CSS Formatter
Beautify and minify CSS with clean indentation right in your browser.
ToolsSoup's CSS Formatter is a free online tool that beautifies and minifies CSS right in your browser. Paste messy, minified, or single-line CSS and get clean, properly indented rules with one declaration per line and a space after every colon, or compress it back down to save bytes. It nests at-rules like media, supports, and keyframes correctly, preserves the contents of strings and url() values, and never uploads your code — no sign-up, nothing leaves your device.
What is a CSS formatter?
A CSS formatter — also called a CSS beautifier or pretty printer — rewrites raw stylesheets with consistent indentation and line breaks so they are easy to read and maintain. It puts each rule on its own block, places one declaration per line, adds a space after each colon, and indents the inner rules of nested at-rules such as media queries, supports blocks, and keyframes. Developers use it to tidy up compiled or minified CSS, code copied from dev tools, and styles pasted from the web.
How to format CSS online
Beautifying CSS with ToolsSoup takes just a few seconds:
- Paste your CSS into the input box on the left.
- Pick an indent size — 2 spaces, 4 spaces, or a tab.
- Click Format to indent it, or Minify to compress it onto the fewest characters.
- Copy the cleaned-up result and drop it back into your stylesheet.
Does it handle media queries and keyframes?
Yes. At-rules that contain other rules — such as media, supports, and keyframes — are tracked by their braces, so their inner selectors and declarations are indented one extra level. The result reflects the real nesting of your stylesheet instead of flattening everything to a single level.
Does it keep strings and url() values intact?
Yes. Text inside quotes and inside url() can contain characters like colons, semicolons, and braces that would otherwise confuse a formatter. ToolsSoup protects those values before formatting and restores them afterward, so content strings and image paths are never split or corrupted.
What is the difference between formatting and minifying CSS?
Formatting adds indentation and line breaks to make CSS readable, while minifying removes comments and collapses whitespace to make the file as small as possible. Both keep your styles identical, so you can switch back and forth freely while developing and ship the minified version to production.
Why use this CSS formatter?
- 100% free with no ads, sign-up, or usage limits.
- Runs entirely in your browser — your styles are never uploaded to a server.
- Beautify and minify CSS in one click.
- Choose 2-space, 4-space, or tab indentation.
- Nests media, supports, and keyframes at-rules correctly.
- Preserves string and url() contents without corrupting values.
Frequently asked questions
Is this CSS formatter free?
Yes. Every tool on ToolsSoup is completely free to use, with no account, sign-up, or hidden limits.
Is my CSS safe?
Absolutely. All formatting happens locally in your browser using JavaScript, so your styles are never sent to or stored on any server.
Does it nest media queries correctly?
Yes. The rules inside media, supports, and keyframes blocks are indented one extra level so the nesting of your stylesheet stays clear.
Will it break strings or url() values?
No. Quoted strings and url() values are protected before formatting and restored afterward, so colons, semicolons, and braces inside them are never mangled.
What is the difference between formatting and minifying?
Formatting indents the CSS for readability, while minifying strips comments and whitespace to shrink the file. Neither changes how your styles apply.