How to place the dataTables' horizontal scrollbar on top of the table?

Question

I have a really large datatable and I want to put the horizontal scrollbar on top as well as on the bottom of the table so it would be easier for the user to scroll (the datatable has a lot of columns). Is there an easy and proper way to achieve this?

Answer 1

You can use a container that has a maximum width and put the table inside.

<div class="large-table-container-1">
  <table>...</table>
</div>

Depending on how much reliability you want, you can make:

A. Bottom scrollbar, just set a maximum width and overflow x to scroll:

.large-table-container-1 {
  max-width: 200px;
  overflow-x: scroll;
  overflow-y: auto;
}

Demo:

.large-table-container-1 {
  max-width: 200px;
  overflow-x: scroll;
  overflow-y: auto;
}
.large-table-container-1 table {
  
}

/*misc*/
td {
  border: 1px solid gray;
}

th {
  text-align: left;
}

<div class="large-table-container-1">
  <table>
    <thead>
      <tr>
        <th colspan="20">
          Bottom scrollbar:
        </th>
      </tr>
    </thead>
    <tbody>
      <tr>
        <td>00</td>
        <td>01</td>
        <td>02</td>
        <td>03</td>
        <td>04</td>
        <td>05</td>
        <td>06</td>
        <td>07</td>
        <td>08</td>
        <td>09</td>
        <td>00</td>
        <td>01</td>
        <td>02</td>
        <td>03</td>
        <td>04</td>
        <td>05</td>
        <td>06</td>
        <td>07</td>
        <td>08</td>
        <td>09</td>
      </tr>
    </tbody>
  </table>
</div>

B. Top scrollbar, a little hacky, use a 180 degree transform to rotate the scrollbar to the top, then again another 180 degree to put back the content.

.large-table-container-2 {
  max-width: 200px;
  overflow-x: scroll;
  overflow-y: auto;
  transform:rotateX(180deg);
}

.large-table-container-2 table {
  transform:rotateX(180deg);
}

You may want to use broswser specific prefixes for transform, like -webkit-transform:rotateX(180deg);.

Demo:

.large-table-container-2 {
  max-width: 200px;
  overflow-x: scroll;
  overflow-y: auto;
  transform:rotateX(180deg);
}
.large-table-container-2 table {
  transform:rotateX(180deg);
}

/*misc*/
td {
  border: 1px solid gray;
}

th {
  text-align: left;
}

<div class="large-table-container-2">
  <table>
    <thead>
      <tr>
        <th colspan="20">
          Top scrollbar:
        </th>
      </tr>
    </thead>
    <tbody>
      <tr>
        <td>00</td>
        <td>01</td>
        <td>02</td>
        <td>03</td>
        <td>04</td>
        <td>05</td>
        <td>06</td>
        <td>07</td>
        <td>08</td>
        <td>09</td>
        <td>00</td>
        <td>01</td>
        <td>02</td>
        <td>03</td>
        <td>04</td>
        <td>05</td>
        <td>06</td>
        <td>07</td>
        <td>08</td>
        <td>09</td>
      </tr>
    </tbody>
  </table>
</div>

C. Top and bottom scrollbar, a little more hacky. Needs some javascript. Use the solution form A above and add a 'fake' div for top scrollbar:

<div class="large-table-fake-top-scroll-container-3">
  <div>&nbsp;</div>
</div>
<div class="large-table-container-3">
  <table>...</table>
</div>


.large-table-container-3 {
  max-width: 200px;
  overflow-x: scroll;
  overflow-y: auto;
}
.large-table-container-3 table {

}
.large-table-fake-top-scroll-container-3 {
  max-width: 200px;
  overflow-x: scroll;
  overflow-y: auto;
}
.large-table-fake-top-scroll-container-3 div {
  background-color: red;/*Just for test, to see the 'fake' div*/
  font-size:1px;
  line-height:1px;
}

And a little javascript to catch the scroll on the top fake div and then scroll the table container (and vice-versa), with jQuery:

$(function() {
  var tableContainer = $(".large-table-container-3");
  var table = $(".large-table-container-3 table");
  var fakeContainer = $(".large-table-fake-top-scroll-container-3");
  var fakeDiv = $(".large-table-fake-top-scroll-container-3 div");

  var tableWidth = table.width();
  fakeDiv.width(tableWidth);

  fakeContainer.scroll(function() {
tableContainer.scrollLeft(fakeContainer.scrollLeft());
  });
})

Demo:

$(function() {
  var tableContainer = $(".large-table-container-3");
  var table = $(".large-table-container-3 table");
  var fakeContainer = $(".large-table-fake-top-scroll-container-3");
  var fakeDiv = $(".large-table-fake-top-scroll-container-3 div");

  var tableWidth = table.width();
  fakeDiv.width(tableWidth);
  
  fakeContainer.scroll(function() {
    tableContainer.scrollLeft(fakeContainer.scrollLeft());
  });
  tableContainer.scroll(function() {
    fakeContainer.scrollLeft(tableContainer.scrollLeft());
  });
})

.large-table-container-3 {
  max-width: 200px;
  overflow-x: scroll;
  overflow-y: auto;
}
.large-table-container-3 table {
  
}
.large-table-fake-top-scroll-container-3 {
  max-width: 200px;
  overflow-x: scroll;
  overflow-y: auto;
}
.large-table-fake-top-scroll-container-3 div {
  background-color: red;
  font-size:1px;
  line-height:1px;
}

/*misc*/
td {
  border: 1px solid gray;
}

th {
  text-align: left;
}

<script src="https://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/jquery/2.1.1/jquery.min.js"></script>
<div class="large-table-fake-top-scroll-container-3">
  <div>&nbsp;</div>
</div>
<div class="large-table-container-3">
  <table>
    <thead>
      <tr>
        <th colspan="20">
          Top and bottom scrollbar:
        </th>
      </tr>
    </thead>
    <tbody>
      <tr>
        <td>00</td>
        <td>01</td>
        <td>02</td>
        <td>03</td>
        <td>04</td>
        <td>05</td>
        <td>06</td>
        <td>07</td>
        <td>08</td>
        <td>09</td>
        <td>00</td>
        <td>01</td>
        <td>02</td>
        <td>03</td>
        <td>04</td>
        <td>05</td>
        <td>06</td>
        <td>07</td>
        <td>08</td>
        <td>09</td>
      </tr>
    </tbody>
  </table>
</div>

The working complete code for all three solutions:

$(function() {
  var tableContainer = $(".large-table-container-3");
  var table = $(".large-table-container-3 table");
  var fakeContainer = $(".large-table-fake-top-scroll-container-3");
  var fakeDiv = $(".large-table-fake-top-scroll-container-3 div");

  var tableWidth = table.width();
  fakeDiv.width(tableWidth);
  
  fakeContainer.scroll(function() {
    tableContainer.scrollLeft(fakeContainer.scrollLeft());
  });
  tableContainer.scroll(function() {
    fakeContainer.scrollLeft(tableContainer.scrollLeft());
  });
})

/*Bottom scrollbar*/
.large-table-container-1 {
  max-width: 200px;
  overflow-x: scroll;
  overflow-y: auto;
}
.large-table-container-1 table {
  
}

/*Top scrollbar*/
.large-table-container-2 {
  max-width: 200px;
  overflow-x: scroll;
  overflow-y: auto;
  transform:rotateX(180deg);
}
.large-table-container-2 table {
  transform:rotateX(180deg);
}

/*Top and bottom scrollbar*/
.large-table-container-3 {
  max-width: 200px;
  overflow-x: scroll;
  overflow-y: auto;
}
.large-table-container-3 table {
  
}
.large-table-fake-top-scroll-container-3 {
  max-width: 200px;
  overflow-x: scroll;
  overflow-y: auto;
}
.large-table-fake-top-scroll-container-3 div {
  background-color: red;
  font-size:1px;
  line-height:1px;
}

/*misc*/
td {
  border: 1px solid gray;
}

th {
  text-align: left;
}

<script src="https://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/jquery/2.1.1/jquery.min.js"></script>
<div class="large-table-container-1">
  <table>
    <thead>
      <tr>
        <th colspan="20">
          Bottom scrollbar:
        </th>
      </tr>
    </thead>
    <tbody>
      <tr>
        <td>00</td>
        <td>01</td>
        <td>02</td>
        <td>03</td>
        <td>04</td>
        <td>05</td>
        <td>06</td>
        <td>07</td>
        <td>08</td>
        <td>09</td>
        <td>00</td>
        <td>01</td>
        <td>02</td>
        <td>03</td>
        <td>04</td>
        <td>05</td>
        <td>06</td>
        <td>07</td>
        <td>08</td>
        <td>09</td>
      </tr>
    </tbody>
  </table>
</div>

<div class="large-table-container-2">
  <table>
    <thead>
      <tr>
        <th colspan="20">
          Top scrollbar:
        </th>
      </tr>
    </thead>
    <tbody>
      <tr>
        <td>00</td>
        <td>01</td>
        <td>02</td>
        <td>03</td>
        <td>04</td>
        <td>05</td>
        <td>06</td>
        <td>07</td>
        <td>08</td>
        <td>09</td>
        <td>00</td>
        <td>01</td>
        <td>02</td>
        <td>03</td>
        <td>04</td>
        <td>05</td>
        <td>06</td>
        <td>07</td>
        <td>08</td>
        <td>09</td>
      </tr>
    </tbody>
  </table>
</div>


<div class="large-table-fake-top-scroll-container-3">
  <div>&nbsp;</div>
</div>
<div class="large-table-container-3">
  <table>
    <thead>
      <tr>
        <th colspan="20">
          Top and bottom scrollbar:
        </th>
      </tr>
    </thead>
    <tbody>
      <tr>
        <td>00</td>
        <td>01</td>
        <td>02</td>
        <td>03</td>
        <td>04</td>
        <td>05</td>
        <td>06</td>
        <td>07</td>
        <td>08</td>
        <td>09</td>
        <td>00</td>
        <td>01</td>
        <td>02</td>
        <td>03</td>
        <td>04</td>
        <td>05</td>
        <td>06</td>
        <td>07</td>
        <td>08</td>
        <td>09</td>
      </tr>
    </tbody>
  </table>
</div>

Answer 2

I show scrollbar of the header with css/jQuery and set the body scrollLeft to the header's scroll left.

Example:

// Put top scroller
$('.dataTables_scrollHead').css({
    'overflow-x':'scroll'
}).on('scroll', function(e){
    var scrollBody = $(this).parent().find('.dataTables_scrollBody').get(0);
    scrollBody.scrollLeft = this.scrollLeft;
    $(scrollBody).trigger('scroll');
});