Audio canPlayType() Method

HTML DOM Audio Object

Definition and usage

canPlayType() Method checks if the browser can play the specified audio type.

canPlayType() The method can return one of the following values:

  • "probably" - The browser is most likely to support this audio type
  • "maybe" - The browser may support this audio type
  • "" - (empty string) The browser does not support this audio type

Example

Check if your browser can play different types of audio:

var x = document.createElement("AUDIO");
isSupp = x.canPlayType(vidType+';codecs="'+codType+'"');

Try it yourself

Syntax

audioObject.canPlayType(type)

Parameter value

Value Description
type

Define the supported audio types (and optional codecs) to be tested.

Common values:

  • audio/mpeg
  • audio/ogg
  • audio/mp4

Common values, including codecs:

  • audio/ogg; codecs="vorbis"
  • audio/mp4; codecs="mp4a.40.5"

Note:If the codec is included, this method can only return "probably".

Technical Details

Return Value:

String values representing the support level. Possible return values:

  • "probably" - Most Likely Supported
  • "maybe" - May Be Supported
  • "" - (Empty String) Not Supported

Browser Support

Chrome Edge Firefox Safari Opera
Chrome Edge Firefox Safari Opera
Support 9.0 Support Support Support

HTML DOM Audio Object