Web Design in a Nutshell, 3rd Edition

Table and Cell Dimensions

By default, a table will render just wide enough to contain all of its contents. You can explicitly specify the width of a table using the width attribute in the table element. The HTML specifications provide no way to specify the height of a table, preferring the height to be automatically determined by the table’s contents. However, there is a nonstandard height attribute that is well-supported for providing minimum height for the overall table.

You can control the width and height of individual cells by using the (you guessed it) width and height attributes in the td or th element. Height values are considered to be minimum heights and cells may expand downward to accommodate their contents.

Tip

The width and height attributes have been deprecated for td and th elements, but they are not deprecated for use in the table element. Style sheet properties are still the preferred method for specifying table dimensions.