HTML <option> tag
The <option> tag is used to add items to a drop down list. You should place the text that will appear for an item between <option> and </option>. The <option> tag goes inside the <select> tag.
Attributes
| Attribute | Description | Possible values |
|---|---|---|
| disabled | Disables an option (will be grayed out and inaccessible) | disabled |
| label | Specifies alternative text for an option which will be displayed instead of the text you put between the <option> and </option> tags | altText |
| selected | Specifies that an option will be automatically selected when the dropdown list loads. The first option in a dropdown list is always selected by default, you can change that using this attribute | selected |
| value | Specifies the value for an option. This value will be sent to the server when the user submits the form and it is processed | theValue |
Standard attributes
class, dir, id, lang, style, title, xml:lang
For more information on standard attributes, check out our HTML standard attributes reference page.
Event attributes
onclick, ondblclick, onmousedown, onmouseup, onmouseover, onmousemove, onmouseout, onkeypress, onkeydown, onkeyup
For more information on event attributes, check out our HTML event attributes reference page.
Example
Tips & notes
Use CSS to style form elements in many ways like setting a border, font size and color, background color, padding, and much more.
Use the <optgroup> tag to group together related elements in a dropdown list under one heading for better organization and usability.