How do you check the data type of a variable?
TL;DR
To check the data type of a variable in JavaScript, you can use the typeof operator. For example, typeof variableName will return a string indicating the type of the variable, such as "string", "number", "boolean", "object", "function", "undefined", or "symbol". For arrays and null, you can use Array.isArray(variableName) and variableName === null, respectively.
How do you check the data type of a variable?
Using the typeof operator
The typeof operator is the most common way to check the data type of a variable in JavaScript. It returns a string indicating the type of the operand.
let str = 'Hello, world!';console.log(typeof str); // "string"let num = 42;console.log(typeof num); // "number"let bool = true;console.log(typeof bool); // "boolean"let obj = { name: 'Alice' };console.log(typeof obj); // "object"let func = function () {};console.log(typeof func); // "function"let undef;console.log(typeof undef); // "undefined"let sym = Symbol();console.log(typeof sym); // "symbol"
Checking for null
The typeof operator returns "object" for null, which can be misleading. To specifically check for null, you should use a strict equality comparison.
let n = null;console.log(n === null); // true
Checking for arrays
Arrays are a special type of object in JavaScript. To check if a variable is an array, you can use the Array.isArray method.
let arr = [1, 2, 3];console.log(Array.isArray(arr)); // true
Checking for NaN
NaN (Not-a-Number) is a special numeric value in JavaScript. To check if a value is NaN, you can use the Number.isNaN method.
let notANumber = NaN;console.log(Number.isNaN(notANumber)); // true
Checking for null and undefined
To check if a variable is either null or undefined, you can use a combination of the == operator and the typeof operator.
let value = null;console.log(value == null); // truelet value2;console.log(typeof value2 === 'undefined'); // true