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HTML ondragstart Event Attribute

❮ HTML Event Attributes

Example

Execute a JavaScript when the user starts to drag a <p> element:

<p draggable="true" ondragstart="myFunction(event)">Drag me!</p>
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Definition and Usage

The ondragstart attribute fires when the user starts to drag an element or text selection.

Drag and drop is a very common feature in HTML5. It is when you "grab" an object and drag it to a different location. For more information, see our HTML Tutorial on HTML5 Drag and Drop.

Note: To make an element draggable, use the global HTML5 draggable attribute.

Tip: Links and images are draggable by default, and do not need the draggable attribute.

There are many event attributes that are used, and can occur, in the different stages of a drag and drop operation:

  • Events fired on the draggable target (the source element):
    • ondragstart - fires when the user starts to drag an element
    • ondrag - fires when an element is being dragged
    • ondragend - fires when the user has finished dragging the element

  • Events fired on the drop target:
    • ondragenter - fires when the dragged element enters the drop target
    • ondragover - fires when the dragged element is over the drop target
    • ondragleave - fires when the dragged element leaves the drop target
    • ondrop - fires when the dragged element is dropped on the drop target

Browser Support

The numbers in the table specify the first browser version that fully supports the event attribute.

Event Attribute
ondragstart 4.0 9.0 3.5 6.0 12.0

Differences Between HTML 4.01 and HTML5

The ondragstart attribute is new in HTML5.


Syntax

<element ondragstart="script">

Attribute Values

Value Description
script The script to be run on ondragstart

Technical Details

Supported HTML tags: ALL HTML elements

Related Pages

HTML Tutorial: HTML5 Drag and Drop

HTML Reference: HTML draggable Attribute

HTML DOM Reference: ondragstart Event


❮ HTML Event Attributes