WebGLRenderingContext: getParameter() method

Baseline Widely available

This feature is well established and works across many devices and browser versions. It’s been available across browsers since July 2015.

The WebGLRenderingContext.getParameter() method of the WebGL API returns a value for the passed parameter name.

Syntax

getParameter(pname)

Parameters

pname: A GLenum specifying which parameter value to return. See below for possible values.

Return value

Depends on the parameter.

Parameter names

WebGL 1

You can query the following pname parameters when using a WebGLRenderingContext.

Constant	Returned type	Description
`gl.ACTIVE_TEXTURE`	`GLenum`
`gl.ALIASED_LINE_WIDTH_RANGE`	`Float32Array` (with 2 elements)
`gl.ALIASED_POINT_SIZE_RANGE`	`Float32Array` (with 2 elements)
`gl.ALPHA_BITS`	`GLint`
`gl.ARRAY_BUFFER_BINDING`	`WebGLBuffer`
`gl.BLEND`	`GLboolean`
`gl.BLEND_COLOR`	`Float32Array` (with 4 values)
`gl.BLEND_DST_ALPHA`	`GLenum`
`gl.BLEND_DST_RGB`	`GLenum`
`gl.BLEND_EQUATION`	`GLenum`
`gl.BLEND_EQUATION_ALPHA`	`GLenum`
`gl.BLEND_EQUATION_RGB`	`GLenum`
`gl.BLEND_SRC_ALPHA`	`GLenum`
`gl.BLEND_SRC_RGB`	`GLenum`
`gl.BLUE_BITS`	`GLint`
`gl.COLOR_CLEAR_VALUE`	`Float32Array` (with 4 values)
`gl.COLOR_WRITEMASK`	sequence<`GLboolean`> (with 4 values)
`gl.COMPRESSED_TEXTURE_FORMATS`	`Uint32Array`	Returns the compressed texture formats. When using the `WEBGL_compressed_texture_s3tc` extension: `ext.COMPRESSED_RGB_S3TC_DXT1_EXT` `ext.COMPRESSED_RGBA_S3TC_DXT1_EXT` `ext.COMPRESSED_RGBA_S3TC_DXT3_EXT` `ext.COMPRESSED_RGBA_S3TC_DXT5_EXT` When using the `WEBGL_compressed_texture_s3tc_srgb` extension: `ext.COMPRESSED_SRGB_S3TC_DXT1_EXT` `ext.COMPRESSED_SRGB_ALPHA_S3TC_DXT1_EXT` `ext.COMPRESSED_SRGB_ALPHA_S3TC_DXT3_EXT` `ext.COMPRESSED_SRGB_ALPHA_S3TC_DXT5_EXT` When using the `WEBGL_compressed_texture_etc` extension: `ext.COMPRESSED_R11_EAC` `ext.COMPRESSED_SIGNED_R11_EAC` `ext.COMPRESSED_RG11_EAC` `ext.COMPRESSED_SIGNED_RG11_EAC` `ext.COMPRESSED_RGB8_ETC2` `ext.COMPRESSED_RGBA8_ETC2_EAC` `ext.COMPRESSED_SRGB8_ETC2` `ext.COMPRESSED_SRGB8_ALPHA8_ETC2_EAC` `ext.COMPRESSED_RGB8_PUNCHTHROUGH_ALPHA1_ETC2` `ext.COMPRESSED_SRGB8_PUNCHTHROUGH_ALPHA1_ETC2` When using the `WEBGL_compressed_texture_pvrtc` extension: `ext.COMPRESSED_RGB_PVRTC_4BPPV1_IMG` `ext.COMPRESSED_RGBA_PVRTC_4BPPV1_IMG` `ext.COMPRESSED_RGB_PVRTC_2BPPV1_IMG` `ext.COMPRESSED_RGBA_PVRTC_2BPPV1_IMG` When using the `WEBGL_compressed_texture_etc1` extension: `ext.COMPRESSED_RGB_ETC1_WEBGL` When using the `WEBGL_compressed_texture_astc` extension: `ext.COMPRESSED_RGBA_ASTC_4x4_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_SRGB8_ALPHA8_ASTC_4x4_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_RGBA_ASTC_5x4_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_SRGB8_ALPHA8_ASTC_5x4_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_RGBA_ASTC_5x5_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_SRGB8_ALPHA8_ASTC_5x5_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_RGBA_ASTC_6x5_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_SRGB8_ALPHA8_ASTC_6x5_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_RGBA_ASTC_6x6_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_SRGB8_ALPHA8_ASTC_6x6_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_RGBA_ASTC_8x5_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_SRGB8_ALPHA8_ASTC_8x5_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_RGBA_ASTC_8x6_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_SRGB8_ALPHA8_ASTC_8x6_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_RGBA_ASTC_8x8_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_SRGB8_ALPHA8_ASTC_8x8_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_RGBA_ASTC_10x5_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_SRGB8_ALPHA8_ASTC_10x5_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_RGBA_ASTC_10x6_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_SRGB8_ALPHA8_ASTC_10x6_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_RGBA_ASTC_10x6_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_SRGB8_ALPHA8_ASTC_10x6_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_RGBA_ASTC_10x10_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_SRGB8_ALPHA8_ASTC_10x10_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_RGBA_ASTC_12x10_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_SRGB8_ALPHA8_ASTC_12x10_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_RGBA_ASTC_12x12_KHR` `ext.COMPRESSED_SRGB8_ALPHA8_ASTC_12x12_KHR`
`gl.CULL_FACE`	`GLboolean`
`gl.CULL_FACE_MODE`	`GLenum`	`gl.FRONT`, `gl.BACK` or `gl.FRONT_AND_BACK`. See also `cullFace`
`gl.CURRENT_PROGRAM`	`WebGLProgram` or `null`	See `useProgram`.
`gl.DEPTH_BITS`	`GLint`
`gl.DEPTH_CLEAR_VALUE`	`GLfloat`
`gl.DEPTH_FUNC`	`GLenum`
`gl.DEPTH_RANGE`	`Float32Array` (with 2 elements)
`gl.DEPTH_TEST`	`GLboolean`
`gl.DEPTH_WRITEMASK`	`GLboolean`
`gl.DITHER`	`GLboolean`
`gl.ELEMENT_ARRAY_BUFFER_BINDING`	`WebGLBuffer`
`gl.FRAMEBUFFER_BINDING`	`WebGLFramebuffer` or `null`	`null` corresponds to a binding to the default framebuffer. See also `bindFramebuffer`.
`gl.FRONT_FACE`	`GLenum`	`gl.CW` or `gl.CCW`. See also `frontFace`.
`gl.GENERATE_MIPMAP_HINT`	`GLenum`	`gl.FASTEST`, `gl.NICEST` or `gl.DONT_CARE`. See also `hint`.
`gl.GREEN_BITS`	`GLint`
`gl.IMPLEMENTATION_COLOR_READ_FORMAT`	`GLenum`
`gl.IMPLEMENTATION_COLOR_READ_TYPE`	`GLenum`
`gl.LINE_WIDTH`	`GLfloat`
`gl.MAX_COMBINED_TEXTURE_IMAGE_UNITS`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_CUBE_MAP_TEXTURE_SIZE`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_FRAGMENT_UNIFORM_VECTORS`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_RENDERBUFFER_SIZE`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_TEXTURE_IMAGE_UNITS`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_TEXTURE_SIZE`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_VARYING_VECTORS`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_VERTEX_ATTRIBS`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_VERTEX_TEXTURE_IMAGE_UNITS`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_VERTEX_UNIFORM_VECTORS`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_VIEWPORT_DIMS`	`Int32Array` (with 2 elements)
`gl.PACK_ALIGNMENT`	`GLint`
`gl.POLYGON_OFFSET_FACTOR`	`GLfloat`
`gl.POLYGON_OFFSET_FILL`	`GLboolean`
`gl.POLYGON_OFFSET_UNITS`	`GLfloat`
`gl.RED_BITS`	`GLint`
`gl.RENDERBUFFER_BINDING`	`WebGLRenderbuffer` or `null`	See `bindRenderbuffer`.
`gl.RENDERER`	string
`gl.SAMPLE_BUFFERS`	`GLint`
`gl.SAMPLE_COVERAGE_INVERT`	`GLboolean`
`gl.SAMPLE_COVERAGE_VALUE`	`GLfloat`
`gl.SAMPLES`	`GLint`
`gl.SCISSOR_BOX`	`Int32Array` (with 4 elements)
`gl.SCISSOR_TEST`	`GLboolean`
`gl.SHADING_LANGUAGE_VERSION`	string
`gl.STENCIL_BACK_FAIL`	`GLenum`
`gl.STENCIL_BACK_FUNC`	`GLenum`
`gl.STENCIL_BACK_PASS_DEPTH_FAIL`	`GLenum`
`gl.STENCIL_BACK_PASS_DEPTH_PASS`	`GLenum`
`gl.STENCIL_BACK_REF`	`GLint`
`gl.STENCIL_BACK_VALUE_MASK`	`GLuint`
`gl.STENCIL_BACK_WRITEMASK`	`GLuint`
`gl.STENCIL_BITS`	`GLint`
`gl.STENCIL_CLEAR_VALUE`	`GLint`
`gl.STENCIL_FAIL`	`GLenum`
`gl.STENCIL_FUNC`	`GLenum`
`gl.STENCIL_PASS_DEPTH_FAIL`	`GLenum`
`gl.STENCIL_PASS_DEPTH_PASS`	`GLenum`
`gl.STENCIL_REF`	`GLint`
`gl.STENCIL_TEST`	`GLboolean`
`gl.STENCIL_VALUE_MASK`	`GLuint`
`gl.STENCIL_WRITEMASK`	`GLuint`
`gl.SUBPIXEL_BITS`	`GLint`
`gl.TEXTURE_BINDING_2D`	`WebGLTexture` or `null`
`gl.TEXTURE_BINDING_CUBE_MAP`	`WebGLTexture` or `null`
`gl.UNPACK_ALIGNMENT`	`GLint`
`gl.UNPACK_COLORSPACE_CONVERSION_WEBGL`	`GLenum`
`gl.UNPACK_FLIP_Y_WEBGL`	`GLboolean`
`gl.UNPACK_PREMULTIPLY_ALPHA_WEBGL`	`GLboolean`
`gl.VENDOR`	string
`gl.VERSION`	string
`gl.VIEWPORT`	`Int32Array` (with 4 elements)

WebGL 2

You can query the following pname parameters when using a WebGL2RenderingContext.

Constant	Returned type	Description
`gl.COPY_READ_BUFFER_BINDING`	`WebGLBuffer` or `null`	See `bindBuffer`.
`gl.COPY_WRITE_BUFFER_BINDING`	`WebGLBuffer` or `null`	See `bindBuffer`.
`gl.DRAW_BUFFERi`	`GLenum`	`gl.BACK`, `gl.NONE` or `gl.COLOR_ATTACHMENT{0-15}`. See also `drawBuffers`.
`gl.DRAW_FRAMEBUFFER_BINDING`	`WebGLFramebuffer` or `null`	`null` corresponds to a binding to the default framebuffer. See also `bindFramebuffer`.
`gl.FRAGMENT_SHADER_DERIVATIVE_HINT`	`GLenum`	`gl.FASTEST`, `gl.NICEST` or `gl.DONT_CARE`. See also `hint`.
`gl.MAX_3D_TEXTURE_SIZE`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_ARRAY_TEXTURE_LAYERS`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_CLIENT_WAIT_TIMEOUT_WEBGL`	`GLint64`
`gl.MAX_COLOR_ATTACHMENTS`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_COMBINED_FRAGMENT_UNIFORM_COMPONENTS`	`GLint64`
`gl.MAX_COMBINED_UNIFORM_BLOCKS`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_COMBINED_VERTEX_UNIFORM_COMPONENTS`	`GLint64`
`gl.MAX_DRAW_BUFFERS`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_ELEMENT_INDEX`	`GLint64`
`gl.MAX_ELEMENTS_INDICES`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_ELEMENTS_VERTICES`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_FRAGMENT_INPUT_COMPONENTS`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_FRAGMENT_UNIFORM_BLOCKS`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_FRAGMENT_UNIFORM_COMPONENTS`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_PROGRAM_TEXEL_OFFSET`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_SAMPLES`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_SERVER_WAIT_TIMEOUT`	`GLint64`
`gl.MAX_TEXTURE_LOD_BIAS`	`GLfloat`
`gl.MAX_TRANSFORM_FEEDBACK_INTERLEAVED_COMPONENTS`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_TRANSFORM_FEEDBACK_SEPARATE_ATTRIBS`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_TRANSFORM_FEEDBACK_SEPARATE_COMPONENTS`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_UNIFORM_BLOCK_SIZE`	`GLint64`
`gl.MAX_UNIFORM_BUFFER_BINDINGS`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_VARYING_COMPONENTS`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_VERTEX_OUTPUT_COMPONENTS`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_VERTEX_UNIFORM_BLOCKS`	`GLint`
`gl.MAX_VERTEX_UNIFORM_COMPONENTS`	`GLint`
`gl.MIN_PROGRAM_TEXEL_OFFSET`	`GLint`
`gl.PACK_ROW_LENGTH`	`GLint`	See `pixelStorei`.
`gl.PACK_SKIP_PIXELS`	`GLint`	See `pixelStorei`.
`gl.PACK_SKIP_ROWS`	`GLint`	See `pixelStorei`.
`gl.PIXEL_PACK_BUFFER_BINDING`	`WebGLBuffer` or `null`	See `bindBuffer`.
`gl.PIXEL_UNPACK_BUFFER_BINDING`	`WebGLBuffer` or `null`	See `bindBuffer`.
`gl.RASTERIZER_DISCARD`	`GLboolean`
`gl.READ_BUFFER`	`GLenum`
`gl.READ_FRAMEBUFFER_BINDING`	`WebGLFramebuffer` or `null`	`null` corresponds to a binding to the default framebuffer. See also `bindFramebuffer`.
`gl.SAMPLE_ALPHA_TO_COVERAGE`	`GLboolean`
`gl.SAMPLE_COVERAGE`	`GLboolean`
`gl.SAMPLER_BINDING`	`WebGLSampler` or `null`	See `bindSampler`.
`gl.TEXTURE_BINDING_2D_ARRAY`	`WebGLTexture` or `null`	See `bindTexture`.
`gl.TEXTURE_BINDING_3D`	`WebGLTexture` or `null`	See `bindTexture`.
`gl.TRANSFORM_FEEDBACK_ACTIVE`	`GLboolean`
`gl.TRANSFORM_FEEDBACK_BINDING`	`WebGLTransformFeedback` or `null`	See `bindTransformFeedback`.
`gl.TRANSFORM_FEEDBACK_BUFFER_BINDING`	`WebGLBuffer` or `null`	See `bindBuffer`.
`gl.TRANSFORM_FEEDBACK_PAUSED`	`GLboolean`
`gl.UNIFORM_BUFFER_BINDING`	`WebGLBuffer` or `null`	See `bindBuffer`.
`gl.UNIFORM_BUFFER_OFFSET_ALIGNMENT`	`GLint`	See `pixelStorei`.
`gl.UNPACK_IMAGE_HEIGHT`	`GLint`	See `pixelStorei`.
`gl.UNPACK_ROW_LENGTH`	`GLint`	See `pixelStorei`.
`gl.UNPACK_SKIP_IMAGES`	`GLint`	See `pixelStorei`.
`gl.UNPACK_SKIP_PIXELS`	`GLint`	See `pixelStorei`.
`gl.UNPACK_SKIP_ROWS`	`GLint`	See `pixelStorei`.
`gl.VERTEX_ARRAY_BINDING`	`WebGLVertexArrayObject` or `null`	See `bindVertexArray`.

WebGL extensions

You can query the following pname parameters when using WebGL extensions:

Constant	Returned type	Extension	Description
`ext.MAX_TEXTURE_MAX_ANISOTROPY_EXT`	`GLfloat`	`EXT_texture_filter_anisotropic`	Maximum available anisotropy.
`ext.FRAGMENT_SHADER_DERIVATIVE_HINT_OES`	`GLenum`	`OES_standard_derivatives`	Accuracy of the derivative calculation for the GLSL built-in functions: `dFdx`, `dFdy`, and `fwidth`.
`ext.MAX_COLOR_ATTACHMENTS_WEBGL`	`GLint`	`WEBGL_draw_buffers`	The maximum number of framebuffer color attachment points.
`ext.MAX_DRAW_BUFFERS_WEBGL`	`GLint`	`WEBGL_draw_buffers`	The maximum number of draw buffers.
`ext.DRAW_BUFFER0_WEBGL ext.DRAW_BUFFER1_WEBGL ext.DRAW_BUFFER2_WEBGL ext.DRAW_BUFFER3_WEBGL ext.DRAW_BUFFER4_WEBGL ext.DRAW_BUFFER5_WEBGL ext.DRAW_BUFFER6_WEBGL ext.DRAW_BUFFER7_WEBGL ext.DRAW_BUFFER8_WEBGL ext.DRAW_BUFFER9_WEBGL ext.DRAW_BUFFER10_WEBGL ext.DRAW_BUFFER11_WEBGL ext.DRAW_BUFFER12_WEBGL ext.DRAW_BUFFER13_WEBGL ext.DRAW_BUFFER14_WEBGL ext.DRAW_BUFFER15_WEBGL`	`GLenum`	`WEBGL_draw_buffers`	Drawing buffers.
`ext.VERTEX_ARRAY_BINDING_OES`	`WebGLVertexArrayObjectOES`	`OES_vertex_array_object`	Bound vertex array object (VAO).
`ext.TIMESTAMP_EXT`	`GLuint64EXT`	`EXT_disjoint_timer_query`	The current time.
`ext.GPU_DISJOINT_EXT`	`GLboolean`	`EXT_disjoint_timer_query`	Returns whether or not the GPU performed any disjoint operation.
`ext.MAX_VIEWS_OVR`	`GLint`	`OVR_multiview2`	Maximum number of views.

Examples

gl.getParameter(gl.DITHER);
gl.getParameter(gl.VERSION);
gl.getParameter(gl.VIEWPORT);

Specifications

Specification
WebGL Specification # 5.14.3
WebGL 2.0 Specification # 3.7.2

Browser compatibility

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