How do I determine if variable is undefined or null?
My code is as follows:
var EmpName = $("div#esd-names div#name").attr('class');
if(EmpName == 'undefined'){
// DO SOMETHING
};
<div id="esd-names">
<div id="name"></div>
</div>
But if I do this, the JavaScript interpreter halts execution.
You can use the qualities of the abstract equality operator to do this:
if (variable == null){
// your code here.
}
Because null == undefined is true, the above code will catch both null and undefined.
The standard way to catch null and undefined simultaneously is this:
if (variable == null) {
// do something
}
--which is 100% equivalent to the more explicit but less concise:
if (variable === undefined || variable === null) {
// do something
}
When writing professional JS, it's taken for granted that type equality and the behavior of == vs === is understood. Therefore we use == and only compare to null.
Edit again
The comments suggesting the use of typeof are simply wrong. Yes, my solution above will cause a ReferenceError if the variable doesn't exist. This is a good thing. This ReferenceError is desirable: it will help you find your mistakes and fix them before you ship your code, just like compiler errors would in other languages. Use try/catch if you are working with input you don't have control over.
You should not have any references to undeclared variables in your code.
Combining the above answers, it seems the most complete answer would be:
if( typeof variable === 'undefined' || variable === null ){
// Do stuff
}
This should work for any variable that is either undeclared or declared and explicitly set to null or undefined. The boolean expression should evaluate to false for any declared variable that has an actual non-null value.
if (variable == null) {
// Do stuff, will only match null or undefined, this won't match false
}
if (typeof EmpName != 'undefined' && EmpName) {
will evaluate to true if value is not:
null
undefined
NaN
empty string ("")
0
false
Probably the shortest way to do this is:
if(EmpName == null) { /* DO SOMETHING */ };
Here is proof:
function check(EmpName) {
if(EmpName == null) { return true; };
return false;
}
var log = (t,a) => console.log(`${t} -> ${check(a)}`);
log('null', null);
log('undefined', undefined);
log('NaN', NaN);
log('""', "");
log('{}', {});
log('[]', []);
log('[1]', [1]);
log('[0]', [0]);
log('[[]]', [[]]);
log('true', true);
log('false', false);
log('"true"', "true");
log('"false"', "false");
log('Infinity', Infinity);
log('-Infinity', -Infinity);
log('1', 1);
log('0', 0);
log('-1', -1);
log('"1"', "1");
log('"0"', "0");
log('"-1"', "-1");
// "void 0" case
console.log('---\n"true" is:', true);
console.log('"void 0" is:', void 0);
log(void 0,void 0); // "void 0" is "undefined"
And here are more details about == (source here)
BONUS: reason why === is more clear than == (look on agc answer)
jQuery attr() function returns either a blank string or the actual value (and never null or undefined). The only time it returns undefined is when your selector didn't return any element.
So you may want to test against a blank string. Alternatively, since blank strings, null and undefined are false-y, you can just do this:
if (!EmpName) { //do something }
Edited answer: In my opinion, you shouldn't use the function from my below old answer. Instead, you should probably know the type of your variable and use the according to check directly (for example, wondering if an array is empty? just do if(arr.length===0){} etc.). This answer doesn't even answer OP's question.
I've come to write my own function for this. JavaScript is weird.
It is usable on literally anything. (Note that this also checks if the variable contains any usable values. But since this information is usually also needed, I think it's worth posting). Please consider leaving a note.
function empty(v) {
let type = typeof v;
if (type === 'undefined') {
return true;
}
if (type === 'boolean') {
return !v;
}
if (v === null) {
return true;
}
if (v === undefined) {
return true;
}
if (v instanceof Array) {
if (v.length < 1) {
return true;
}
} else if (type === 'string') {
if (v.length < 1) {
return true;
}
if (v === '0') {
return true;
}
} else if (type === 'object') {
if (Object.keys(v).length < 1) {
return true;
}
} else if (type === 'number') {
if (v === 0) {
return true;
}
}
return false;
}
TypeScript-compatible.
This function should do exactly the same thing like PHP's empty() function (see RETURN VALUES)
Considers undefined, null, false, 0, 0.0, "0" {}, [] as empty.
"0.0", NaN, " ", true are considered non-empty.
The shortest and easiest:
if(!EmpName ){
// DO SOMETHING
}
this will evaluate true if EmpName is:
null
undefined
NaN
empty
string ("")
0
false
If the variable you want to check is a global, do
if (window.yourVarName) {
// Your code here
}
This way to check will not throw an error even if the yourVarName variable doesn't exist.
Example: I want to know if my browser supports History API
if (window.history) {
history.back();
}
How this works:
window is an object which holds all global variables as its properties, and in JavaScript it is legal to try to access a non-existing object property. If history doesn't exist then window.history returns undefined. undefined is falsey, so code in an if(undefined){} block won't run.
In JavaScript, as per my knowledge, we can check an undefined, null or empty variable like below.
if (variable === undefined){
}
if (variable === null){
}
if (variable === ''){
}
Check all conditions:
if(variable === undefined || variable === null || variable === ''){
}
Since you are using jQuery, you can determine whether a variable is undefined or its value is null by using a single function.
var s; // undefined
jQuery.isEmptyObject(s); // will return true;
s = null; // defined as null
jQuery.isEmptyObject(s); // will return true;
// usage
if(jQuery.isEmptyObject(s)){
alert('Either variable: s is undefined or its value is null');
}else{
alert('variable: s has value ' + s);
}
s = 'something'; // defined with some value
jQuery.isEmptyObject(s); // will return false;
I've just had this problem i.e. checking if an object is null.
I simply use this:
if (object) {
// Your code
}
For example:
if (document.getElementById("enterJob")) {
document.getElementById("enterJob").className += ' current';
}
You can simply use the following (I know there are shorter ways to do this, but this may make it easier to visually observe, at least for others looking at the code).
if (x === null || x === undefined) {
// Add your response code here, etc.
}
source: https://www.growthsnippets.com/how-can-i-determine-if-a-variable-is-undefined-or-null/
jQuery check element not null:
var dvElement = $('#dvElement');
if (dvElement.length > 0) {
// Do something
}
else{
// Else do something else
}
With the newest javascript changes, you can use the new logical operator ??= to check if the left operand is null or undefined and if so assign the value of right operand.
SO,
if(EmpName == null){ // if Variable EmpName null or undefined
EmpName = 'some value';
};
Is equivalent to:
EmpName ??= 'some value';
The easiest way to check is:
if(!variable) {
// If the variable is null or undefined then execution of code will enter here.
}
I run this test in the Chrome console. Using (void 0) you can check undefined:
var c;
undefined
if (c === void 0) alert();
// output = undefined
var c = 1;
// output = undefined
if (c === void 0) alert();
// output = undefined
// check c value c
// output = 1
if (c === void 0) alert();
// output = undefined
c = undefined;
// output = undefined
if (c === void 0) alert();
// output = undefined
With the solution below:
const getType = (val) => typeof val === 'undefined' || !val ? null : typeof val;
const isDeepEqual = (a, b) => getType(a) === getType(b);
console.log(isDeepEqual(1, 1)); // true
console.log(isDeepEqual(null, null)); // true
console.log(isDeepEqual([], [])); // true
console.log(isDeepEqual(1, "1")); // false
etc...
I'm able to check for the following:
null
undefined
NaN
empty
string ("")
0
false
To test if a variable is null or undefined I use the below code.
if(typeof sVal === 'undefined' || sVal === null || sVal === ''){
console.log('variable is undefined or null');
}
if you create a function to check it:
export function isEmpty (v) {
if (typeof v === "undefined") {
return true;
}
if (v === null) {
return true;
}
if (typeof v === "object" && Object.keys(v).length === 0) {
return true;
}
if (Array.isArray(v) && v.length === 0) {
return true;
}
if (typeof v === "string" && v.trim().length === 0) {
return true;
}
return false;
}
(null == undefined) // true
(null === undefined) // false
Because === checks for both the type and value. Type of both are different but value is the same.
Let's look at this,
let apple; // Only declare the variable as apple
alert(apple); // undefined
In the above, the variable is only declared as apple. In this case, if we call method alert it will display undefined.
let apple = null; /* Declare the variable as apple and initialized but the value is null */
alert(apple); // null
In the second one it displays null, because variable of apple value is null.
So you can check whether a value is undefined or null.
if(apple !== undefined || apple !== null) {
// Can use variable without any error
}
The foo == null check should do the trick and resolve the "undefined OR null" case in the shortest manner. (Not considering "foo is not declared" case.) But people who are used to have 3 equals (as the best practice) might not accept it. Just look at eqeqeq or triple-equals rules in eslint and tslint...
The explicit approach, when we are checking if a variable is undefined or null separately, should be applied in this case, and my contribution to the topic (27 non-negative answers for now!) is to use void 0 as both short and safe way to perform check for undefined.
Using foo === undefined is not safe because undefined is not a reserved word and can be shadowed (MDN). Using typeof === 'undefined' check is safe, but if we are not going to care about foo-is-undeclared case the following approach can be used:
if (foo === void 0 || foo === null) { ... }
You can do something like this, I think its more efficient for multiple value check on the same variable in one condition
const x = undefined;
const y = null;
const z = 'test';
if ([undefined, null].includes(x)) {
// Will return true
}
if ([undefined, null].includes(y)) {
// Will return true
}
if ([undefined, null].includes(z)) {
// Will return false
}
No one seems to have to posted this yet, so here we go:
a?.valueOf() === undefined works reliably for either null or undefined.
The following works pretty much like a == null or a == undefined, but it could be more attractive for purists who don't like == 😎
function check(a) {
const value = a?.valueOf();
if (value === undefined) {
console.log("a is null or undefined");
}
else {
console.log(value);
}
}
check(null);
check(undefined);
check(0);
check("");
check({});
check([]);
On a side note, a?.constructor works too:
function check(a) {
if (a?.constructor === undefined) {
console.log("a is null or undefined");
}
}
check(null);
check(undefined);
check(0);
check("");
check({});
check([]);
Calling typeof null returns a value of “object”, as the special value null is considered to be an empty object reference. Safari through version 5 and Chrome through version 7 have a quirk where calling typeof on a regular expression returns “function” while all other browsers return “object”.
var x;
if (x === undefined) {
alert ("only declared, but not defined.")
};
if (typeof y === "undefined") {
alert ("not even declared.")
};
You can only use second one: as it will check for both definition and declaration
var i;
if (i === null || typeof i === 'undefined') {
console.log(i, 'i is undefined or null')
}
else {
console.log(i, 'i has some value')
}
I still think the best/safe way to test these two conditions is to cast the value to a string:
var EmpName = $("div#esd-names div#name").attr('class');
// Undefined check
if (Object.prototype.toString.call(EmpName) === '[object Undefined]'){
// Do something with your code
}
// Nullcheck
if (Object.prototype.toString.call(EmpName) === '[object Null]'){
// Do something with your code
}
I have a textarea where I use javascript to check if there's something writen on it:
if (!editorInstance.document.getBody().getChild(0).getText()) {
do some action
}
It works fine for firefox, but in IE9 I get this error telling it's a null or undefined object (so IE doesnt check my condition).
so I tried:
var hasText = editorInstance.document.getBody().getChild(0).getText();
if (typeof hasText === 'undefined') {
do some action
}
The problem is that it still stops in the first line ( var hasText = edit... ), because the editorInstance.document.getBody().getChild(0).getText() returns null or undefined
EDIT
when I do editorInstance.document.getBody().getChild(0).getText(), I get all text entered in the textarea, but when there's no text entered (I check it to validate this field), this code returns nothing, this is why the hasText variable is not working the way I expected.
Any idea about how can I solve it?
You need to check for the presence of each variable and function result that you refer to.
var firstChild = editorInstance && editorInstance.document && editorInstance.document.getBody() && editorInstance.document.getBody().getChild(0);
if (!firstChild || firstChild.getText() === '') {
// do some action
}
&& is Javascript's logical AND operator. It’s very handy for cases like this, when you want to fetch an object's value, but the object itself might be null or undefined.
Consider the following statement:
var doc = editorInstance && editorInstance.document;
It means the same as
var doc;
if (editorInstance) {
doc = editorInstance.document;
} else {
doc = editorInstance;
}
but it's shorter. This statement will not error out if editorInstance is null.
function test() {
var editor_val1 = CKEDITOR.instances.id1.document.getBody().getChild(0).getText() ;
var editor_val2 = CKEDITOR.instances.id2.document.getBody().getChild(0).getText() ;
var editor_val3 = CKEDITOR.instances.id3.document.getBody().getChild(0).getText() ;
if ((editor_val1 == '') || (editor_val2 == '') || (editor_val3 == '')) {
alert('Editor value cannot be empty!') ;
return false ;
}
return true ;
}
Possible Duplicate:
Detecting an undefined object property in JavaScript
javascript undefined compare
How we can add a check for an undefined variable, like:
function A(val) {
if (val == undefined)
// do this
else
// do this
}
JQuery library was developed specifically to simplify and to unify certain JavaScript functionality.
However if you need to check a variable against undefined value, there is no need to invent any special method, since JavaScript has a typeof operator, which is simple, fast and cross-platform:
if (typeof value === "undefined") {
// ...
}
It returns a string indicating the type of the variable or other unevaluated operand. The main advantage of this method, compared to if (value === undefined) { ... }, is that typeof will never raise an exception in case if variable value does not exist.
In this case you can use a === undefined comparison: if(val === undefined)
This works because val always exists (it's a function argument).
If you wanted to test an arbitrary variable that is not an argument, i.e. might not be defined at all, you'd have to use if(typeof val === 'undefined') to avoid an exception in case val didn't exist.
Note that typeof always returns a string, and doesn't generate an error if the variable doesn't exist at all.
function A(val){
if(typeof(val) === "undefined")
//do this
else
//do this
}
I know I am late to answer the function but jquery have a in build function to do this
if(jQuery.type(val) === "undefined"){
//Some code goes here
}
Refer jquery API document of jquery.type https://api.jquery.com/jQuery.type/ for the same.
You can use shorthand technique to check whether it is undefined or null
function A(val)
{
if(val || "")
//do this
else
//do this
}
hope this will help you
when I am testing "typeof obj === undefined", the alert(typeof obj) returning object, even though obj is undefined.
Since obj is type of Object its returning Object, not undefined.
So after hours of testing I opted below technique.
if(document.getElementById(obj) !== null){
//do...
}else{
//do...
}
I am not sure why the first technique didn't work.But I get done my work using this.
If you have names of the element and not id we can achieve the undefined check on all text elements (for example) as below and fill them with a default value say 0.0:
var aFieldsCannotBeNull=['ast_chkacc_bwr','ast_savacc_bwr'];
jQuery.each(aFieldsCannotBeNull,function(nShowIndex,sShowKey) {
var $_oField = jQuery("input[name='"+sShowKey+"']");
if($_oField.val().trim().length === 0){
$_oField.val('0.0')
}
})
I am not sure it is the best solution, but it works fine:
if($someObject['length']!=0){
//do someting
}
function isValue(value, def, is_return) {
if ( $.type(value) == 'null'
|| $.type(value) == 'undefined'
|| $.trim(value) == ''
|| ($.type(value) == 'number' && !$.isNumeric(value))
|| ($.type(value) == 'array' && value.length == 0)
|| ($.type(value) == 'object' && $.isEmptyObject(value)) ) {
return ($.type(def) != 'undefined') ? def : false;
} else {
return ($.type(is_return) == 'boolean' && is_return === true ? value : true);
}
}
try this~ all type checker
Check if undefined or not
if(typeof myVal === "undefined") {
//some code
}
Check if undefined or null or empty or false or 0
if(!myVal) {
// some code
} else {
// myVal is flawless
}
So I'm trying to call where if not undefined and index is foo so I use:
if (typeof(getdata(js, 'box1')) != "undefined"
&& (getdata(js, 'box1')).indexOf('foo') >= 0) {
// Do something
}
This works fine but I dont want to call the getdata twice. Is there way to say if getdata is not undefined and the indexOf is foo then do something, without calling the getdata() function twice?
Alternative:
if (/foo/.test(getdata(js, "box1"))) {
// do something
}
While this allows you to get away with a single check, involving a regular expression for such a simple test could be frowned upon :)
You're better off using a local variable for storing the outcome of the function call:
var data = getdata(js, "box1");
if (data && data.indexOf("foo") ==! -1) {
// do something
}
Also note that typeof is an operator and not a function:
typeof something // instead of typeof(something)
Have you tried
var data = getdata(js, 'box1');
if(typeof(data) != 'undefined' && data.indexOf('foo') >= 0) {
}
You can read the indexOf of the value or an empty string if the value is undefined or null.
if ( (getdata(js, 'box1') || '').indexOf('foo') !=-1) {
// Do something
}
Hopefully your function will only return a string, undefined or null.
Here is the line which is causing null or not an object error
if(frm.elements["hdn_retain"+indexval].value==""){
....
} else {
....
}
frm.elements["hdn_retain"+indexval] may be a null object. So, it will have error when getting the value. You can check the frm.elements["hdn_retain"+indexval] if it is null first.
if(frm.elements["hdn_retain"+indexval] != null && frm.elements["hdn_retain"+indexval].value=="")
Either frm or frm.elements["hdn_retain"+indexval] isn't a valid object (doesn't exist in the dom) and therefore you can't access it's property.
you could try something like:
if(frm.elements["hdn_retain"+indexval] && frm.elements["hdn_retain"+indexval].value==""){
Following is the result of alert statement:
alert("frm:::"+frm);
alert("frm elements::::"+frm.elements);
alert("frm hdn_retain :: "+frm.elements["hdn_retain"+indexval]);
frm:::[object]
frm elements::::[object]
frm hdn_retain :: undefined
you can use this utility method getProperty i always use to make sure i get a nested namespace back without worrying about whether or not something is defined:
function getProperty(ns, obj) {
var nsArray = ns.split('.'),
i = 0,
nsLen = nsArray.length;
while (nsLen > 0) {
var newNs = nsArray.shift();
if (obj[newNs]) {
obj = obj[newNs];
} else {
return false;
}
nsLen = nsArray.length;
}
return obj;
};
var index = "hdn_retain" + indexval;
// the following `value` will come back as a valid object/value or a false
value = getProperty('elements.' + index + '.value', frm);
if (value) {
// do whatever
} else {
// do not whatever
}
this can be applied not only to this situation but to any other situation you need to make sure a certain namespace is available before usage.