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JavaScript String search() Method

JavaScript String Reference JavaScript String Reference

Example

Search for "W3Schools":

var str = "Visit W3Schools!";
var n = str.search("W3Schools");

The result of n will be:

Try it Yourself »

More "Try it Yourself" examples below.


Definition and Usage

The search() method searches a string for a specified value, and returns the position of the match.

The search value can be string or a regular expression.

This method returns -1 if no match is found.

Read more about regular expressions in our RegExp Tutorial and our RegExp Object Reference.


Browser Support

Method
search() Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

Syntax

string.search(searchvalue)

Parameter Values

Parameter Description
searchvalue Required. A regular expression.
A string will automatically be converted to a regular expression.

Technical Details

Return Value: A Number, representing the position of the first occurrence of the specified searchvalue, or -1 if no match is founds
JavaScript Version: 1.2

Examples

More Examples

Example

Perform a case-sensitive search:

var str = "Mr. Blue has a blue house";
var n = str.search("blue");

The result of n will be:

Try it Yourself »

Example

Perform a case-insensitive search:

var str = "Mr. Blue has a blue house";
var n = str.search(/blue/i);

The result of n will be:

Try it Yourself »

JavaScript String Reference JavaScript String Reference