jQuery - Set Content and Attributes
Set Content - text(), html(), and val()
We will use the same three methods from the previous page to set content:
- text() - Sets or returns the text content of selected elements
- html() - Sets or returns the content of selected elements (including HTML markup)
- val() - Sets or returns the value of form fields
The following example demonstrates how to set content with the jQuery text(), html(), and val() methods:
Example
$("#btn1").click(function(){
$("#test1").text("Hello world!");
});
$("#btn2").click(function(){
$("#test2").html("<b>Hello world!</b>");
});
$("#btn3").click(function(){
$("#test3").val("Dolly Duck");
});
Try it Yourself »
A Callback Function for text(), html(), and val()
All of the three jQuery methods above: text(), html(), and val(), also come with a callback function. The callback function has two parameters: the index of the current element in the list of elements selected and the original (old) value. You then return the string you wish to use as the new value from the function.
The following example demonstrates text() and html() with a callback function:
Example
$("#btn1").click(function(){
$("#test1").text(function(i, origText){
return "Old text: " + origText + " New text: Hello world!
(index: " + i + ")";
});
});
$("#btn2").click(function(){
$("#test2").html(function(i, origText){
return "Old html: " + origText + " New html: Hello
<b>world!</b>
(index: " + i + ")";
});
});
Try it Yourself »
Set Attributes - attr()
The jQuery attr() method is also used to set/change attribute values.
The following example demonstrates how to change (set) the value of the href attribute in a link:
Example
$("button").click(function(){
$("#w3s").attr("href", "http://www.w3schools.com/jquery");
});
Try it Yourself »
The attr() method also allows you to set multiple attributes at the same time.
The following example demonstrates how to set both the href and title attributes at the same time:
Example
$("button").click(function(){
$("#w3s").attr({
"href" : "http://www.w3schools.com/jquery",
"title" : "W3Schools jQuery Tutorial"
});
});
Try it Yourself »
A Callback Function for attr()
The jQuery method attr(), also come with a callback function. The callback function has two parameters: the index of the current element in the list of elements selected and the original (old) attribute value. You then return the string you wish to use as the new attribute value from the function.
The following example demonstrates attr() with a callback function:
Example
$("button").click(function(){
$("#w3s").attr("href", function(i, origValue){
return origValue + "/jquery";
});
});
Try it Yourself »
Test Yourself with Exercises!
Exercise 1 » Exercise 2 » Exercise 3 » Exercise 4 » Exercise 5 »
jQuery HTML Reference
For a complete overview of all jQuery HTML methods, please go to our jQuery HTML/CSS Reference.
