KeyboardEvent: charCode property

The charCode read-only property of the {{domxref("KeyboardEvent")}} interface returns the Unicode value of a character key pressed during a {{domxref("Element/keypress_event", "keypress")}} event.

[!WARNING] Do not use this property, as it is deprecated. Instead, get the Unicode value of the character using the {{domxref("KeyboardEvent.key", "key")}} property.

Value

A number that represents the Unicode value of the character key that was pressed.

Examples

HTML

html

<p>Type anything into the input box below to log a <code>charCode</code>.</p>
<input type="text" />
<p id="log"></p>

JavaScript

const input = document.querySelector("input");
const log = document.querySelector("#log");

input.addEventListener("keypress", (e) => {
  log.innerText = `Key pressed: ${String.fromCharCode(e.charCode)}\ncharCode: ${
    e.charCode
  }`;
});

Result

Notes

In a {{domxref("Element/keypress_event", "keypress")}} event, the Unicode value of the key pressed is stored in either the {{ domxref("KeyboardEvent.keyCode", "keyCode") }} or charCode property, but never both. If the key pressed generates a character (e.g., 'a'), charCode is set to the code of that character; charCode respects the letter case (in other words, charCode takes into account whether the <kbd>shift</kbd> key is held down). Otherwise, the code of the pressed key is stored in keyCode.
charCode is never set in the {{domxref("Element/keydown_event", "keydown")}} and {{domxref("Element/keyup_event", "keyup")}} events. In these cases, keyCode is set instead.
To get the code of the key regardless of whether it was stored in keyCode or charCode, query the {{domxref("UIEvent/which", "which")}} property.
Characters entered through an {{glossary("Input method editor")}} do not register through keyCode or charCode.
For a list of the charCode values associated with particular keys, run Displaying event object properties and view the resulting HTML table.