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HTML data-* Attributes

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The HTML data-* attribute allows storing custom data for elements, enhancing interactivity in web applications through JavaScript without server-side involvement or AJAX calls.

Syntax

<li data-book-author="Rabindra Nath Tagore"> Gitanjali </li>

The data-* attributes can be used to define our own custom data attributes. It stores custom data in private to the page or application. 
There are mainly 2 parts of the Data Attributes: 

  • Attribute Name: Must be at least one character long, contain no capital letters, and be prefixed with ‘data-‘.
  • Attribute Value: Can be any string.

HTML data-* Attributes Examples

Example1: In this example HTML data-* attributes (e.g., data-book-author) store custom data directly in elements, enabling JavaScript to access and utilize this data, as demonstrated in the example for displaying book authors.

HTML




<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
    <head>
        <script>
            function showDetails(book) {
                let bookauthor =
                    book.dataset.bookAuthor;
                alert(
                    book.textContent +
                        " is written by " +
                        bookauthor +
                        "."
                );
            }
        </script>
    </head>
 
    <body>
        <h1>Books</h1>
 
        <p>
            Click on the book name to know
            author's name :
        </p>
 
        <ul>
            <li
                onclick="showDetails(this)"
                data-book-author="Rabindra Nath Tagore"
            >
                Gitanjali
            </li>
            <li
                onclick="showDetails(this)"
                data-book-author="Mahatma Gandhi"
            >
                Conquest of Self
            </li>
            <li
                onclick="showDetails(this)"
                data-book-author="Sarojini Naidu"
            >
                Broken Wings
            </li>
        </ul>
    </body>
</html>


Output: 

HTML data-* Attributes

Data-* Attribute

Example 2: In this example HTML data-* Attributes (e.g., data-director-name, data-released-year) store custom data within HTML elements, accessed by JavaScript for dynamic content display without affecting rendering.

HTML




<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
    <head>
        <script>
            function showDetails(movie) {
                let directorName =
                    movie.getAttribute(
                        "data-director-name"
                    );
                let releaseYear =
                    movie.getAttribute(
                        "data-released-year"
                    );
                alert(`${movie.textContent}
            is released at ${releaseYear}
            and directed by ${directorName}.`);
            }
        </script>
    </head>
 
    <body>
        <h1>Movies</h1>
 
        <ul>
            <li
                onclick="showDetails(this)"
                data-director-name="Christopher Nolan"
                data-released-year="2008"
            >
                The Dark Knight
            </li>
 
            <li
                onclick="showDetails(this)"
                data-director-name="Christopher Nolan"
                data-released-year="2010"
            >
                Inception
            </li>
 
            <li
                onclick="showDetails(this)"
                data-director-name="James Cameron"
                data-released-year="2009"
            >
                Avatar
            </li>
        </ul>
    </body>
</html>


Output:

HTML data-* Attributes

Supported Browsers: The browser supported by HTML data-* Attribute  are listed below: 



Last Updated : 08 Mar, 2024
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