The <b> tag in HTML is used to make text bold. It is a presentational element that applies bold styling to the text enclosed within it, but it does not convey any special importance or emphasis in the context of the content.

Syntax:

<b>This text is bold</b>

Key Characteristics:

• Styling Only: The <b> tag simply makes the text bold without implying any additional meaning. It is purely a visual change.
• No Semantic Meaning: Unlike the <strong> tag, which also makes text bold but implies that the text is of strong importance or has special significance, the <b> tag does not carry any semantic meaning or importance.

Example:

<p>Regular text, and <b>bold text</b> using the <b> tag.</p>

In this example:

• The text "bold text" is displayed in bold, but it is purely a visual styling choice and does not convey any additional meaning.

When to Use <b>:

• Purely Presentational: Use <b> when you want to apply bold styling to text without implying any additional importance or emphasis.
• Legacy Code: In older HTML documents or where semantic tags are not used, you might see <b> used for bold text.

Modern Alternatives:

• <strong>: For text that needs to convey strong importance or emphasis, use the <strong> tag instead of <b>. The <strong> tag not only makes the text bold but also implies that it has strong importance.

  <p>This is <strong>important</strong> text.</p>
  

• CSS Styling: For better control and separation of content from presentation, use CSS to apply bold styling.

  <p>This is <span class="bold-text">bold</span> text using CSS.</p>
  
  <style>
    .bold-text {
      font-weight: bold;
    }
  </style>
  

Accessibility and SEO:

• Accessibility: Using <b> does not provide any additional meaning to assistive technologies, so it’s less beneficial for accessibility compared to <strong>, which is understood to indicate important content.
• SEO: Search engines do not give special significance to text wrapped in <b>, as it lacks semantic meaning. Using <strong> where appropriate can help search engines understand the importance of certain content.