This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Chaitanya Chopde
This blog is part of my @devsyncin learning journey — documenting what I learn step by step to help others along the way.
📌 Why Sticky Headers Matter
- In modern web design, sticky headers serve two key purposes:
- Navigation accessibility – Always visible for users to switch sections.
- Brand presence – Keeps your logo and key links front and center.
- But when not implemented properly, they can take up too much space on smaller screens. The solution? A shrinking sticky header.
🧱 How It Works (Theoretically)
1. HTML Structure
You need a element with a logo and navigation inside it. This is your sticky block.
2. CSS Styling
Initially, you set the header with a larger padding, font size, and white background.
When the page is scrolled past a certain point (e.g., 50px), a shrink class is added dynamically using JavaScript. This class reduces padding and font size.
3. JavaScript Scroll Listener
JavaScript listens to the window.onscroll event. When the user scrolls down:
- It checks how far they’ve scrolled using window.scrollY
- Adds or removes the .shrink class from the tag accordingly
Code demo:
📚 Use Cases in Real Life
- 📰 News sites like The Guardian and BBC
- 🛒 E-commerce websites like Amazon and Flipkart
- 💼 Portfolios & blogs where branding matters
🧩 Why This Is a Great Beginner Project
- Reinforces your understanding of HTML structure
- Practices CSS transitions and position: sticky
- Introduces event-driven JavaScript logic
- Teaches you how to manipulate DOM classes dynamically
🧠 Takeaway Concepts
✅ Final Thoughts
Adding a shrinking sticky header is one of those subtle, elegant touches that instantly makes a website feel more professional.
You’ll see this technique across modern sites, and now you know why and how it works.
Even better — you can now build one yourself with just HTML, CSS, and a few lines of JavaScript.
Written By
Chaitanya Chopde
Inspired By
@devsyncin
This content originally appeared on DEV Community and was authored by Chaitanya Chopde
Chaitanya Chopde | Sciencx (2025-06-28T08:32:36+00:00) ✨ Sticky Header That Shrinks on Scroll — Theory & Implementation (HTML, CSS & JS). Retrieved from https://www.scien.cx/2025/06/28/%e2%9c%a8-sticky-header-that-shrinks-on-scroll-theory-implementation-html-css-js/
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