[javascript] How to make an HTML back link?

What is the simplest way to create an <a> tag that links to the previous web page? Basically a simulated back button, but an actual hyperlink. Client-side technologies only, please.

Edit
Looking for solutions that have the benefit of showing the URL of the page you're about to click on when hovering, like a normal, static hyperlink. I'd rather not have the user looking at history.go(-1) when hovering on a hyperlink. Best I've found so far is:

<script>_x000D_
  document.write('<a href="' + document.referrer + '">Go Back</a>');_x000D_
</script>

Is document.referrer reliable? Cross-browser safe? I'll be happy to accept a better answer.

<a href="#" onclick="history.back();">Back</a>

you can try javascript

<A HREF="javascript:history.go(-1)">

refer JavaScript Back Button

EDIT

to display url of refer http://www.javascriptkit.com/javatutors/crossmenu2.shtml

and send the element a itself in onmouseover as follow

function showtext(thetext) {_x000D_
  if (!document.getElementById)_x000D_
    return_x000D_
  textcontainerobj = document.getElementById("tabledescription")_x000D_
  browserdetect = textcontainerobj.filters ? "ie" : typeof textcontainerobj.style.MozOpacity == "string" ? "mozilla" : ""_x000D_
  instantset(baseopacity)_x000D_
  document.getElementById("tabledescription").innerHTML = thetext.href_x000D_
  highlighting = setInterval("gradualfade(textcontainerobj)", 50)_x000D_
}

 <a href="http://www.javascriptkit.com" onMouseover="showtext(this)" onMouseout="hidetext()">JavaScript Kit</a>

check jsfiddle

A back link is a link that moves the browser backwards one page, as if the user had clicked the Back button available in most browsers. Back links use JavaScript. It moves the browser back one page if your browser supports JavaScript (which it does) and if it supports the window.history object, which is necessary for back links.

Simple ways are

<a href="#" onClick="history.go(-1)">Go Back</a>

OR:

function goBack() {_x000D_
  window.history.back()_x000D_
}

<a href="#" onclick="goBack()" />Go Back</a>

Generally speaking a back link isn't necessary… the Back button usually suffices quite nicely, and usually you can also simply link to the previous page in your site. However, sometimes you might want to provide a link back to one of several "previous" pages, and that's where a back link comes in handy. So I refer you below tutorial if you want to do in more advanced way:

http://www.htmlcodetutorial.com/linking/linking_famsupp_108.html

try this

<a href="javascript:history.go(-1)"> Go Back </a>

The best way using a button is

<input type= 'button' onclick='javascript:history.back();return false;' value='Back'>

You can also use history.back() alongside document.write() to show link only when there is actually somewhere to go back to:

<script>
  if (history.length > 1) {
    document.write('<a href="javascript:history.back()">Go back</a>');
  }
</script>

For going back to previous page using Anchor Tag <a>, below are 2 working methods and out of them 1st one is faster and have one great advantage in going back to previous page.

I have tried both methods.

1)

<a href="#" onclick="location.href = document.referrer; return false;">Go Back</a>

Above method (1) works great if you have clicked on a link and opened link in a New Tab in current browser window.

2)

<a href="javascript:history.back()">Go Back</a>

Above method (2) only works ok if you have clicked on a link and opened link in a Current Tab in current browser window.

It will not work if you have open link in New Tab. Here history.back() will not work if link is opened in New Tab of web browser.

And another way:

<a href="javascript:history.back()">Go Back</a>

history.go(-1) doesn't work if you click around in the 2nd domain or if the referrer is empty.

So we have to store the historyCount on arriving to this domain and go back the number of navigations in this side minus 1.

// if referrer is different from this site
if (!document.referrer.includes(window.location.host)) {
  // store current history length
  localStorage.setItem('historyLength', `${history.length}`);
}

// Return to stored referrer on logo click
document.querySelector('header .logo').addEventListener('click', 
  () =>
   history.go(Number(localStorage.getItem('historyLength')) - history.length -1)
);

This solution gives you the best of both worlds

• Users get to hover over the link to see the URL
• Users don't end up with a corrupted back-stack

More details in the code comments below.

var element = document.getElementById('back-link');_x000D_
_x000D_
// Provide a standard href to facilitate standard browser features such as _x000D_
//  - Hover to see link_x000D_
//  - Right click and copy link_x000D_
//  - Right click and open in new tab_x000D_
element.setAttribute('href', document.referrer);_x000D_
_x000D_
// We can't let the browser use the above href for navigation. If it does, _x000D_
// the browser will think that it is a regular link, and place the current _x000D_
// page on the browser history, so that if the user clicks "back" again,_x000D_
// it'll actually return to this page. We need to perform a native back to_x000D_
// integrate properly into the browser's history behavior_x000D_
element.onclick = function() {_x000D_
  history.back();_x000D_
  return false;_x000D_
}

<a id="back-link">back</a>

The easiest way is to use history.go(-1);

Try this:

<a href="#" onclick="history.go(-1)">Go Back</a>