Exploring PHP Operators
Throughout this article, we will look at the various types of PHP operators, such as arithmetic operators, assignment operators, comparison operators, and logical operators.
In order to give you a better understanding of how to implement these operators, we will provide examples of how they are used in practice.
In this way, you can learn how to use them in real scenarios.
PHP Operators
Operators are the fundamental building blocks of any programming language.
PHP offers a number of operators for operating on variables and values.
These include mathematical calculations, comparisons, logical operations, and so on.
Variables and values can be manipulated with the help of operators.
In PHP, the operators are divided into the following categories:
- Arithmetic operators
- Assignment operators
- Comparison operators
- Increment/Decrement operators
- Logical operators
- String operators
- Array operators
- Conditional assignment operators
PHP Arithmetic Operators
Arithmetic operators in PHP are used for performing common math operations, such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, etc.
| Operator’s | Name | Examples | Output | Test Code |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| + | Addition | $a + $b | Sum of $a and $b | Execute |
| – | Subtraction | $a – $b | Difference of $a and $b | Execute |
| * | Multiplication | $A * $b | Product of $a and $b | Execute |
| / | Division | $a / $b | Quotient of $a and $b | Execute |
| % | Modulus | $a % $b | Remainder of $a divided by $b | Execute |
| ** | Exponentiation | $a ** $b | Result of raising $a to the $b’th power | Execute |
PHP Assignment Operators
PHP assignment operators allow you to assign a number to a variable in order to write that value to that variable.
A PHP assignment operator called “=” is the most basic assignment operator.
Basically, what this means is that the left operand is assigned the value of the assignment expression on the right side of the equation.
| Assignment’s | Examples | Overview | Test Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| a = b | a = b | Left operand is set to right operand’s value. | Execute |
| a += b | a = a + b | Addition | Execute |
| a -= b | a = a – b | Subtraction | Execute |
| a *= b | a = a * b | Multiplication | Execute |
| a /= b | a = a / b | Division | Execute |
| a %= b | a = a % b | Modulus | Execute |
PHP Comparison Operators
A comparison PHP operator compares two values and returns a true or false Boolean value.
Different types of values, such as numbers, strings, and booleans, can be compared using PHP comparison operators.
| Operator’s | Name’s | Examples | Output | Test Code |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| == | Equal | $a == $b | True if $a matches $b. | Execute |
| === | Identical | $a === $b | True if $a matches $b and are of the same type. | Execute |
| != | Not equal | $a != $b | True if $a does not match $b. | Execute |
| <> | Not equal | $a <> $b | True if $a does not match $b. | Execute |
| !== | Not identical | $a !== $b | True if $a does not match $b and are not of the same type. | Execute |
| > | Greater than | $a > $b | True if $a is greater than $b. | Execute |
| < | Less than | $a < $b | True if $a is less than $b. | Execute |
| >= | Greater than or equal to | $a >= $b | True if $a is greater than or equal to $b. | Execute |
| <= | Less than or equal to | $a <= $b | True if $a is less than or equal to $b. | Execute |
| <=> | Spaceship | $a <=> $b | Determines whether $a is less than, equal to, or greater than $b by returning an integer. Introduced in PHP 7. | Execute |
PHP Increment / Decrement Operators
An increment or decrement operator increases or decreases a variable’s value by 1.
You can use these PHP operators in looping functions and other places where you need to change a variable’s value by a certain amount.
| Operators | Name’s | Overview | Test Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| ++$a | Pre-increment | It increments $a by one, then returns $a as a result. | Execute |
| $a++ | Post-increment | It returns the value $a, and then increments the value $a by one after that. | Execute |
| –$a | Pre-decrement | It decrements $a by one, then returns $a as a result. | Execute |
| $a– | Post-decrement | It returns the value $a, and then decrements the value $a by one after that. | Execute |
PHP Logical Operators
With logic operators, multiple conditions are combined and evaluated as one Boolean expression.
For creating complex conditional statements, PHP supports a variety of logic operators.
| Operators | Name’s | Examples | Output | Test Code |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| and | And | $a and $b | It is true if both $a and $b are true at the same time. | Execute |
| or | Or | $a or $b | If either $a or $b is true, then the condition is true. | Execute |
| xor | Xor | $a xor $b | If either $a or $b is true, but not both of them, then it is true. | Execute |
| && | And | $a && $b | It is true if both $a and $b are true at the same time. | Execute |
| || | Or | $a || $b | If either $a or $b is true, then the condition is true. | Execute |
| ! | Not | !$a | It is true if $a is not true, otherwise it is false. | Execute |
PHP String Operators
In order to manipulate strings in various ways, string operators are used.
In PHP, there are a number of string operators that are supported.
For example, you can concatenate a series of strings, compare a sequence of strings, and search for substrings within a sequence.
| Operators | Name’s | Examples | Output | Test Code |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| . | Concatenation | $str1 . $str2 | Combination of $str1 and $str2 into a single string. | Execute |
| .= | Concatenation assignment | $str1 .= $str2 | $str2 is added to $str1. | Execute |
PHP Array Operators
An array operator is a method of manipulating an array in a number of different ways.
In order to combine, compare, and modify arrays in a variety of different ways, there are a number of array operators that can be used.
| Operators | Name’s | Examples | Output | Test Code |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| + | Union | $a + $b | The Union of $a and $b | Execute |
| == | Equality | $a == $b | Returns true if there is a key/value pair in $a and $b that matches | Execute |
| === | Identity | $a === $b | Returns true if there is a key/value pair in $a and $b that matches and of the same types. | Execute |
| != | Inequality | $a != $b | The function returns true if $a is not equal to $b. | Execute |
| <> | Inequality | $a <> $b | The function returns true if $a is not equal to $b. | Execute |
| !== | Non-identity | $a !== $b | The function returns true if $a is not identical to $b. | Execute |
PHP Conditional Assignment Operators
The conditional assignment operator allows a variable to be assigned a value only if a certain condition is met.
A number of conditional assignment operators are available in PHP, which can be used to simplify code and improve its efficiency.
| Operators | Name’s | Examples | Output | Test Code |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ?: | Ternary | $a = expr1 ? expr2 : expr3 | The union of $a and $a | Execute |
| ?? | Null coalescing | $a = expr1 ?? expr2 | This function returns the value of the variable $a. Expr2 is the value of $a if expr1 = TRUE, otherwise expr2 is the value of $a If expr1 = FALSE, then the value of $a will be expr3 instead of expr1 | Execute |
In conclusion, understanding PHP operators is crucial for any developer looking to manipulate variables and values in PHP.
Whether you are working with arithmetic operations, logical operations, string operations, or any other operation, a solid understanding of how these PHP operators work is essential.
By using the examples and explanations provided in this article, you can master the use of PHP operators and improve your PHP programming skills.
With time and practice, you can become proficient in using PHP operators and use them effectively to write more efficient and optimized PHP code.
