Get selected value in dropdown list using JavaScript

Given a select element that looks like this:

<select id="ddlViewBy">
  <option value="1">test1</option>
  <option value="2" selected="selected">test2</option>
  <option value="3">test3</option>
</select>

Running this code:

var e = document.getElementById("ddlViewBy");
var value = e.value;
var text = e.options[e.selectedIndex].text;

Results in:

value == 2
text == "test2"

Interactive example:

var e = document.getElementById("ddlViewBy");
function onChange() {
  var value = e.value;
  var text = e.options[e.selectedIndex].text;
  console.log(value, text);
}
e.onchange = onChange;
onChange();

<form>
  <select id="ddlViewBy">
    <option value="1">test1</option>
    <option value="2" selected="selected">test2</option>
    <option value="3">test3</option>
  </select>
</form>

var strUser = e.options[e.selectedIndex].value;

This is correct and should give you the value. Is it the text you're after?

var strUser = e.options[e.selectedIndex].text;

So you're clear on the terminology:

<select>
    <option value="hello">Hello World</option>
</select>

This option has:

• Index = 0
• Value = hello
• Text = Hello World

There are two ways to get this done either using JavaScript or jQuery.

JavaScript:

var getValue = document.getElementById('ddlViewBy').selectedOptions[0].value;

alert (getValue); // This will output the value selected.

OR

var ddlViewBy = document.getElementById('ddlViewBy');

var value = ddlViewBy.options[ddlViewBy.selectedIndex].value;

var text = ddlViewBy.options[ddlViewBy.selectedIndex].text;

alert (value); // This will output the value selected

alert (text); // This will output the text of the value selected

jQuery:

$("#ddlViewBy:selected").text(); // Text of the selected value

$("#ddlViewBy").val(); // Outputs the value of the ID in 'ddlViewBy'

I don't know if I'm the one that doesn't get the question right, but this just worked for me: Use an onchange() event in your HTML, eg.

<select id="numberToSelect" onchange="selectNum()">
    <option value="1">One</option>
    <option value="2">Two</option>
    <option value="3">Three</option>
</select>

//javascript

function selectNum(){
    var strUser = document.getElementById("numberToSelect").value;
}

This will give you whatever value is on the select dropdown per click

Another solution is:

document.getElementById('elementId').selectedOptions[0].value

The simplest way to do this is:

var value = document.getElementById("selectId").value;

I have a bit different view of how to achieve this. I'm usually doing this with the following approach (it is an easier way and works with every browser as far as I know):

<select onChange="functionToCall(this.value);" id="ddlViewBy">
  <option value="value1">Text one</option>
  <option value="value2">Text two</option>
  <option value="value3">Text three</option>
  <option value="valueN">Text N</option>
</select>

In more modern browsers, querySelector allows us to retrieve the selected option in one statement, using the :checked pseudo-class. From the selected option, we can gather whatever information we need:

const opt = document.querySelector('#ddlViewBy option:checked');
// opt is now the selected option, so
console.log(opt.value, 'is the selected value');
console.log(opt.text, "is the selected option's text");

<select id="ddlViewBy">
  <option value="1">test1</option>
  <option value="2" selected="selected">test2</option>
  <option value="3">test3</option>
</select>

You should be using querySelector to achieve this. This also standardize the way of getting value from form elements.

var dropDownValue = document.querySelector('#ddlViewBy').value;

Fiddle: https://jsfiddle.net/3t80pubr/

event.target.value inside the onChange callback did the trick for me.

Try

ddlViewBy.value                      // value

ddlViewBy.selectedOptions[0].text    // label

console.log( ddlViewBy.value );

console.log( ddlViewBy.selectedOptions[0].text );

<select id="ddlViewBy">
  <option value="1">Happy</option>
  <option value="2">Tree</option>
  <option value="3"  selected="selected">Friends</option>
</select>

I think you can attach an event listener to the select tag itself e.g:

<script>
  document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", (_) => {
    document.querySelector("select").addEventListener("change", (e) => {
      console.log(e.target.value);
    });
  });
</script>

In this scenario, you should make sure you have a value attribute for all of your options, and they are not null.

<select name="test" id="test" >
    <option value="1" full-name="Apple">A</option>
    <option value="2" full-name="Ball">B</option>
    <option value="3" full-name="Cat" selected>C</option>
</select>

var obj  = document.getElementById('test');
obj.options[obj.selectedIndex].value;  //3
obj.options[obj.selectedIndex].text;   //C
obj.options[obj.selectedIndex].getAttribute('full-name'); //Cat
obj.options[obj.selectedIndex].selected; //true

Just do: document.getElementById('idselect').options.selectedIndex

Then you i'll get select index value, starting in 0.

Most answer here get the value of "this" select menu onchange by plain text JavaScript selector.

For example:

document.getElementById("ddlViewBy").value;

This is not DRY approach.

DRY (3 lines of code):

function handleChange(e) {
  let innerText = e.target[e.target.options.selectedIndex].innerText;
  let value = e.target.value;
  /* Do something with these values */
}

Get the first select option:

console.log(e.target[0]); /*output: <option value="value_hello">Hello innerText</option>*/

With this idea in mind we return dynamically "this" select option item (By selectedIndex):

e.target[e.target.options.selectedIndex].innerText;

DEMO

let log = document.getElementById('log');

function handleChange(e) {
  let innerText = e.target[e.target.options.selectedIndex].innerText;
  let value = e.target.value;
  
  log.innerHTML = `<table>
    <tr><th>value</th><th>innerText</th></tr>
    <tr><td>${value}</td><td>${innerText}</td></tr>
  </table>`;

}

<link rel="stylesheet" href="https://cdnjs.cloudflare.com/ajax/libs/milligram/1.4.1/milligram.css">

<select id="greet" onchange="handleChange(event)">
  <option value="value_hello">Hello innerText</option>
  <option value="value_goodbye">Goodbye innerText</option>
  <option value="value_seeYou">See you... innerText</option>
</select>

<select id="other_select_menu" onchange="handleChange(event)">
  <option value="value_paris">Paris innerText</option>
  <option value="value_ny">New York innerText</option>
</select>

<div id="log"></div>

There is a workaround, using the EasyUI framework with all of its plugins.

You only need to add some EasyUI object that can read from an input as a "bridge" to the drop-down menu.

Example: easyui-searchbox

To the left, the drop-down, to the right, the easyui-searchbox:

...
<input id="ss" class="easyui-searchbox" style="width:300px"
        data-options="  searcher:my_function,
                        prompt:'Enter value',
                        menu:'#mm'">
<div id="mm" style="width:200px">
    <div data-options="name:'1'">test1</div>
    <div data-options="name:'2'">test2</div>
</div>
...

...
<script type="text/javascript">
    function my_js_function(triggeredByButton = false){
        // normal text of the searchbox (what you entered)
        var value = $("#ss").searchbox("getValue");
        // what you chose from the drop-down menu
        var name = $("#ss").searchbox("getName");
...

Mind: the var name is the '1' or '2', that is, the "value of the drop-down", while var value is the value that was entered in the easyui-searchbox instead and not relevant if you only want to know the value of the drop-down.

I checked how EasyUI fetches that #mm name, and I could not find out how to get that name without the help of EasyUI. The jQuery behind getName:

getName:function(jq){
return $.data(jq[0],"searchbox").searchbox.find("input.textbox-value").attr("name");
}

Mind that the return of this function is not the value of the easyui-searchbox, but the name of the #mm drop-down that was used as the menu parameter of the easyui-searchbox. Somehow EasyUI must get that other value, therefore it must be possible.

If you do not want any plugin to be seen, make it as tiny as possible? Or find perhaps a plugin that does not need a form at all in the link above, I just did not take the time.

Make a drop-down menu with several options (As many as you want!)

<select>
  <option value="giveItAName">Give it a name
  <option value="bananaShark">Ridiculous animal
  <ooption value="Unknown">Give more options!
</select>

I made a bit hilarious. Here's the code snippet:

<select>
  <option value="RidiculousObject">Banana Shark
  <option value="SuperDuperCoding">select tag and option tag!
  <option value="Unknown">Add more tags to add more options!
</select>
<h1>Only 1 option (Useless)</h1>
<select>
  <option value="Single">Single Option
</select>  

yay the snippet worked