HTML <data> Tag

The HTML <data> tag represents a machine-readable version of its own contents. This can be useful in cases where you need the contents provided in an alternative format.

For example, you might have a script that requires data in a certain format, however, this format is not very user friendly. Using the <data> tag, you can provide the value in two different formats; a machine readable format, and a user-friendly format (eg, 10 and Ten). You could also provide two different values, as long as they represent the same thing (for example, a book ID and a book title that both represent the same book).

If the value is date or time related, use the <time> tag instead.

Syntax

The <data> tag is written as <data value=""></data> with the user friendly contents inserted between the start and end tags. The value attribute provides the machine-readable value.

Like this:

Examples

Product ID

A typical usage scenario would be when displaying a list of products. Each product has a unique product ID. But the product ID is a lengthy number so it's not so user-friendly. Using the <data> tag, you can place the product ID into the value attribute, and place the product's title between the start and end tags.

Numbers

You can also use the <data> tag to represent numbers expressed in two different ways (eg, 2 and two).

Attributes

Attributes can be added to an HTML element to provide more information about how the element should appear or behave.

There are 3 kinds of attributes that you can add to your HTML tags: Element-specific, global, and event handler content attributes.

The <data> element accepts the following attributes.

Element-Specific Attributes

This table shows the attributes that are specific to the <data> tag/element.

Global Attributes

The following attributes are standard across all HTML5 elements. Therefore, you can use these attributes with the <data> tag , as well as with all other HTML tags.

• accesskey
• class
• contenteditable
• contextmenu
• dir
• draggable
• dropzone
• hidden
• id
• inert
• itemid
• itemprop
• itemref
• itemscope
• itemtype
• lang
• spellcheck
• style
• tabindex
• title
• translate

For a full explanation of these attributes, see HTML 5 global attributes.

Event Handler Content Attributes

Event handler content attributes enable you to invoke a script from within your HTML. The script is invoked when a certain "event" occurs. Each event handler content attribute deals with a different event.

Below are the standard HTML5 event handler content attributes.

Again, you can use any of these with the <data> element, as well as any other HTML5 element.

• onabort
• oncancel
• onblur
• oncanplay
• oncanplaythrough
• onchange
• onclick
• oncontextmenu
• ondblclick
• ondrag
• ondragend
• ondragenter
• ondragexit
• ondragleave
• ondragover
• ondragstart
• ondrop
• ondurationchange
• onemptied
• onended
• onerror
• onfocus
• onformchange
• onforminput
• oninput
• oninvalid
• onkeydown
• onkeypress
• onkeyup
• onload
• onloadeddata
• onloadedmetadata
• onloadstart
• onmousedown
• onmousemove
• onmouseout
• onmouseover
• onmouseup
• onmousewheel
• onpause
• onplay
• onplaying
• onprogress
• onratechange
• onreadystatechange
• onscroll
• onseeked
• onseeking
• onselect
• onshow
• onstalled
• onsubmit
• onsuspend
• ontimeupdate
• onvolumechange
• onwaiting

For a full explanation of these attributes, see HTML 5 event handler content attributes.

Differences Between HTML 4 & HTML 5

The <data> tag is new in HTML5.

For more detail, see HTML5 <data> Tag. Also check out the links to the official specifications below.

Template

Here's a template for the <data> tag with all available attributes for the tag (based on HTML5). These are grouped into attribute types, each type separated by a space. In many cases, you will probably only need one or two (if any) attributes. Simply remove the attributes you don't need.

For more information on attributes for this tag, see HTML5 <data> Tag.

Tag Details

For more details about the <data> tag, see HTML5 <data> Tag.

Specifications

Here are the official specifications for the <data> element.

• HTML5 Specification (W3C)
• HTML Living Standard (WHATWG)
• Current W3C Draft (the next version that is currently being worked on)

What's the Difference?

W3C creates "snapshot" specifications that don't change once defined. So the HTML5 specification won't change once it becomes an official recommendation. WHATWG on the other hand, develops a "living standard" that is updated on a regular basis. In general, you will probably find that the HTML living standard will be more closely aligned to the current W3C draft than to the HTML5 specification.