HTML Dropdown Menu

Dropdown menus are a popular design element used on nearly every e-commerce site. They help users navigate through various categories and subcategories of items more efficiently, making it an essential part of a website's overall design.

HTML Dropdown Menu Syntax

Before you start creating dropdown menus, it is essential to understand the basic syntax of HTML. Every dropdown menu consists of three main HTML elements: label, select, and option.

label

The label element is used to name the dropdown menu. This element is optional, but it is best practice to use it.

select

The select element is the parent element that holds all the option elements inside. It contains the dropdown list of items that users can select from.

option

The option element is the child element of the select tag. Each option tag creates each selectable option within the dropdown list.

How to Make a Dropdown Menu in HTML

Follow these three simple steps to create a dropdown menu in HTML:

Step 1: Create a label element.

<label for="dropdown">Choose an Item:</label>

Step 2: Create a select element.

<select id="dropdown"></select>

Step 3: Create option elements and place them inside the select element.

<option value="item1">Item 1</option>\
<option value="item2">Item 2</option>\
<option value="item3">Item 3</option>

Customize the dropdown menu's style with CSS, and you're done!

HTML Dropdown Default Value

To set a default value for your dropdown menu, use the selected attribute in the option tag. It is used to choose a predefined option when the page loads.

How to Make a Hoverable Dropdown Menu

Hoverable dropdown menus are popular because they offer extra functionality for users without taking up extra space on the page. Here's how you can make a hoverable dropdown menu:

Step 1: Create and style a div with a class name “dropdown.”

<div class="dropdown"></div>

Step 2: Create the hoverable element.

<a href="#" class="hoverable">Hover Me!</a>

Step 3: Create and style the dropdown content.

\
<div class="dropdown-content">\
  <a href="#">Item 1</a>\
  <a href="#">Item 2</a>\
  <a href="#">Item 3</a>\
</div>\

Step 4: Set the dropdown menu’s hover state.

div.dropdown:hover .dropdown-content {
  display: block;
}

Step 5: Style the links inside the dropdown menu.

.dropdown-content a {
  color: black;
  padding: 12px 16px;
  text-decoration: none;
  display: block;
}

Step 6: Change the color of dropdown links on hover.

.dropdown-content a:hover {
  background-color: #ddd;
}

Multiselect Dropdown

A multiselect dropdown menu is a useful feature when there are multiple options a user may want to select at the same time. You can create a multiselect dropdown menu by setting the multiple attribute in the select element.

HTML Dropdown Accessibility

When creating dropdown menus, it’s crucial to keep accessibility in mind. Ensure that you keep the following in mind:

Provide a label to describe the dropdown menu with the for attribute in the label tag.
Use the <optgroup> tag when grouping options within the dropdown menu.
Add <title>, <alt> and <label> tags for screen readers to enable full functionality across accessibility features.

Easily create dropdowns in HTML.

With this complete guide, you can easily create a wide range of dropdown menus using HTML code. Adding dropdown menus to your ecommerce site enhances the user experience and simplifies navigation for your customers.

HTML Dropdown Menu