columns

This property is a shorthand for the following CSS properties:

• column-count
• column-width

/* Column width */
columns: 18em;

/* Column count */
columns: auto;
columns: 2;

/* Both column width and count */
columns: 2 auto;
columns: auto 12em;
columns: auto auto;

/* Global values */
columns: inherit;
columns: initial;
columns: revert;
columns: revert-layer;
columns: unset;

The columns property may be specified as one or two of the values listed below, in any order.

<'column-width'>

The ideal column width, defined as a <length> or the keyword auto. The actual width may be wider or narrower to fit the available space. See column-width.

<'column-count'>

The ideal number of columns into which the element's content should be flowed, defined as an <integer> or the keyword auto. If neither this value nor the column's width are auto, it merely indicates the maximum allowable number of columns. See column-count.

columns = 
  <'column-width'>  ||
  <'column-count'>  

<column-width> = 
  auto                                |
  <length [0,∞]>                      |
  min-content                         |
  max-content                         |
  fit-content( <length-percentage> )  

<column-count> = 
  auto             |
  <integer [1,∞]>  

<length-percentage> = 
  <length>      |
  <percentage>  

HTML

<p class="content-box">
  This is a bunch of text split into three columns using the CSS `columns`
  property. The text is equally distributed over the columns.
</p>

CSS

.content-box {
  columns: 3 auto;
}

Result

• widows
• orphans
• Paged media
• Multiple-column Layout