DOM Manipulation Visualizer

See how JavaScript modifies the DOM with interactive operations and tree view

Initial HTML

DOM Operations

Create & Add Elements

Remove & Replace

Modify Attributes & Styles

Clone & Move

Last Operation

// JavaScript code will appear here

Visualization

DOM Tree Structure

Live Preview

Help

What is the DOM?

The Document Object Model (DOM) is a programming interface for HTML documents. It represents the page as a tree structure that JavaScript can read and modify.

Key points:

  • The DOM is not JavaScript - it's a browser API
  • Each HTML element becomes a node in the tree
  • JavaScript can create, modify, and delete nodes
  • Changes to the DOM update the page immediately
Common DOM Operations
  • Creating: document.createElement('div')
  • Selecting: document.getElementById(), querySelector()
  • Adding: appendChild(), append(), prepend()
  • Removing: removeChild(), remove()
  • Modifying: textContent, innerHTML, setAttribute()
  • Styling: element.style, classList.add/remove()
DOM Tree Structure

The DOM tree shows the parent-child relationships between elements:

  • Parent: The element containing other elements
  • Child: Elements inside a parent element
  • Sibling: Elements with the same parent
  • Descendant: Any nested element (child, grandchild, etc.)
Best Practices
  • Cache DOM references - don't query the same element repeatedly
  • Batch DOM changes to minimize reflows
  • Use DocumentFragment for multiple insertions
  • Prefer textContent over innerHTML for security
  • Use classList instead of className
  • Remove event listeners before removing elements
Using This Tool
  • Load the default example or paste your own HTML
  • Click operation buttons to modify the DOM
  • Watch the tree structure update in real-time
  • See the live preview showing the actual rendered HTML
  • View the JavaScript code for each operation
  • Use Undo/Redo to step through changes