HTML Form Elements
This chapter describes all HTML form elements.
The <input> Element
The most important form element is the <input> element.
The <input> element can be displayed in several ways, depending on the type
attribute.
Example
<input name="firstname" type="text">
If the type attribute is omitted, the input field gets the default type:
"text".
All the different input types are covered in the next chapter.
The <select> Element
The <select> element defines a drop-down list:
Example
<select name="cars">
<option value="volvo">Volvo</option>
<option value="saab">Saab</option>
<option value="fiat">Fiat</option>
<option value="audi">Audi</option>
</select>
The <option> elements defines an option that can be
selected.
By default, the first item in the drop-down list is selected.
To define a pre-selected option, add the selected attribute
to the option:
Example
<option value="fiat" selected>Fiat</option>
Visible Values:
Use the size attribute to specify the number of visible values:
Example
<select name="cars" size="3">
<option value="volvo">Volvo</option>
<option value="saab">Saab</option>
<option value="fiat">Fiat</option>
<option value="audi">Audi</option>
</select>
Allow Multiple Selections:
Use the multiple attribute to allow the user to select more than one value:
Example
<select name="cars" size="4" multiple>
<option value="volvo">Volvo</option>
<option value="saab">Saab</option>
<option value="fiat">Fiat</option>
<option value="audi">Audi</option>
</select>
The <textarea> Element
The <textarea> element defines a multi-line input field (a text area):
Example
<textarea name="message" rows="10" cols="30">
The cat was playing in the garden.
</textarea>
The rows attribute specifies the visible number of lines in
a text area.
The cols attribute specifies the visible width of a text
area.
This is how the HTML code above will be displayed in a browser:
You can also define the size of the text area by using CSS:
Example
<textarea name="message"
style="width:200px; height:600px">
The cat was playing in the garden.
</textarea>
The <button> Element
The <button> element defines a clickable button:
Example
<button type="button"
onclick="alert('Hello World!')">Click Me!</button>
This is how the HTML code above will be displayed in a browser:
Note: Always specify the type attribute for the button element. Different browsers may use different default types for the button element.
HTML5 Form Elements
HTML5 added the following form elements:
<datalist><output>
Note: Browsers do not display unknown elements. New elements
that are not supported in older browsers will not "destroy" your web page.
HTML5 <datalist> Element
The <datalist> element specifies a list of pre-defined options for an <input> element.
Users will see a drop-down list of the pre-defined options as they input data.
The list attribute of the <input> element, must refer to the
id attribute of the <datalist> element.
Example
<form action="/action_page.php">
<input list="browsers">
<datalist id="browsers">
<option value="Internet Explorer">
<option value="Firefox">
<option value="Chrome">
<option value="Opera">
<option value="Safari">
</datalist>
</form>
HTML5 <output> Element
The <output> element represents the result of a calculation (like one
performed by a script).
Example
Perform a calculation and show the result in an <output> element:
<form action="/action_page.php"
oninput="x.value=
parseInt(a.value)+
parseInt(b.value)">
0
<input type="range" id="a" name="a" value="50">
100 +
<input type="number" id="b" name="b" value="50">
=
<output name="x" for="a b"></output>
<br><br>
<input type="submit">
</form>