Web/API/GlobalEventHandlers/onselectstart

This is an experimental technologyCheck the Browser compatibility table carefully before using this in production.

The onselectstart property of the GlobalEventHandlers mixin is an EventHandler that processes selectstart events.

The selectstart event fires when the user starts to make a new text selection on a webpage.

Syntax

object.onselectstart = functionRef;

functionRef is a function name or a function expression. The function receives a FocusEvent object as its sole argument.

document.onselectstart = function() {
  console.log('Selection started!');
};

For a full example, see our Key quote generator demo.

document.onselectstart = () => {
  return false; // cancel selection
};

Specification	Status	Comment
Selection APIThe definition of 'GlobalEventHandlers.onselectstart' in that specification.	Working Draft	Initial definition.

	Desktop						Mobile
	Chrome	Edge	Firefox	Internet Explorer	Opera	Safari	Android webview	Chrome for Android	Firefox for Android	Opera for Android	Safari on iOS	Samsung Internet
`onselectstart` Experimental'	Chrome Full support Yes	Edge Full support 12	Firefox Full support 52 Full support 52 Full support 43 Disabled' Disabled' From version 43: this feature is behind the `dom.select_events.enabled` preference (needs to be set to `true`). To change preferences in Firefox, visit about:config.	IE Full support Yes	Opera ?	Safari Full support 1.3	WebView Android Full support Yes	Chrome Android Full support Yes	Firefox Android Full support 52 Full support 52 Full support 43 Disabled' Disabled' From version 43: this feature is behind the `dom.select_events.enabled` preference (needs to be set to `true`). To change preferences in Firefox, visit about:config.	Opera Android ?	Safari iOS Full support Yes	Samsung Internet Android Full support Yes

Full support: Full support
Compatibility unknown: Compatibility unknown
Experimental. Expect behavior to change in the future.': Experimental. Expect behavior to change in the future.
User must explicitly enable this feature.': User must explicitly enable this feature.