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ComboBox Overview

The Kendo UI ComboBox widget displays a list of values and allows for a single selection from that list.

It enables the user to enter custom values through the keyboard. The ComboBox represents a richer version of the <select> element and provides support for local and remote data binding, item templates, and configurable options for controlling the list behavior.

To restrict the user input, use the Kendo UI DropDownList.

Getting Started

Initialize the ComboBox

To initialize the ComboBox, use any of the following approaches:

  1. Use the <option> tag of an existing <select> element with defined data items.
  2. Bind the widget to a local data array and use the <input> element.
  3. Bind the widget to a remote data service and use the <input> element.

The ComboBox looks and operates consistently regardless of the initialization type you choose to apply.

Important

  • Verify that you create the ComboBox within a $(document).ready() statement because the widget has to be initialized after the DOM fully loads.
  • The widget copies any styles and CSS classes from the input element to the wrapper element and visible input.

Use option Tags of Existing select Elements

To initialize the ComboBox by binding the widget to a local data array and utilizing the <select> element, use the Data Source component. It is an abstraction for local and remote data. Local arrays are appropriate for limited value options.

The following example demonstrates how to initialize the ComboBox by using this approach.

Example
<select id="comboBox">
    <option>Item 1</option>
    <option>Item 2</option>
    <option>Item 3</option>
</select>

<script>
    $(document).ready(function(){
        $("#comboBox").kendoComboBox();
    });
</script>

Bind to Local Data Arrays

To initialize the ComboBox by binding the widget to a local data array and utilizing the <input> element, use the Data Source component. It is an abstraction for local and remote data. Local arrays are appropriate for limited value options.

The following example demonstrates how to initialize the ComboBox by using this approach.

Example
<input id="comboBox" />

<script>
  $(document).ready(function(){
    $("#comboBox").kendoComboBox({
      dataTextField: "text",
      dataValueField: "value",
      dataSource: [
        { text: "Item1", value: "1" },
        { text: "Item2", value: "2" }
      ]
    });
  });
</script>

Bind to Remote Data Services

To initialize the ComboBox by binding the widget to remote data arrays and utilizing the <input> element, use the Data Source component. It is an abstraction for local and remote data. Remote data binding is appropriate for larger data sets, so that items are loaded on demand when displayed. You can use the DataSource for serving data from a variety of data services such as XML, JSON, and JSONP.

The following example demonstrates how to initialize the ComboBox by using this approach.

Example
<input id="comboBox" />

<script>
$(document).ready(function() {
    $("#comboBox").kendoComboBox({
        index: 0,
        dataTextField: "ProductName",
        dataValueField: "ProductID",
        filter: "contains",
        dataSource: {
            transport: {
                read: {
                    dataType: "jsonp",
                    url: "https://demos.telerik.com/kendo-ui/service/Products"
                }
            }
        }
    });
});
</script>

Templates

The ComboBox uses Kendo UI templates to provide full control over the way pop-up items are rendered.

For more information on the capabilities and syntax of the templates, refer to the documentation.

Item Templates

The item template manages the way the list items of a ComboBox are rendered.

The following example demonstrates how to define an item template.

Example
<input id="comboBox" />
<!-- Template -->
<script id="scriptTemplate" type="text/x-kendo-template">
    ContactName: #:data.ContactName#, CustomerID: #:data.CustomerID#
</script>

<!-- ComboBox initialization -->
<script>
    $(document).ready(function() {
        $("#comboBox").kendoComboBox({
            template: $("#scriptTemplate").html(),
            dataTextField: "ContactName",
            dataValueField: "CustomerID",
            dataSource: {
                transport: {
                    read: {
                        dataType: "jsonp",
                        url: "https://demos.telerik.com/kendo-ui/service/Customers"
                    }
                }
            }
        });
    });
</script>

Header Templates

The header template manages the way the pop-up header of a ComboBox is rendered.

The ComboBox allows you to render a pop-up header. The following example demonstrates how to define a header template.

Example
<input id="comboBox" />
<!-- Template -->
<script id="headerTemplate" type="text/x-kendo-template">
    <strong>Header</strong>
</script>

<!-- ComboBox initialization -->
<script>
    $(document).ready(function() {
        $("#comboBox").kendoComboBox({
            headerTemplate: $("#headerTemplate").html(),
            dataTextField: "ContactName",
            dataValueField: "CustomerID",
            dataSource: {
                transport: {
                    read: {
                        dataType: "jsonp",
                        url: "https://demos.telerik.com/kendo-ui/service/Customers"
                    }
                }
            }
        });
    });
</script>

The footer template manages the way the pop-up footer of a ComboBox is rendered. The footer is re-rendered on every change of the Data Source. The context of the template is the widget itself.

The following example demonstrates how to define a footer template.

Example
<input id="comboBox" />
<!-- Template -->
<script id="footerTemplate" type="text/x-kendo-template">
    Total <strong>#: instance.dataSource.total() #</strong> items found
</script>

<!-- ComboBox initialization -->
<script>
    $(document).ready(function() {
        $("#comboBox").kendoComboBox({
            footerTemplate: $("#footerTemplate").html(),
            dataTextField: "ContactName",
            dataValueField: "CustomerID",
            dataSource: {
                transport: {
                    read: {
                        dataType: "jsonp",
                        url: "https://demos.telerik.com/kendo-ui/service/Customers"
                    }
                }
            }
        });
    });
</script>

No-Data Templates

The ComboBox widget displays noDataTemplate in the popup when the data source is empty.

The following example demonstrates how to define a noDataTemplate template.

Important

When the noDataTemplate option is defined, the widget always opens the popup element.

Example
<input id="comboBox" />
<!-- Template -->
<script id="noDataTemplate" type="text/x-kendo-template">
    <strong>No Data!</strong>
</script>

<!-- ComboBox initialization -->
<script>
    $(document).ready(function() {
        $("#comboBox").kendoComboBox({
            noDataTemplate: $("#noDataTemplate").html(),
            dataTextField: "ContactName",
            dataValueField: "CustomerID",
            dataSource: {
                transport: {
                    read: {
                        dataType: "jsonp",
                        url: "https://demos.telerik.com/kendo-ui/service/Customers"
                    }
                }
            }
        });
    });
</script>

Configuration

Change the List Width

To customize the width of a drop-down list and change its dimensions, use the jQuery width() method.

Example
 <input id="comboBox" />

<script>
    var combobox = $("#combobox").data("kendoComboBox");

    // set width of the drop-down list
    combobox.list.width(400);
</script>

Adjust the Popup Width

You can let the popup element automatically adjust its width according to the length of the item label it displays. When the autoWidth option is set to true, the popup shows the content on one line and does not wrap it up.

Important

Virtualized lists do not support the auto-width functionality.

Example
<input id="combobox" style="width: 100px;" />
<script>
$("#combobox").kendoComboBox({
  autoWidth: true,
  dataSource: {
    data: ["Short item", "An item with really, really long text"]
  }
});
</script>

Access *-list Elements

The drop-down list renders an ID attribute, generated from the ID of the widget and the -list suffix.

The ID can be used to style the element or to access a specific element inside the popup element.

Important

If the widget has no ID, the drop-down element will have no ID either.

Example
<input id="combobox">
<script>
  $(document).ready(function() {
    $("#combobox").kendoComboBox({
        dataSource: ["Item1", "Item2"]
    });

    //the DIV popup element that holds header, footer templates and the suggestion options.
    var popupElement = $("#combobox-list");

    console.log(popupElement);
  });
</script>

Support label Elements

Because of its complex rendering, the focusing of the widget by using a label element requires additional implementation. For more information on how to do it, refer to this Kendo UI Dojo snippet.

Remove Input Values

The ComboBox enables you to remove the values from the input area of the widget through the clearButton configuration option. By default, the option is enabled and is set to true. As a result, a x button appears in the input area on hover. When clicked, it resets the value of the widget and triggers the change event.

Reference

Existing Instances

To refer an existing ComboBox widget, use the jQuery.data() configuration option.

Example
<input id="comboBox" />

<script>
    var comboBox = $("#comboBox").data("kendoComboBox");
</script>

See Also

Other articles on the Kendo UI ComboBox:

Articles on the Kendo UI DropDownList:

Articles on the Kendo UI MultiSelect:

Articles on the Kendo UI AutoComplete:

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