document.plugins is a read-only property that returns a live HTMLCollection of every <embed> element in the document (MDN). In modern HTML it is the same collection as document.embeds.
Read the notes below before you get or set this property. Prefer feature detection when support is limited.
Use document.plugins. Start with this line.
document.plugins| Call | What it does |
|---|---|
document.plugins | Primary signature. |
Built into the browser. Read or assign document.plugins — no import required.
document.plugins| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
| Writable? | Optional. Read-only |
| Return Value | Description |
|---|---|
| * | Live HTMLCollection |
plugins.lengthCount every <embed> on the page.
const count = document.plugins.length;
console.log("embed count:", count);
if (count === 0) {
console.log("No <embed> elements on this page");
}document.plugins. Live collection of embeds (MDN)..length. Counts <embed> tags — not installed plugins.[0].document.embedsModern browsers expose one shared collection under two names.
console.log(document.plugins === document.embeds);
console.log(document.plugins.length === document.embeds.length);===. Same object reference in modern HTML.embeds in new tutorials for clarity.plugins when reading older scripts that already use it.navigator.pluginsMDN: use Navigator.plugins for installed plugins — not Document.
console.log("document.plugins length:", document.plugins.length);
console.log("navigator.plugins length:", navigator.plugins.length);
console.log("Same object?", document.plugins === navigator.plugins);
// false — totally different APIs<embed> tags.===. Always false — different objects.Document.plugins is marked Baseline Widely available on MDN (since June 2018). Logos use the shared browser-image-sprite.png sprite from this project.
Read-only live HTMLCollection of every embed element — same list as document.embeds.
Bottom line: Use document.plugins (or document.embeds) to list every embed on a page. Do not confuse it with navigator.plugins. See the MDN Document.plugins reference.
Learn which element currently owns pointer lock.
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