to add audio to a page

In the tutorial

Audio and video — The video and audio tags, the controls panel, autoplay, looping, several formats with source and subtitles.

Thanks for reading!