Document: getSelection() method
Baseline
Widely available
This feature is well established and works across many devices and browser versions. It’s been available across browsers since November 2017.
The getSelection() method of the Document interface returns the Selection object associated with this document, representing the range of text selected by the user, or the current position of the caret.
Syntax
getSelection()
Parameters
None.
Return value
A Selection object, or null if the document has no browsing context (for example, it is the document of an <iframe> that is not attached to a document).
Usage notes
You can call Window.getSelection(), which is identical to window.document.getSelection().
Currently, getSelection() doesn't work on the content of <textarea> and <input> elements in Firefox.
HTMLInputElement.setSelectionRange() or the selectionStart and selectionEnd properties could be used to work around this.
Notice also the difference between selection and focus. Document.activeElement returns the focused element.
Examples
Getting a Selection object
const selection = document.getSelection();
const selRange = selection.getRangeAt(0);
// do stuff with the range
console.log(selection); // Selection object
Specifications
| Specification |
|---|
| Selection API # dom-document-getselection |