Selection.rangeCount

This is an experimental technology
Because this technology's specification has not stabilized, check the compatibility table for usage in various browsers. Also note that the syntax and behavior of an experimental technology is subject to change in future versions of browsers as the specification changes.

The Selection.rangeCount read-only property returns the number of ranges in the selection.

Before the user has clicked a freshly loaded page, the rangeCount is 0. After the user clicks on the page, rangeCount is 1, even if no selection is visible.

A user can normally only select one range at a time, so the rangeCount will usually be 1. Scripting can be used to make the selection contain more than 1 range.

Gecko browsers allow multiple selections across table cells.

Syntax

value = sel.rangeCount

Example

The following example will show the rangeCount every second. Select text in the browser to see it change.

HTML Content

Open the console to see how many ranges are in the selection.
In Gecko browsers, you can select multiple ranges across table
cells by holding down Ctrl while dragging with the mouse.
<table>
  <tr><td>a.1<td>a.2
  <tr><td>b.1<td>b.2

JavaScript Content

window.setInterval(function () {
  console.log(window.getSelection().rangeCount);
}, 1000);

Specifications

Specification Status Comment
HTML Editing APIs
The definition of 'Selection.rangeCount' in that specification.		 Editor's Draft Initial definition
Selection API
The definition of 'Selection.rangeCount' in that specification.		 Working Draft Current

Browser compatibility

Feature Chrome Edge Firefox (Gecko) Internet Explorer Opera Safari (WebKit)
Basic support (Yes) (Yes) (Yes) (Yes) (Yes) ?
Feature Android Edge Firefox Mobile (Gecko) Firefox OS IE Phone Opera Mobile Safari Mobile
Basic support ? (Yes) (Yes) 1.0 ? ? ?

See also

Document Tags and Contributors

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 Contributors to this page: abbycar, caofeng1, Dan-Dascalescu, BenjamP, fscholz, teoli, kosvrouvas, kscarfone, sujeetgholap, Sheppy, DR, Federico, Diablownik, Jonnyq
 Last updated by: abbycar,