How to Use jQuery to Add Active Class Based on URL Paths

Описание: Learn how to dynamically set the 'active' class on navigation items using jQuery, accommodating different URL structures. Perfect for pagination and varied paths!
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This video is based on the question https://stackoverflow.com/q/65777463/ asked by the user 'Idev' ( https://stackoverflow.com/u/15030471/ ) and on the answer https://stackoverflow.com/a/65777655/ provided by the user 'mplungjan' ( https://stackoverflow.com/u/295783/ ) at 'Stack Overflow' website. Thanks to these great users and Stackexchange community for their contributions.

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How to Use jQuery to Add Active Class Based on URL Paths

Navigating through web pages can often be challenging, especially when it comes to maintaining visual cues for users. A common requirement in web applications is to highlight the current page in a navigation menu as 'active'. This guide addresses this need, focusing on how you can add an active class to your navigation items based on the current URL, considering different path structures including pagination.

Understanding the Problem

In web applications, it's standard to have a navigation system that helps users know where they are within the site. In this particular case, we have a simple navigation layout for an insights section with different paths:

Base URL for 'All': /insight

Base URL for 'Technology': /insight/tag/technology

Base URL for 'Support': /insight/tag/support

Each of these base URLs has additional pagination paths such as /insight/page/1, /insight/tag/technology/page/1, etc. The goal is to keep the 'active' class on the navigation item that corresponds to the current URL and also accounts for these additional pagination paths.

Solution Overview

Here's a step-by-step breakdown of how to implement this functionality using jQuery:

Step 1: Define Function to Get Path

Start by creating a utility function that extracts the correct path from the current URL. This allows you to efficiently check against your defined paths.

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Step 2: Compare Current URL with Navigation Links

Using jQuery, loop through each navigation link, fetch its URL, and compare it with the current path fetched by getPath.

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Step 3: Styling the Active Class

To visually differentiate the active link, add some CSS:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Step 4: Complete Example

Here’s a complete example that incorporates the above logic:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Conclusion

By using this approach, you can ensure that your navigation links highlight correctly based on the current URL, including handling of additional pagination paths and varying structures. This technique enhances user experience and helps visitors understand their location within your site.

Feel free to adapt the provided code to suit your specific website needs, and enjoy a smoother navigation experience!