$(document).ready equivalent without jQuery

Edit:

Here is a viable replacement for jQuery ready

function ready(callback){
    // in case the document is already rendered
    if (document.readyState!='loading') callback();
    // modern browsers
    else if (document.addEventListener) document.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', callback);
    // IE <= 8
    else document.attachEvent('onreadystatechange', function(){
        if (document.readyState=='complete') callback();
    });
}

ready(function(){
    // do something
});

Taken from https://plainjs.com/javascript/events/running-code-when-the-document-is-ready-15/

Another good domReady function here taken from https://stackoverflow.com/a/9899701/175071


As the accepted answer was very far from complete, I stitched together a "ready" function like jQuery.ready() based on jQuery 1.6.2 source:

var ready = (function(){

    var readyList,
        DOMContentLoaded,
        class2type = {};
        class2type["[object Boolean]"] = "boolean";
        class2type["[object Number]"] = "number";
        class2type["[object String]"] = "string";
        class2type["[object Function]"] = "function";
        class2type["[object Array]"] = "array";
        class2type["[object Date]"] = "date";
        class2type["[object RegExp]"] = "regexp";
        class2type["[object Object]"] = "object";

    var ReadyObj = {
        // Is the DOM ready to be used? Set to true once it occurs.
        isReady: false,
        // A counter to track how many items to wait for before
        // the ready event fires. See #6781
        readyWait: 1,
        // Hold (or release) the ready event
        holdReady: function( hold ) {
            if ( hold ) {
                ReadyObj.readyWait++;
            } else {
                ReadyObj.ready( true );
            }
        },
        // Handle when the DOM is ready
        ready: function( wait ) {
            // Either a released hold or an DOMready/load event and not yet ready
            if ( (wait === true && !--ReadyObj.readyWait) || (wait !== true && !ReadyObj.isReady) ) {
                // Make sure body exists, at least, in case IE gets a little overzealous (ticket #5443).
                if ( !document.body ) {
                    return setTimeout( ReadyObj.ready, 1 );
                }

                // Remember that the DOM is ready
                ReadyObj.isReady = true;
                // If a normal DOM Ready event fired, decrement, and wait if need be
                if ( wait !== true && --ReadyObj.readyWait > 0 ) {
                    return;
                }
                // If there are functions bound, to execute
                readyList.resolveWith( document, [ ReadyObj ] );

                // Trigger any bound ready events
                //if ( ReadyObj.fn.trigger ) {
                //    ReadyObj( document ).trigger( "ready" ).unbind( "ready" );
                //}
            }
        },
        bindReady: function() {
            if ( readyList ) {
                return;
            }
            readyList = ReadyObj._Deferred();

            // Catch cases where $(document).ready() is called after the
            // browser event has already occurred.
            if ( document.readyState === "complete" ) {
                // Handle it asynchronously to allow scripts the opportunity to delay ready
                return setTimeout( ReadyObj.ready, 1 );
            }

            // Mozilla, Opera and webkit nightlies currently support this event
            if ( document.addEventListener ) {
                // Use the handy event callback
                document.addEventListener( "DOMContentLoaded", DOMContentLoaded, false );
                // A fallback to window.onload, that will always work
                window.addEventListener( "load", ReadyObj.ready, false );

            // If IE event model is used
            } else if ( document.attachEvent ) {
                // ensure firing before onload,
                // maybe late but safe also for iframes
                document.attachEvent( "onreadystatechange", DOMContentLoaded );

                // A fallback to window.onload, that will always work
                window.attachEvent( "onload", ReadyObj.ready );

                // If IE and not a frame
                // continually check to see if the document is ready
                var toplevel = false;

                try {
                    toplevel = window.frameElement == null;
                } catch(e) {}

                if ( document.documentElement.doScroll && toplevel ) {
                    doScrollCheck();
                }
            }
        },
        _Deferred: function() {
            var // callbacks list
                callbacks = [],
                // stored [ context , args ]
                fired,
                // to avoid firing when already doing so
                firing,
                // flag to know if the deferred has been cancelled
                cancelled,
                // the deferred itself
                deferred  = {

                    // done( f1, f2, ...)
                    done: function() {
                        if ( !cancelled ) {
                            var args = arguments,
                                i,
                                length,
                                elem,
                                type,
                                _fired;
                            if ( fired ) {
                                _fired = fired;
                                fired = 0;
                            }
                            for ( i = 0, length = args.length; i < length; i++ ) {
                                elem = args[ i ];
                                type = ReadyObj.type( elem );
                                if ( type === "array" ) {
                                    deferred.done.apply( deferred, elem );
                                } else if ( type === "function" ) {
                                    callbacks.push( elem );
                                }
                            }
                            if ( _fired ) {
                                deferred.resolveWith( _fired[ 0 ], _fired[ 1 ] );
                            }
                        }
                        return this;
                    },

                    // resolve with given context and args
                    resolveWith: function( context, args ) {
                        if ( !cancelled && !fired && !firing ) {
                            // make sure args are available (#8421)
                            args = args || [];
                            firing = 1;
                            try {
                                while( callbacks[ 0 ] ) {
                                    callbacks.shift().apply( context, args );//shifts a callback, and applies it to document
                                }
                            }
                            finally {
                                fired = [ context, args ];
                                firing = 0;
                            }
                        }
                        return this;
                    },

                    // resolve with this as context and given arguments
                    resolve: function() {
                        deferred.resolveWith( this, arguments );
                        return this;
                    },

                    // Has this deferred been resolved?
                    isResolved: function() {
                        return !!( firing || fired );
                    },

                    // Cancel
                    cancel: function() {
                        cancelled = 1;
                        callbacks = [];
                        return this;
                    }
                };

            return deferred;
        },
        type: function( obj ) {
            return obj == null ?
                String( obj ) :
                class2type[ Object.prototype.toString.call(obj) ] || "object";
        }
    }
    // The DOM ready check for Internet Explorer
    function doScrollCheck() {
        if ( ReadyObj.isReady ) {
            return;
        }

        try {
            // If IE is used, use the trick by Diego Perini
            // http://javascript.nwbox.com/IEContentLoaded/
            document.documentElement.doScroll("left");
        } catch(e) {
            setTimeout( doScrollCheck, 1 );
            return;
        }

        // and execute any waiting functions
        ReadyObj.ready();
    }
    // Cleanup functions for the document ready method
    if ( document.addEventListener ) {
        DOMContentLoaded = function() {
            document.removeEventListener( "DOMContentLoaded", DOMContentLoaded, false );
            ReadyObj.ready();
        };

    } else if ( document.attachEvent ) {
        DOMContentLoaded = function() {
            // Make sure body exists, at least, in case IE gets a little overzealous (ticket #5443).
            if ( document.readyState === "complete" ) {
                document.detachEvent( "onreadystatechange", DOMContentLoaded );
                ReadyObj.ready();
            }
        };
    }
    function ready( fn ) {
        // Attach the listeners
        ReadyObj.bindReady();

        var type = ReadyObj.type( fn );

        // Add the callback
        readyList.done( fn );//readyList is result of _Deferred()
    }
    return ready;
})();

How to use:

<script>
    ready(function(){
        alert('It works!');
    });
    ready(function(){
        alert('Also works!');
    });
</script>

I am not sure how functional this code is, but it worked fine with my superficial tests. This took quite a while, so I hope you and others can benefit from it.

PS.: I suggest compiling it.

Or you can use http://dustindiaz.com/smallest-domready-ever:

function r(f){/in/.test(document.readyState)?setTimeout(r,9,f):f()}
r(function(){/*code to run*/});

or the native function if you only need to support the new browsers (Unlike jQuery ready, this won't run if you add this after the page has loaded)

document.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded',function(){/*fun code to run*/})

There is a standards based replacement,DOMContentLoaded that is supported by over 99% of browsers, though not IE8:

document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", function(event) { 
  //do work
});

jQuery's native function is much more complicated than just window.onload, as depicted below.

function bindReady(){
    if ( readyBound ) return;
    readyBound = true;

    // Mozilla, Opera and webkit nightlies currently support this event
    if ( document.addEventListener ) {
        // Use the handy event callback
        document.addEventListener( "DOMContentLoaded", function(){
            document.removeEventListener( "DOMContentLoaded", arguments.callee, false );
            jQuery.ready();
        }, false );

    // If IE event model is used
    } else if ( document.attachEvent ) {
        // ensure firing before onload,
        // maybe late but safe also for iframes
        document.attachEvent("onreadystatechange", function(){
            if ( document.readyState === "complete" ) {
                document.detachEvent( "onreadystatechange", arguments.callee );
                jQuery.ready();
            }
        });

        // If IE and not an iframe
        // continually check to see if the document is ready
        if ( document.documentElement.doScroll && window == window.top ) (function(){
            if ( jQuery.isReady ) return;

            try {
                // If IE is used, use the trick by Diego Perini
                // http://javascript.nwbox.com/IEContentLoaded/
                document.documentElement.doScroll("left");
            } catch( error ) {
                setTimeout( arguments.callee, 0 );
                return;
            }

            // and execute any waiting functions
            jQuery.ready();
        })();
    }

    // A fallback to window.onload, that will always work
    jQuery.event.add( window, "load", jQuery.ready );
}