MouseEvent.altKey

The MouseEvent.altKey read-only property is a Boolean that indicates whether the alt key was pressed or not when a given mouse event occurs.

Be aware that the browser can't always detect the alt key on some operating systems. On some Linux variants, for example, a left mouse click combined with the alt key is used to move or resize windows.

Note: On Macintosh keyboards, this key is also known as the option key.

Syntax

var altKeyPressed = instanceOfMouseEvent.altKey

Return value

A Boolean, where true indicates that the key is pressed, and false indicates that the key is not pressed.

Example

This example logs the altKey property when you trigger a click event.

HTML

<p>Click anywhere to test the <code>altKey</code> property.</p>
<p id="log"></p>

JavaScript

let log = document.querySelector('#log');
document.addEventListener('click', logKey);

function logKey(e) {
  log.textContent = `The alt key is pressed: ${e.altKey}`;
}

Result

Specifications

Specification Status Comment
Document Object Model (DOM) Level 3 Events Specification
The definition of 'MouseEvent.altkey' in that specification.		 Obsolete No change from Document Object Model (DOM) Level 2 Events Specification.
Document Object Model (DOM) Level 2 Events Specification
The definition of 'MouseEvent.altkey' in that specification.		 Obsolete Initial definition.

Browser compatibility

BCD tables only load in the browser

See also