 <p>An alternative to emmanuel's answer is to add some padding to the <code>a</code> tag:</p> <pre><code>ul { list-style-type:none; } li { float:left; } a { background:grey; color:white; text-decoration:none; padding: 10px 20px 10px 20px; margin-right:1px; } </code></pre> <p>See it in action here: <a href="http://jsfiddle.net/rufneu0w/1/" rel="nofollow">http://jsfiddle.net/rufneu0w/1/</a></p>