Get the value of the first option in a select list using jQuery

Question

This always returns null for some reason?

 alert($(element).val("option :first-child").val());

Answer 1

It will vary slightly depending on what the element variable actually is, but:

If element is a native DOM element:

alert($(element).find("option:first-child").val());

Or if element is a jQuery-wrapped element already you can simplify to:

alert(element.find("option:first-child").val());

---

There were two bugs in what you were trying:

• You were using val in place of find to find the option within the select
• You had a space between option and :first-child, which means "find a first-child which is a descendant of an option element"