JavaScript ternary operator

April 18, 2023

JavaScript ternary operator

When coding in any language, we use various methods to handle conditional situations. In JavaScript, we can use the ternary operator instead of the if statement. A ternary operator assigns a value to a variable based on a condition.

This is the only JavaScript operator that takes three operands. It works in the same manner as an if-else conditional statement. In other words, it is a shortcut for the if-else statement.

This operator consists of three operands: a condition followed by a question mark (?) and two expressions separated by a colon (:). When the condition is true, the first expression is executed, and when it is false, the second expression is executed.

Syntax

var a = (condition) ? expr1 : expr2;

In the above syntax, condition, expr1, and expr2 are the three operands of the ternary operator. A value is assigned to the variable ‘a’ based on the condition provided. After evaluating the condition as a Boolean value, the operator assigns the result to the variable. A first expression is assigned to the true value of the condition and a second expression is assigned to the false value of the condition.

Example

This is a simple example of using the ternary operator to determine whether the number is odd or even. Using the alert() dialog box, the result will be displayed.

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<script>
let a = 358;
let val = ( a % 2 == 0) ? 'Even Number' : 'Odd Number';
alert(val);
</script>
</head>
<body>
<h1> Welcome to the i2Tutorials </h1>
<h3> This is an example of ternary operator. </h3>
</body>
</html>