Page Builder has built-in spacing defaults. Rows and columns have default margins and padding. Modules have default margins. There is also an auto spacing feature that reduces spacing automatically on mobile devices. This means that you don’t have to fuss over spacing at all – unless you want to.
If you do want more control, there are several ways you can change spacing in Page Builder layouts:
- Locally
You can change the margins and padding of individual rows and columns, and you can change the margins of individual modules. You can set different values for each device size. - Site-wide
You can change the default settings for each device size, which are then used as the defaults in individual rows and modules. - Mobile auto spacing
You can disable mobile auto spacing or override it by setting your own values for small devices.
In this article we’ll describe a simple approach to adjusting margins and padding if you’re new to Page Builder. For more finely tuned control over spacing and the details about how the final value is determined, see the troubleshooting article on margins and padding.
But first, a quick review of the CSS box model.
As shown in the diagram below, the width and height of a border box apply to the content area. The padding, border width, and margin are added to that. Padding is inside the border; margins are outside the border.
Exception: If the box-sizing property is border-box, the width and height properties include content, padding, and border.
Tips for setting margins and padding at various device sizes
The interactions among the various ways to set margins and padding at various device sizes can get rather complex, but here’s a recommended basic method for approaching it.
- Lay out your page first for large devices (desktop). As you get more familiar with how Page Builder adjusts margins and padding for mobile, you can switch to a “mobile first” approach if you want.
- Lay out your entire page before you start adjusting margins and padding, so you don’t have to keep redoing them as you move things around.
- Make adjustments to individual margins and padding for large devices on the Advanced tab of individual rows, columns, and modules. Tip: Page Builder modules don’t have built-in padding. An easy way to increase padding for a module is to wrap it in its own column, then change the column padding.
- If you find that you’re consistently making the same change to margins and padding, you might consider changing the default global settings. See the Related Articles about default global settings and how to change them.
- Once you’re happy with your settings for large devices, check the settings for tablets and mobile devices. Go back to the Advanced tab and click the icon next to the Margins or Padding section to change the view, as shown in the following animation.
By default, whatever value you enter for desktop is also used for tablets, but you can change specific values in tablet view. For mobile devices, the auto spacing feature automatically reduces the top, bottom, left, and right margins in rows, columns, and modules. It also reduces the left and right padding in rows and columns. You can override auto spacing by entering a value in mobile view. See the Related Articles for more information about auto spacing and how to disable it.
If the spacing is not behaving the way you want, see the Related Article on troubleshooting margin and padding spacing.