If you don't close these tags, the browser renders your pages just fine. If you do close your tags, it will render your pages even faster. Take a look at the following code segment:

<P>Here is a list of names:
<UL>
<LI>Yehuda
<LI>Yael
<LI>Tomer
<LI>Dikla
<LI>Carmit
<LI>Alon
</UL>

As you can see, the <P> and <LI> items are included without their closing counterparts. When parsing such HTML code, the browser needs to look ahead to find out where the paragraph or list item ends. The following code generates the same output in a more efficient method:

<P>Here is a list of names:</P>
<UL>
<LI>Yehuda</LI>
<LI>Yael</LI>
<LI>Tomer</LI>
<LI>Dikla</LI>
<LI>Carmit</LI>
<LI>Alon</LI>
</UL>

People who read this tip also read these tips:

• Compiling Regular Expressions
• Maximizing Object Model References
• Boosting Performance by Removing Old Instances
• Boosting Performance by Avoiding Dots
• Preventing a Document from Being Cached