Detect Location Hash Changes with JavaScript - Easy Guide

Introduction

Detecting location hash changes is a common requirement when building web applications. In this easy guide, we will explore how to use JavaScript to detect and respond to location hash changes.

Detecting Location Hash Changes

The location hash property returns the anchor portion of a URL, including the hash sign (#). You can use the window.onhashchange event to detect changes to the location hash.

Here's an example:

 window.onhashchange = function() {
   console.log("Location hash changed to: " + window.location.hash);
 }

In this example, we are assigning a callback function to the window.onhashchange event. When the location hash changes, the callback function will be executed and the new hash value will be logged to the console.

Responding to Location Hash Changes

Once you have detected a change to the location hash, you can respond to the change in a variety of ways. For example, you can update the content of the page based on the new hash value.

Here's an example:

 window.onhashchange = function() {
   if (window.location.hash === "#about") {
     // show the about section
   } else if (window.location.hash === "#contact") {
     // show the contact section
   } else {
     // show the home section
   }
 }

In this example, we are using the if/else statement to check the value of the location hash and update the content of the page accordingly.

Conclusion

Detecting and responding to location hash changes is a common task when building web applications. JavaScript provides a simple and effective way to detect changes to the location hash and respond to those changes in a variety of ways.