From http://www.w3schools.com (Copyright Refsnes Data)

HTML <form> tag

Example

A simple HTML form with two input fields and one submit button:

<form action="form_action.asp" method="get">
First name: <input type="text" name="fname" /><br />
Last name: <input type="text" name="lname" /><br />
<input type="submit" value="Submit" />
</form>

Try it yourself! (more examples at the bottom of this page)

Definition and Usage

The <form> tag is used to create an HTML form for user input.

A form can contain input elements like text fields, checkboxes, radio-buttons, submit buttons and more. A forms can also contain select menus, textarea, fieldset, legend, and label elements.

Forms are used to pass data to a server.

Browser Support

The <form> tag is supported in all major browsers.

Differences Between HTML and XHTML

NONE

Tips and Notes

Note: Form is a block-level element, and creates a line break before and after itself.

Required Attributes

DTD indicates in which DTD the attribute is allowed. S=Strict, T=Transitional, and F=Frameset.

Attribute	Value	Description	DTD
action	URL	A URL that defines where to send the data when the submit button is pushed	STF

Optional Attributes

Attribute	Value	Description	DTD
accept	list of content types	A comma separated list of content types that the server that processes this form will handle correctly	STF
accept-charset	charset_list	A comma separated list of possible character sets for the form data. The default value is "unknown"	STF
enctype	mimetype	The mime type used to encode the content of the form	STF
method	get post	The HTTP method for sending data to the action URL. Default is get. method="get": This method sends the form contents in the URL: URL?name=value&name=value. Note: If the form values contains non-ASCII characters or exceeds 100 characters you MUST use method="post". method="post": This method sends the form contents in the body of the request. Note: Most browsers are unable to bookmark post requests.	STF
name	form_name	Defines a unique name for the form	TF
target	_blank _self _parent _top	Where to open the target URL. _blank - the target URL will open in a new window _self - the target URL will open in the same frame as it was clicked _parent - the target URL will open in the parent frameset _top - the target URL will open in the full body of the window	TF

Standard Attributes

id, class, title, style, dir, lang, xml:lang

For a full description, go to Standard Attributes.

Event Attributes

onsubmit, onreset, onclick, ondblclick, onmousedown, onmouseup, onmouseover, onmousemove, onmouseout, onkeypress, onkeydown, onkeyup

For a full description, go to Event Attributes.

Try-It-Yourself Demos

Form with checkboxes
A form with two checkboxes, and a submit button.

Form with radiobuttons
A form with two radio buttons, and a submit button.

Send e-mail from a form
How to send e-mail from a form.