forms returns a collection (an HTMLCollection) of the <form> elements within the current document.
Syntax
collection = document.forms;
Example: Getting form information
<!DOCTYPE html> <html lang="en"> <head> <title>document.forms example</title> </head> <body> <form id="robby"> <input type="button" onclick="alert(document.forms[0].id);" value="robby's form" /> </form> <form id="dave"> <input type="button" onclick="alert(document.forms[1].id);" value="dave's form" /> </form> <form id="paul"> <input type="button" onclick="alert(document.forms[2].id);" value="paul's form" /> </form> </body> </html>
Example 2: Getting an element from within a form
var selectForm = document.forms[index]; var selectFormElement = document.forms[index].elements[index];
Example 3: Named form access
<!DOCTYPE html> <html lang="en"> <head> <title>document.forms example</title> </head> <body> <form name="login"> <input name="email" type="email"> <input name="password" type="password"> <button type="submit">Log in</button> </form> <script> var loginForm = document.forms.login; // Or document.forms['login'] loginForm.elements.email.value = 'test@example.com'; loginForm.elements.password.value = 'testPassword'; </script> </body> </html>
Specifications
| Specification | Status | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| HTML Living Standard The definition of 'Document.forms' in that specification. |
Living Standard | |
| Document Object Model (DOM) Level 2 HTML Specification The definition of 'Document.forms' in that specification. |
Obsolete | Initial definition. |