HTML DOM replaceChild() Method
Example
Replace a text node in a <li> element in a list with a new text node:
// Create a new text node called "Water"
var textnode = document.createTextNode("Water");
// Get the first child node of an <ul> element
var item = document.getElementById("myList").childNodes[0];
// Replace the first child node of <ul> with the newly created text node
item.replaceChild(textnode, item.childNodes[0]);
// Note: This example replaces only the Text node "Coffee" with a Text node "Water"
Before replacing:
- Coffee
- Tea
- Milk
After replacing:
- Water
- Tea
- Milk
More "Try it Yourself" examples below.
Definition and Usage
The replaceChild() method replaces a child node with a new node.
The new node could be an existing node in the document, or you can create a new node.
Tip: Use the removeChild() method to remove a child node from an element.
Browser Support
| Method | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| replaceChild() | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Syntax
node.replaceChild(newnode, oldnode)
Parameter Values
| Parameter | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| newnode | Node object | Required. The node object you want to insert |
| oldnode | Node object | Required. The node object you want to remove |
Technical Details
| Return Value: | A Node object, representing the replaced node |
|---|---|
| DOM Version | Core Level 1 Node Object |
More Examples
Example
Replace a <li> element in a list with a new <li> element:
// Create a new <li> element
var elmnt = document.createElement("li");
// Create a new text node called "Water"
var textnode = document.createTextNode("Water");
// Append the text node to <li>
elmnt.appendChild(textnode);
// Get the <ul> element with id="myList"
var item = document.getElementById("myList");
// Replace the first child node (<li> with index 0) in <ul> with the newly created <li> element
item.replaceChild(elmnt, item.childNodes[0]);
// Note: This example replaces the entire <li> element
Before removing:
- Coffee
- Tea
- Milk
After removing:
- Water
- Tea
- Milk
