Event.type

The type read-only property of the Event interface returns a string containing the event's type. It is set when the event is constructed and is the name commonly used to refer to the specific event, such as click, load, or error.

For a list of available event types, see the event reference.

Syntax

let eventType = event.type;

Value

A DOMString containing the type of Event.

Example

This example logs the event type whenever you press a keyboard key or click a mouse button.

HTML

<p>Press any key or click the mouse to get the event type.</p>
<p id="log"></p>

JavaScript

function getEventType(event) {
  const log = document.getElementById('log');
  log.innerText = event.type + '\n' + log.innerText;
}

// Keyboard events
document.addEventListener('keydown', getEventType, false); // first
document.addEventListener('keypress', getEventType, false); // second
document.addEventListener('keyup', getEventType, false); // third

// Mouse events
document.addEventListener('mousedown', getEventType, false); // first
document.addEventListener('mouseup', getEventType, false); // second
document.addEventListener('click', getEventType, false); // third

Result

Specifications

Browser compatibility

See also

• EventTarget.addEventListener()
• EventTarget.removeEventListener()