HTML cite attribute

Last Updated : 31 Jul, 2026

The HTML cite attribute is used to specify the URL of the document that explains the quotes, message, or text that describes why the text was inserted.

This attribute can be used with the following elements: 


Attribute Values:

  • URL: It contains the value, i.e URL which specifies the source of the quotation.

Possible Values:

  1. absolute URL: It points to another website.
  2. relative URL: It points to a file within a website.

The example illustrates the cite attribute in HTML:

Example: In this example, we uses the cite attribute to reference a source URL for the deleted text, highlighting changes with del and ins tags, styled for visual distinction.

HTML 
<!--Driver Code Starts-->
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>

<head>
    <title>
        HTML cite Attribute
    </title>

    <style>
        del {
            color: red;
        }

        ins {
            color: green;
        }
    </style>
</head>

<body style="text-align:center;">

    <h1 style="color:green;">
        GeeksforGeeks
    </h1>

    <h2>
        HTML cite Attribute
    </h2>

<!--Driver Code Ends-->

    <p>
        GeeksforGeeks is a
        <del id="GFG" cite="www.geeksforgeeks.org">
            mathematical
        </del>
        <ins> computer</ins> science portal
    </p>

<!--Driver Code Starts-->

</body>

</html>
<!--Driver Code Ends-->
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