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Discover How to Ensure JavaScript Form Validation

Reading time 3 min
Published Aug 8, 2017
Updated Oct 1, 2019

JavaScript handles data forms. Another topic to discuss is the JavaScript form validation, allowing to guarantee that specific type of data will be submitted.

This tutorial covers JavaScript methods and properties to validate user inputted data. The form validation JavaScript finds mistakes in the provided data. To increase validation requirements afterwards, read the JavaScript Regular Expressions tutorial to learn how to create your own validation patterns.

JavaScript Form Validation: Main Tips

  • HTML form validation can be performed using JavaScript.
  • JavaScript form validation checks the inputted information before sending it to the server.
  • Usually, if the entered data is incorrect or missing, the server would need to send the request back to the user. But with JavaScript, validation proceeds on the client's computer.

Methods To Use

When using constraint validation, you can use two methods. Both of them will validate the data well, but the visitors of your website will notice the difference. Using setCustomValidity() lets you add a customized message that the user will see upon inputting data.

Methods Description
checkValidity() Checks an input element and returns true if it contains valid data
setCustomValidity() Adds a validationMessage property to an input

The example below displays a standard message if the inputted data is invalid using CheckValidity() method:

Example
function clickFunction() {    
   var inpObj = document.getElementById("out");    
   if (inpObj.checkValidity() == false) {          	
      document.getElementById("test").innerHTML = inpObj.validationMessage;      	
   }
}

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Properties To Understand

There are three basic DOM properties used in constraint validation: validity, validationMessage, and willValidate. Let's see what each of them does:

Property Description
validity Holds values used for validating an input data
validationMessage Holds text which will be displayed when validation fails
willValidate Returns whether inputted data will be validated

The values validity holds are of a boolean type, meaning they can only return True or False. In the table below, you can see various properties it uses. Conditions in which they return True are listed on the right:

Property Returns true if
customError A custom message of validity is set
patternMismatch An element's pattern attribute does not match its value
rangeOverflow An element's value exceeds its attribute max
rangeUnderflow An element's value is lower than its attribute min
stepMismatch An element's value is incorrect per its attribute step
tooLong An element's value is longer than its attribute maxLength
typeMismatch An element's type is incorrect per its type attribute
valueMissing An element has no value
valid An element's value is correct and valid

Validation Examples

The more examples you analyze, the better it sticks to your brain. We'll use a few more to illustrate the properties from the table we have above.

In this example, we will be using the rangeOverflow property. A message will be displayed if the input is greater than 50. It will announce Value exceeds maximum:

Example
function clickFunction() {
    var text = "";
    if (document.getElementById("out").validity.rangeOverflow) {
        text = "Value exceeds maximum";
    } else {
        text = "Input OK";
    }
    document.getElementById("test").innerHTML = text;  
}

For an opposite purpose, rangeUnderflow property can be used. Take a look at the example below. If a user inputs a value that is less than 50, they will again see a message. This time, though, it will state Value too small:

Example
function clickFunction() {          
   var text = "";      
   if (document.getElementById("out").validity.rangeUnderflow) {          
       text = "Value too small";      
   } else {
       text = "Input OK";
   } 
   document.getElementById("test").innerHTML = text;  
}

JavaScript Form Validation: Summary

  • You can use JavaScript to validate your HTML forms before sending.
  • There are several methods you can use to check validity.
  • In addition to methods, you can deploy multiple properties for JavaScript form validation.