jQuery Core

Beginner
⏱️ 6 min read
📚 Updated: Jul 2026
🎯 5 Tutorials
Factory & entry points
Overview

What You’ll Learn

jQuery Core is where every chain begins. The jQuery() / $() factory selects elements, creates HTML, wraps DOM nodes, and registers ready handlers. This hub indexes 5 Core tutorials with full examples and try-it labs.

01

jQuery()

Factory

02

$()

Alias

03

Select

Find nodes

04

Create

HTML

05

Ready

$(fn)

06

Since 1.0

Foundation

Fundamentals

Introduction

The official jQuery documentation groups foundational APIs under Core. The star of that category is jQuery() — one function with many useful forms.

The Core category starts with jQuery() (alias $()) — the factory that returns every jQuery collection. Pass a CSS selector to find elements, an HTML string to create them, a DOM node to wrap, or a function to run when the document is ready.

Sibling Core topics live in other CodeToFun sections when they fit better pedagogically: .ready(), jQuery.noConflict(), and .jquery.

Quick peek

👀 Four Ways to Call $()

The same function adapts to what you pass:

$("div.foo") → select matching elements $("<p>Hi</p>") → create new elements $(this) → wrap a DOM node $(function () { ... }) → run when DOM is ready

Core Tutorial Index

Search by API name or browse by category. Each tutorial includes syntax, five try-it examples, and FAQs.

Factory Function

1 tutorial

The entry point to every jQuery program — select, create, wrap, or wait for the DOM.

APIDescriptionTutorial
jQuery()Create a jQuery collection from a CSS selector, HTML string, DOM element, array, plain object, existing selection, ready callback, or empty set — also written as $().Open

Document Ready

3 tutorials

Run code when the DOM is safe, pause ready for loaders, and handle ready-handler errors.

APIDescriptionTutorial
.ready()Run a callback when the DOM is loaded — recommended $(fn) shorthand since 3.0, compare with window load and jQuery.ready thenable.Open
jQuery.holdReady()Hold or release jQuery's ready event — delay init until dynamic scripts load since 1.6, deprecated in 3.2, prefer $.when($.ready, promise).Open
jQuery.readyException()Handle errors thrown synchronously inside ready handlers — default setTimeout rethrow since 3.1, override for logging.Open

Globals & Aliases

1 tutorial

Share the page with other libraries that also want $.

APIDescriptionTutorial
jQuery.noConflict()Release the $ alias (and optionally the jQuery name) back to other libraries — keep using jQuery by name or a custom alias.Open

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

Core APIs are the foundation of jQuery — especially the jQuery() / $() factory that builds collections. Related Core topics such as .ready(), jQuery.noConflict(), and jQuery.when() are also documented in DOM, Utilities, and Deferred sections on CodeToFun.
Start with the jQuery() Function tutorial. Learn selector selection, HTML creation, wrapping this in event handlers, and the $(function(){}) ready shortcut. Then continue to Selectors and DOM manipulation.
No. $ is an alias for jQuery. If another library owns $, use jQuery.noConflict() or jQuery(function($){ ... }) so $ is safe inside your callback.
.ready() and jQuery.ready / holdReady live under DOM. jQuery.noConflict() is under Utilities. This Core hub focuses on the factory and links out to those siblings.
Core covers the factory function and related entry points. Properties covers read-only fields like .length and .jquery on collections.
Open the Selectors hub to write richer queries, then Traversing and DOM methods to change the page.

Start with jQuery()

Learn the factory forms — select, create, wrap, and ready.

jQuery() tutorial →

About the author

Mari Selvan M P
Mari Selvan M P 🔗

Developer, cloud engineer, and technical writer

  • Experience 12 years building web and cloud systems
  • Focus Full Stack Development, AWS, and Developer Education

I write practical tutorials so students and working developers can learn by doing—from databases and APIs to deployment on AWS.

AWS Certified Developer – Associate (Credly)

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jQuery Introduction jQuery() Function