<!DOCTYPE html> <html> <head> <style> td {width: 100px; text-align:center} div {position:absolute; border:green 4px solid} </style> </head> <body> <!-- in standards mode, the height for table cells does not includes the border --> <div> <table cellspacing="0"> <tr><td style="border:solid 4px orange; height:30px">cell 1</td></tr> </table> </div> </body> </html>