I'm looking for a clear explanation of the concepts of null and undefined, particularly in terms of single, double, and triple equals. Does anyone have a thorough explanation, or

Why does null equal undefined in one comparison but not in another?

When comparing using ==, undefined is equal to null.

true

However, when using !==, undefined is not equal to null.

true

This means that undefined and null are not strictly equal.

false

And in terms of inequality, undefined is also not not equal to null.

false

Answer №1

When it comes to variables like undefined and null, they may seem empty at first glance. However, the key to understanding their behavior lies in comparison operators. The == operator can perform type conversion while comparing values, whereas the === operator strictly tests for equality without type conversion. So in essence, null is essentially equivalent to undefined. It may sound confusing initially, but with a few examples, it becomes clearer:

'' == '0'           // false
0 == ''             // true
0 == '0'            // true

false == 'false'    // false
false == '0'        // true

false == undefined  // false
false == null       // false
null == undefined   // true

Answer №2

Kindly refer to my response below.

"==" essentially changes the type of the variable before conducting a comparison. i. Therefore, when undefined == null is evaluated, it returns true because both variables coerce to false (representing empty values) and are then deemed equal after comparison.

On the other hand, !== performs a strict comparison without altering the type. In the case of undefined, its type remains as "undefined," while for null, its type is "object," which can be confirmed using typeof.

ii. Hence, since the types differ,!== results in true: undefined !== null.

iii. Similarly, === conducts a strict comparison where undefined === null yields false due to mismatched types.

iv. Finally, undefined != null results in false, as != like == coerces both variables to false before comparing them, hence giving the appearance of equality and returning false.

Answer №3

== is used to compare variable values after converting them to the same type through type coercion.

=== compares both values and types of variables without performing any type coercion, returning true only if they are identical.

Here are some examples to illustrate this:

console.log(5 == "5"); // Returns true because no type coercion is done.

console.log(5 === "5"); // Returns false because although values are equal, data types (number vs string) are not.

console.log(undefined == null); // Returns true as no type coercion is performed and both values are falsy.

console.log(undefined !== null); // Returns true because there is a mismatch in data types due to type coercion.

console.log(undefined === null); // Returns false because strict comparison shows their different data types.

console.log(undefined != null); // Returns false since there is no type coercion and both values are falsy.

Similar questions

If you have not found the answer to your question or you are interested in this topic, then look at other similar questions below or use the search

When setting up columns in a MUI DataGrid, it's important to remember that each field must have a unique name to avoid any conflicts. Having

I am currently working on a DataGrid project where I aim to display the values of ready_by and name. Here is an image for reference: https://i.stack.imgur.com/3qZGa.png In my code configuration, the setup looks like this: (specifically focusing on the la ...

Show an HTML image encoded in base64 from its origin

Is there a way to embed a base64 image in HTML without having to paste the entire code directly into the file? I'm looking for a more efficient method. For example: <div> <p>Image sourced from an online repository</p> <img src=" ...

How to refresh component after clearing dates in Vuetify datepicker

Currently, I am working with a datepicker in Vuetify JS and I need to find a way to clear the dates and refresh the component. In addition, there is a v-data table that is filtered based on the dates range array. I am exploring options to either add a &ap ...

Unable to find module reference "three" at 137

Returning to an older project, I realized that nothing was loading. When I checked the console log, this is what I found: Uncaught TypeError: Failed to resolve module specifier "three". Relative references must start with either "/", "./", or "../". In my ...

Developing middleware for managing event handlers

Scenario: I am tasked with managing multiple events that necessitate an "available client". Therefore, in each event handler, my first step is to attempt to acquire an available client. If no client is available, I will send a "Service unavailable" messag ...

What could be the reason that a basic click function fails to locate the selector?

I have created a quick JavaScript module that opens an image and fades out a container to reveal the image. The HTML markup for the image looks like this: <div style="margin-bottom:1px;" class="rsNavItem rsThumb front"> <di ...

Error in Prisma: Unable to retrieve data due to undefined properties (attempting to access 'findMany')

Recently, I've been working on a dashboard app using Prisma, Next.js, and supabase. Encountering an issue with the EventChart model in schema.prisma, I decided to create a new model called EventAreaChart. However, after migrating and attempting to ex ...

Is there a way to delay the start of an ajax function until a few moments after the user

Good evening, I am interested in implementing a new feature using Ajax. Specifically, I would like to introduce a delay of 2 seconds after the user finishes typing before triggering the search function, as opposed to using "onkeyup". Note: This modificati ...

Unraveling and interpreting all incoming requests to my Node.js application

Looking for a simple method to identify and decipher all encoded characters in every URL received by my Node.js application? Is it possible to achieve this using a middleware that can retrieve and decode symbols such as & ? ...

Unveiling the secrets of interacting with localstorage in react.js

I'm currently facing an issue with a component that retrieves data from an array stored in local storage. Although the initial data is fetched when the page loads, I am unsure how to update it when changes are made in local storage. import React, {Co ...

Using AngularJS to open a link in a new tab and dynamically change the ng-show value

Currently, I am working on developing an AngularJS website. A coworker has raised a concern about the dynamic functionality of the site. They mentioned that when you open a button in a new tab, such as the "About Us" tab, it redirects you back to the initi ...

Trigger the restart of a jQuery function once the condition within it is satisfied

I have a payment page with various payment options displayed. If the selected payment option is 10, a list of banks that support that payment option is shown. When a bank is clicked from the dropdown list, I generate a button with the corresponding paymen ...

Discover how to retrieve service response data from an API and populate it into the Select Option with Angular 2

Api.services.ts getListOfNames() { return this.http.get(this.BaseURL + 'welcome/getnama') .pipe(map(response => { return response; })); } After making the API call, I receive the following resp ...

The pinFileToIPFS method in Pinata IPFS is currently unable to accept files uploaded by users

Currently, I am immersed in a project where I am utilizing React.js, Express.js, and Node.js to transform a user-provided image into an NFT on the Ethereum blockchain. To achieve this, I must first upload the image to IPFS (Pinata being my choice of servic ...

Using NODE to create engaging user interfaces for command line interactions

When the command npm init is executed, it prompts a series of questions and records the answers in a file. I am interested in developing a similar command line utility using node. Are there any existing packages that could help with this project? If poss ...

Working with MySQL in Node.js using async/await

Struggling with utilizing async/await in Node.js with MySQL as it consistently returns an undefined value. Can someone shed light on what could be causing this issue? See my code snippet below. const mysql = require('promise-mysql'); var co ...

Show the HTML page returned by the server on the client side

Hey there! I've come across a PHP code snippet that sends back an HTML file as a response. This PHP code makes use of the include method to send the file. When I'm on the client side, I'm employing AJAX. Upon typing console.log(data) (with ...

Filtering an array by a search term

How do you filter an array based on a specific search term? For example, if we have an array [Tom Harry, Tom John, John Glen, Tom Harward] and we search for "Tom H," then only Tom Harry and Tom Harward should be the output. [Tom Harward, Tom Harry]; Usin ...

Ways to display encoded URL image using <img src>

I have a scenario where I am dealing with a URL of an image link location that does not have a file extension like .jpg, but when accessed it displays the corresponding image. How can I output this URL in PHP? For instance, take the example of the reCAPTC ...

Obtaining and transferring identifiers for jQuery code execution

My goal is to create a script that dynamically changes the content of a webpage using a foreach array. The HTML structure I am working with looks like this: <div id="bigleftproject"> <p>content to be replaced</p> </div> <div ...