Form action attribute

HTML DOM Form Object

Definition and Usage

action Set or return the value of the action attribute in the form.

The HTML action attribute specifies where to send the form data when submitting the form.

See also:

HTML Reference Manual:HTML <form> action Attribute

Example

Example 1

Change the action URL of the form:

document.getElementById("myForm").action = "/action_page.php";

Try it yourself

Example 2

Returns the URL that sends the form data when submitting the form:

var x = document.getElementById("myForm").action;

Try it yourself

Note:In the above example, Internet Explorer 7 and earlier versions return "/action_page.php", while IE 8+, Firefox, Opera, Chrome, and Safari return the entire URL: "https://www.codew3c.com/action_page.php".

Syntax

Return the action attribute:

formObject.action

Set the action attribute:

formObject.action = URL

Attribute value

Value Description
URL

Specifies where to send the form data when submitting the form.

Possible values:

  • Absolute URL - points to another website (such as action="http://www.example.com/example.html")
  • Relative URL - Points to a file within the website (e.g., action="example.html")

Technical Details

Return Value: A string value representing the target URL for sending form data when submitting the form.

Browser Support

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

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

HTML DOM Form Object