HTML <option> Tag

Example

A drop-down list with four options:

<select>
<option>Sachin</option>
<option>Ganguly</option>
<option>Maxwell</option>
<option>White</option>
</select>

The <option> tag defines an option in a select list.

The option element goes inside the select element.

The <option> tag is supported in all major browsers.

In HTML the <option> tag has no end tag.

In XHTML the <option> tag must be properly closed.

Hint: If you have a long list of options, you can group together related options with the <optgroup> tag.

DTD indicates in which HTML 4.01/XHTML 1.0 DTD the attribute is allowed. S=Strict, T=Transitional, and F=Frameset.

Attribute	Value	Description	DTD
disabled	disabled	Specifies that an option should be disabled	STF
label	text	Specifies a shorter label for an option	STF
selected	selected	Specifies that an option should be selected by default	STF
value	text	Specifies the value to be sent to a server when a form is submitted	STF

The <option> tag supports the following standard attributes:

Attribute	Value	Description	DTD
class	classname	Specifies a classname for an element	STF
dir	rtl ltr	Specifies the text direction for the content in an element	STF
id	id	Specifies a unique id for an element	STF
lang	language_code	Specifies a language code for the content in an element	STF
style	style_definition	Specifies an inline style for an element	STF
title	text	Specifies extra information about an element	STF
xml:lang	language_code	Specifies a language code for the content in an element, in XHTML documents	STF

More information about Standard Attributes.

The <option> tag supports the following event attributes:

Attribute	Value	Description	DTD
onclick	script	Script to be run on a mouse click	STF
ondblclick	script	Script to be run on a mouse double-click	STF
onmousedown	script	Script to be run when mouse button is pressed	STF
onmousemove	script	Script to be run when mouse pointer moves	STF
onmouseout	script	Script to be run when mouse pointer moves out of an element	STF
onmouseover	script	Script to be run when mouse pointer moves over an element	STF
onmouseup	script	Script to be run when mouse button is released	STF
onkeydown	script	Script to be run when a key is pressed	STF
onkeypress	script	Script to be run when a key is pressed and released	STF
onkeyup	script	Script to be run when a key is released	STF

More information about Event Attributes.