HTML <select> Tag
Topic: HTML5 Tags ReferencePrev|Next
Description
The <select> element defines a selection list within a <form>. The selection list typically displayed in the browser as a pull-down menu (i.e. a drop-down list) from which a user can select one or more options depending on its attributes. Each option offered by the selection list is defined by an <option> element.
The following table summarizes the usages context and the version history of this tag.
| Placement: | Inline |
|---|---|
| Content: | One or more of <optgroup> and/or <option> |
| Start/End Tag: | Start tag: required, End tag: required |
| Version: | HTML 2, 3.2, 4, 4.01, 5 |
Note: A <select> element must contain at least one <option> element. Options can be pre-selected for the user if attribute selected="selected" is specified to the start tag of the <option> element.
Syntax
The basic syntax of the <select> tag is given with:
The example below shows the <select> tag in action.
Example
Try this code »<select>
<option value="ferrari">Ferrari</option>
<option value="mercedes">Mercedes</option>
<option value="porsche">Porsche</option>
</select>Tag-Specific Attributes
The following table shows the attributes that are specific to the <select> tag.
| Attribute | Value | Description |
|---|---|---|
autofocus |
autofocus |
Specifies that the drop-down list should automatically get focus when the document is loaded. |
disabled |
disabled |
This Boolean attribute indicates that drop-down list is disabled i.e. the drop-down list is not selectable. |
form |
form-id |
Specifies the form that the select element is associated with i.e. its "form owner". |
multiple |
multiple |
This Boolean attribute indicates that multiple options can be selected in the list. |
name |
unique-name | Defines the name for the select element. |
required |
required |
This Boolean attribute indicates that an option with a non-empty value must be selected before form submission. |
size |
number | Specifies the number of options to show to the user. |
Global Attributes
Like all other HTML tags, the <select> tag supports the global attributes in HTML5.
Event Attributes
The <select> tag also supports the event attributes in HTML5.
Browser Compatibility
The <select> tag is supported in all major modern browsers.
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Basic Support—
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Further Reading
See tutorial on: HTML Forms.
Other form-related tags: <form>, <fieldset>, <legend>, <label>, <input>, <textarea>, <optgroup>, <option>, <button>.
