KeyboardEvent key property

DOM event KeyboardEvent

Definition and Usage

The key property returns the identifier of the key pressed at the time of the key event.

The key identifier is a string that identifies the keyboard button. The return value of this property can be one of the following strings:

  • Single character (such as "a", "W", "4", "+", or "$")
  • Multi-character (such as "F1", "Enter", "HOME", or "CAPS LOCK")

Note:This property is read-only.

Tip:If you want to know whether the "ALT", "CTRL", "META", or "SHIFT" key was pressed at the time of the key event, use altKey,ctrlKey,metaKey or shiftKey Property.

Example

Example 1

Get the pressed keyboard button at the time of the key event:

var x = event.key;

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Example 2

If the user presses the "A" key, prompt some text:

var x = event.key;
// If the pressed keyboard button is "a" or "A" (using CapsLock or Shift), prompt some text.
if (x == "a" || x == "A") { 
  alert("You pressed the 'A' key!");
}

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Syntax

event.key

Technical Details

Return Value:

A string representing the pressed keyboard button.

Possible Values:

  • Single character (such as "a", "W", "4", "+", or "$")
  • Multi-character (such as "F1", "Enter", "HOME", or "CAPS LOCK")

Note:Returns undefined in Safari.
DOM Version: DOM Level 3

Browser Support

The numbers in the table indicate the first browser version that fully supports this property.

Property Chrome IE Firefox Safari Opera
key 51.0 9.0 23.0 Not supported 38.0

Related Pages

HTML DOM Reference Manual:KeyboardEvent keyCode Property

HTML DOM Reference Manual:KeyboardEvent which Property

HTML DOM Reference Manual:KeyboardEvent charCode Property

DOM event KeyboardEvent