Object fit in CSS - Cheat Sheet & Quick Revision

Recall & Review

beginner

What does the CSS property object-fit do?

It controls how an image or video fits inside its container, deciding if it should stretch, cover, or contain within the box without distortion.

beginner

Name the five main values of object-fit.

• fill
• contain
• cover
• none
• scale-down

intermediate

What is the difference between object-fit: contain and object-fit: cover?

contain fits the entire image inside the container without cropping, keeping aspect ratio but may leave empty space.
cover fills the container completely, cropping parts if needed but keeps aspect ratio.

beginner

Which object-fit value stretches the image to fill the container, possibly distorting it?

fill stretches the image to fill the container's width and height, ignoring the original aspect ratio, which can distort the image.

intermediate

How does object-fit: scale-down behave?

It compares none and contain and uses the smaller size. So the image is shown at its original size or scaled down to fit inside the container without cropping.

Which object-fit value keeps the entire image visible without cropping but may leave empty space?

A fill

B contain

C cover

D none

contain fits the whole image inside the container, preserving aspect ratio and showing all parts, but may leave empty space.

What happens when you use object-fit: fill on an image?

A Image stretches to fill container, possibly distorted

B Image keeps aspect ratio and fits inside container

C Image is cropped to fill container

D Image is shown at original size

fill stretches the image to fill the container's width and height, ignoring aspect ratio, which can distort the image.

Which object-fit value shows the image at its original size without scaling?

A contain

B cover

C scale-down

D none

none displays the image at its original size, ignoring the container size.

If you want an image to fill the container completely but keep its aspect ratio, which object-fit value should you use?

A fill

B contain

C cover

D none

cover fills the container fully, cropping if needed, while keeping the image's aspect ratio.

What does object-fit: scale-down do?

A Shows image at original size or smaller to fit container

B Always scales image up to fill container

C Crops image to container size

D Stretches image ignoring aspect ratio

scale-down shows the image at original size or scales it down to fit inside the container, whichever is smaller.

Explain how object-fit helps control image display inside containers and why it is useful.

Think about how images behave when container sizes change.

Describe the visual difference between object-fit: contain and object-fit: cover with an example.

Imagine fitting a photo inside a frame.

Practice

1. What does the CSS property object-fit: cover; do to an image inside a container?

easy

A. It fits the entire image inside the container without cropping.

B. It stretches the image to fill the container, possibly distorting it.

C. It fills the container completely, cropping parts if needed.

D. It repeats the image to fill the container.

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand object-fit: cover; behavior

   This property makes the image fill the container completely, cropping parts if the aspect ratio differs.

2. Step 2: Compare with other options

   Unlike contain which fits without cropping, cover crops to fill fully.

3. Final Answer:

   It fills the container completely, cropping parts if needed. -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   Cover = fill and crop [OK]

Hint: Cover fills and crops; contain fits without cropping [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing cover with contain
• Thinking cover stretches without cropping
• Assuming cover repeats the image

2. Which of the following is the correct CSS syntax to make an image fit inside its container without cropping or distortion?

easy

A. object-fit: stretch;

B. object-fit: fill;

C. object-fit: crop;

D. object-fit: contain;

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify the property for fitting without cropping

   object-fit: contain; fits the entire image inside the container without cropping or distortion.

2. Step 2: Check other options

   fill stretches, stretch is invalid, and crop is not a valid value.

3. Final Answer:

   object-fit: contain; -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Contain = fit inside without cropping [OK]

Hint: Contain fits fully inside; fill stretches [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using invalid value 'stretch'
• Confusing fill with contain
• Thinking crop is a valid value

3. Given this HTML and CSS, what will the image look like in the browser?

<div style="width: 200px; height: 100px;">
  <img src="image.jpg" style="width: 100%; height: 100%; object-fit: contain;">
</div>

medium

A. The entire image fits inside the container without cropping, possibly leaving empty space.

B. The image fills the container and may be cropped.

C. The image stretches and distorts to fill the container.

D. The image repeats to fill the container.

Solution

1. Step 1: Analyze the container and image size

   The container is 200px wide and 100px tall. The image is set to 100% width and height of the container.

2. Step 2: Understand object-fit: contain; effect

   This makes the image scale to fit inside the container fully without cropping or distortion, preserving aspect ratio. Empty space may appear if aspect ratios differ.

3. Final Answer:

   The entire image fits inside the container without cropping, possibly leaving empty space. -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Contain = fit inside with possible empty space [OK]

Hint: Contain fits fully, may leave space; cover crops [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Assuming image will crop with contain
• Thinking image will distort with contain
• Confusing contain with fill

4. You want an image to fill its container without distortion, but it currently stretches oddly. Which CSS fix will solve this?

img {
  width: 100%;
  height: 100%;
  object-fit: fill;
}

medium

A. Change object-fit to cover.

B. Remove width and height properties.

C. Change object-fit to contain.

D. Add object-position: center;.

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify the problem with object-fit: fill;

   This stretches the image to fill container width and height, causing distortion.

2. Step 2: Use object-fit: cover; to fix distortion

   cover fills the container while preserving aspect ratio, cropping if needed, preventing distortion.

3. Final Answer:

   Change object-fit to cover. -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Cover fills without distortion by cropping [OK]

Hint: Use cover to fill without distortion, fill stretches [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using fill causes distortion
• Removing width/height breaks layout
• Thinking object-position fixes distortion

5. You have a video inside a 400px by 300px container. You want the video to fill the container fully without distortion, but keep the center visible if cropping happens. Which CSS is best?

video {
  width: 100%;
  height: 100%;
  object-fit: ?
  object-position: ?
}

hard

A. object-fit: fill; and object-position: left;

B. object-fit: cover; and object-position: center;

C. object-fit: contain; and object-position: top;

D. object-fit: none; and object-position: center;

Solution

1. Step 1: Choose object-fit to fill without distortion

   cover fills the container fully, preserving aspect ratio, cropping if needed.

2. Step 2: Set object-position to keep center visible

   object-position: center; ensures cropping keeps the center area visible.

3. Final Answer:

   object-fit: cover; and object-position: center; -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Cover + center = fill fully, crop center visible [OK]

Hint: Cover fills and crops; center keeps main part visible [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using contain leaves empty space
• Using fill distorts video
• Ignoring object-position for cropping focus