In this section, we will learn what the accesskey attribute is and how to use it in HTML.

HTML Shortcuts: HTML accesskey Attribute Definition and Usage

The accesskey attribute is a way of setting a shortcut key to get the focus to an element in an HTML document. This means after setting a key on a keyboard for an element as the value of this attribute, if we hit that key, that element on the HTML document will get the focus.

Note: the way to use the specified key is different from browser to browser.

For example, in the Chrome, Edge, Internet Explorer and Safari, we use [Alt] + the key to activate the shortcut key.

But in Firefox, we use [Alt]+[Shift] + the key to activate the shortcut key.

HTML accesskey Attribute Syntax

<element accesskey = “key”>

HTML accesskey Attribute Values

The value we set for this attribute should only be a single character. For example, h, a, b, c, etc.

Example: using accesskey attribute in HTML

See the Pen using accesskey attribute in HTML by Omid Dehghan (@odchan1) on CodePen.

If you run this example in the Chrome browser and hit [Alt] + u, the username box will get the focus and you can write username afterwards. Also, if you hit [Alt] + p, the password box will get the focus instead and you can write a password afterwards.