How TO - Add Active Class to Current Element

Learn how to add an active class to the current element with JavaScript.

Highlight the active/current (pressed) button:

Active Element

Step 1) Add HTML:

Example

Step 2) Add CSS:

Example

/* Style the buttons */
.btn {
border: none;
outline: none;
padding: 10px 16px;
background-color: #f1f1f1;
cursor: pointer;
}

/* Style the active class (and buttons on mouse-over) */
.active, .btn:hover {
background-color: #666;
color: white;
}

Step 3) Add JavaScript:

Example

// Get the container element
var btnContainer = document.getElementById("myDIV");

// Get all buttons with class="btn" inside the container
var btns = btnContainer.getElementsByClassName("btn");

// Loop through the buttons and add the active class to the current/clicked button
for (var i = 0; i < btns.length; i++) {
btns[i].addEventListener("click", function() {
    var current = document.getElementsByClassName("active");
    current[0].className = current[0].className.replace(" active", "");
    this.className += " active";
});
}

Try it Yourself »

If you do not have an active class set on the button element to start with, use the following code:

Example

// Get the container element
var btnContainer = document.getElementById("myDIV");

// Get all buttons with class="btn" inside the container
var btns = btnContainer.getElementsByClassName("btn");

// Loop through the buttons and add the active class to the current/clicked button
for (var i = 0; i < btns.length; i++) {
btns[i].addEventListener("click", function() {
    var current = document.getElementsByClassName("active");

    // If there's no active class
    if (current.length > 0) {
      current[0].className = current[0].className.replace(" active", "");
    }

    // Add the active class to the current/clicked button
    this.className += " active";
});
}

Try it Yourself »

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