Which is better: TextNode or textContent?

What are the benefits of creating a TextNode and then appending it to an HTML element rather than just setting its textContent directly?

Imagine you have a specific span element.

var span = document.getElementById('my-span');

If you want to update the text within this span, what advantages does the following code snippet provide:

var my_text = document.createTextNode('Hello!');
span.appendChild(my_text);

as opposed to simply using:

span.textContent = 'hello';

Answer №1

When it comes to choosing between using createTextNode() and textContent, it's not so much about advantage as it is about proper usage based on the specific need at hand.

The key distinction between the two is:

  • createTextNode() is a method that essentially creates an element as indicated by its name; following this creation, you must take further action such as appending it as a child element.
    This method proves beneficial when you want to generate a new element and position it in a specific location
  • textContent, on the other hand, is a property that can either retrieve or alter the content with a single command;
    It serves its purpose well when the goal is solely to modify the content of an existing element

Considering your query in particular where you mentioned the desire to alter the text within the element...
To elucidate further, imagine you have the following HTML element:

<span>Original text</span>

If the initial solution employed looks like this:

var my_text = document.createTextNode('Hello!');
span.appendChild(my_text);

The end result will be:

<span>Original textHello!</span>

This outcome occurs because the textNode was appended.

Hence, utilizing the second approach would be more appropriate in this scenario.

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