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Var & Let in JS

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Ayman Nabil
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12 views3 pages

Var & Let in JS

Uploaded by

Ayman Nabil
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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The Difference Between (var & let) In Java

The keywords let and var both declare new variables in JavaScript. The
difference between let and var is in the scope of the variables they create:

• Variables declared by let are only available inside the block where they’re defined.
• Variables declared by var are available throughout the function in which they’re declared.

Consider the difference between these two JavaScript functions:

function varScoping() {
var x = 1;

if (true) {
var x = 2;
console.log(x); // will print 2
}

console.log(x); // will print 2


}

function letScoping() {
let x = 1;

if (true) {
let x = 2;
console.log(x); // will print 2
}

console.log(x); // will print 1


}

In varScoping(), one x variable is used throughout the function, even though an x variable
is declared in two different places with different values.
In letScoping(), two distinct x variables are used – one appears in the main function body
and another in the if block. This behavior remains the same if we replace the
first let keyword with a var keyword:

function varAndLetScoping() {
var x = 1;

if (true) {
let x = 2;
console.log(x); // will print 2
}

console.log(x); // will print 1


}

A var variable will be available throughout the function body in which it is defined, no matter
how deeply nested its definition. A let variable will only be available within the same block
where it is defined. See below:

function nestedScopeTest() {
if (true) {
var functionVariable = 1;
let blockVariable = 2;

console.log(functionVariable); // will print 1


console.log(blockVariable); // will print 2

if (true) {
console.log(functionVariable); // will print 1
console.log(blockVariable); // will print 2
}
}

console.log(functionVariable); // will print 1


console.log(blockVariable); // will throw an error
}
This works because the var declaration of functionVariable is hoisted to the top level
of nestedScopeTest() before execution, but the let declaration of blockVariable is not.

The behavior of var can be useful in some cases, but is quite different from other
programming languages, and can cause difficult-to-resolve bugs. The more recently
introduced let keyword allows for more precise and predictable variable scoping and allows
programmers to safely reuse names for temporary variables within the same function.

One final point to note is that when working outside of function bodies, at a global
level, let does not create a property on the global object, whereas var does. Therefore:

// Global variables
var x = 1;
let y = 2;
console.log(this.x); // will print 1
console.log(this.y); // will print undefined

Which one is the best?

In JavaScript, it is generally recommended to use let or const for creating variables, rather
than var.

• let is used to declare variables that can be reassigned. It is scoped to the block in which it
is defined (block-scoping).
• const is used to declare variables that cannot be reassigned. It is also block-scoped.

Using let and const helps to improve code readability, prevent accidental reassignment of
values, and minimize unexpected behaviors. It is best practice to use const whenever
possible, and only use let when you need to reassign the value later in your code.
Here's an example:

const name = "Alice";


let age = 25;

name = "Bob"; // This will result in an error because name is a constant and
cannot be changed.
age = 30; // This is valid because it's a variable declared with let

Prepared by:

Ayman Nabil Abdullah Saeed

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