HTML: textarea

The <textarea> element collects multi-line text such as a comment, message, or description.

What you will learn

How to label a multi-line field
How to set a useful initial size and length limit
When to use textarea instead of a single-line input

Minimal example

<label for="message">Message</label>
<textarea id="message" name="message" rows="6"
          maxlength="1000" required></textarea>

The content between the opening and closing tags is the initial value. Use rows to provide a comfortable starting height, but let CSS handle the final responsive layout.

Common mistakes

Do not put a placeholder where a label is needed.
Use input for a short single-line value and textarea for text that may contain line breaks.
Validate length and content on the server; client-side attributes are not a security boundary.