jQuery .die() Method

What Is .die()?

.die([eventType] [, handler]) removes handlers previously attached with .live() (since 1.3; no-arg form 1.4.1). It is the legacy counterpart to modern .off().

// Legacy (jQuery ≤ 1.8)
$("p").live("click", foo);
$("p").die("click", foo);   // remove that handler
$("p").die("click");        // remove all live click handlers on "p"
$("p").die();               // remove all live handlers on "p"

// Modern equivalent
$(document).on("click", "p", foo);
$(document).off("click", "p", foo);

How to Use .die()

Only when reading or migrating pre-1.9 code that used .live().

1. Confirm the original bind used .live() with a specific selector.
2. Call .die() on the same selector string.
3. Optionally pass an event type, and optionally the exact handler function.
4. Prefer rewriting to .on() / .off() instead of keeping .die().

Pseudocode

handlers were stored under SELECTOR by .live()

call $(SELECTOR).die(optional EVENT, optional HANDLER):

    find live handlers keyed by SELECTOR

    if no args:
        remove all of them
    else if EVENT only:
        remove live handlers for that EVENT
    else:
        remove only that HANDLER for EVENT

modern rewrite:
    $(document).off(EVENT, SELECTOR [, HANDLER])

Cheat Sheet

Quick facts for legacy code reviews.

Live Preview

Modern .on() / .off() stand-in for the old .live() / .die() pair (works in current jQuery).

Ready — Run “bind”, then click the sample.

jQuery Examples

Legacy patterns for reading old code. Prefer .off() in new projects. Try It Yourself runs on jQuery 1.8.3.

$("p").live("click", function () {
  $("#out").text("clicked");
});

$("p").die(); // all live handlers on "p" gone

Before die → click works
After $("p").die() → click does nothing

$("p").live("click", onClick);
$("p").live("mouseover", onHover);

$("p").die("click"); // mouseover live handler remains

click live handler removed
mouseover live handler still active

var foo = function () {
  $("#out").text("foo ran");
};

$("p").live("click", foo);
$("p").die("click", foo); // only foo is removed

Before die → foo runs on click
After die(click, foo) → foo does not run

// Legacy ≤ 1.8
$("p").live("click", foo);
$("p").die("click", foo);

// Preferred (1.7+)
$(document).on("click", "p", foo);
$(document).off("click", "p", foo);

Same click behavior
.off() works on jQuery 3.x — .die() does not

$("p.note").live("click", foo);

$("p").die("click");      // does NOT remove it
$("p.note").die("click"); // does remove it

$("p").die("click") → foo still runs
$("p.note").die("click") → foo stops

Performance Notes

There is no performance win to keeping .die() — the migration target is clearer roots and .off(), which also works on current jQuery.

Key Takeaways