HTML Form Attributes

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HTML Form Attributes


This chapter describes the different attributes for the HTML <form> element.

The Action Attribute
The action attribute defines the action to be performed when the form is submitted.
Usually, the form data is sent to a file on the server when the user clicks on the submit button.
In the example below, the form data is sent to a file called "action_page.php".
This file contains a server-side script that handles the form data:

Example
On submit, send form data to "action_page.php":

<form action="/action_page.php">  <label for="fname">First
name:</label><br>  <input type="text" id="fname" name="fname"
value="John"><br>  <label for="lname">Last name:</label><br> 
<input type="text" id="lname" name="lname" value="Doe"><br><br> 
<input type="submit" value="Submit"></form>

Try it Yourself »

Tip: If the action attribute is omitted, the action is set to the current page.

The Target Attribute
The target attribute specifies where to
display the response that is received after submitting the form.
The target attribute can have one of the
following values:


Value
Description


_blank
The response is displayed in a new window or tab


_self
The response is displayed in the current window


_parent
The response is displayed in the parent frame


_top
The response is displayed in the full body of the window


framename
The response is displayed in a named iframe


The default value is _self which means that
the response will open in the current window.

Example
Here, the submitted result will open in a new browser tab:

<form action="/action_page.php" target="_blank">
Try it Yourself »


The Method Attribute
The method attribute specifies the HTTP
method to be used when submitting the form data.
The form-data can be sent as URL variables (with method="get")
or as HTTP post transaction (with method="post").
The default HTTP method when submitting form data is GET. 

Example
This example uses the GET method when submitting the form data:

<form action="/action_page.php" method="get">
Try it Yourself »


Example
This example uses the POST method when submitting the form data:

<form action="/action_page.php" method="post">
Try it Yourself »

Notes on GET:

Appends the form data to the URL, in name/value pairs
NEVER use GET to send sensitive data! (the submitted form data is visible in the URL!)
The length of a URL is limited (2048 characters)
Useful for form submissions where a user wants to bookmark the result
GET is good for non-secure data, like query strings in Google

Notes on POST:

Appends the form data inside the body of the HTTP request (the submitted
form data is not shown in the URL)
POST has no size limitations, and can be used to send large amounts of data.
Form submissions with POST cannot be bookmarked


Tip: Always use POST if the form data contains sensitive or personal information!








The Autocomplete Attribute
The autocomplete attribute specifies whether
a form should have autocomplete on or off.
When autocomplete is on, the browser automatically complete values based on values that the user has entered before.

Example
A form with autocomplete on:

<form action="/action_page.php" autocomplete="on">
Try it Yourself »


The Novalidate Attribute
The novalidate attribute is a boolean attribute.
When present, it specifies that the form-data (input) should not be validated when submitted.

Example
A form with a novalidate attribute:

<form action="/action_page.php" novalidate>
Try it Yourself »


HTML Exercises

Test Yourself With Exercises

Exercise:
Add a submit button, and specify that the form should go to "/action_page.php".

<form ="/action_page.php">

Name: <input type="text" name="name">

<>

</form>


Submit Answer »
Start the Exercise



List of All <form> Attributes



Attribute
Description


accept-charset
Specifies the character encodings used for form submission


action
Specifies where to send the form-data when a form is submitted


autocomplete
Specifies whether a form should have autocomplete on or off


enctype
Specifies how the form-data should be encoded when submitting it to the
server (only for method="post")


method
Specifies the HTTP method to use when sending form-data


name
Specifies the name of the form


novalidate
Specifies that the form should not be validated when submitted


rel
Specifies the relationship between a linked resource and the current
document


target
Specifies where to display the response that is received after submitting
the form















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Reference: https://www.w3schools.com/html/html_for ... ibutes.asp