Element.append()

The Element.append() method inserts a set of Node objects or DOMString objects after the last child of the Element. DOMString objects are inserted as equivalent Text nodes.

Differences from Node.appendChild():

  • Element.append() allows you to also append DOMString objects, whereas Node.appendChild() only accepts Node objects.
  • Element.append() has no return value, whereas Node.appendChild() returns the appended Node object.
  • Element.append() can append several nodes and strings, whereas Node.appendChild() can only append one node.

Syntax

append(...nodesOrDOMStrings)

Parameters

nodesOrDOMStrings

A set of Node or DOMString objects to insert.

Exceptions

HierarchyRequestError DOMException

Thrown when the node cannot be inserted at the specified point in the hierarchy.

Examples

Appending an element

let div = document.createElement("div")
let p = document.createElement("p")
div.append(p)

console.log(div.childNodes) // NodeList [ <p> ]

Appending text

let div = document.createElement("div")
div.append("Some text")

console.log(div.textContent) // "Some text"

Appending an element and text

let div = document.createElement("div")
let p = document.createElement("p")
div.append("Some text", p)

console.log(div.childNodes) // NodeList [ #text "Some text", <p> ]

The append method is unscopable

The append() method is not scoped into the with statement. See Symbol.unscopables for more information. 

let div = document.createElement("div")

with(div) {
  append("foo")
}
// ReferenceError: append is not defined

Specifications

Specification
DOM Standard
# ref-for-dom-parentnode-append①

Browser compatibility

BCD tables only load in the browser

See also