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This PHP Operators tutorial will help you learn how to perform operations. So, let's begin!
You can use PHP Operators for performing operations on PHP variables and simple values.
Apart from these, there are some additional operators such as Execution operators, Type operators, Bitwise operators, etc.
These operators can be categorized on the basis of their use. There are three categories of operators:
You can use PHP arithmetic operators to perform basic arithmetic operations such as addition, multiplication, division, etc.
| Name | Operator | What does it do? | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Addition | + | Used for performing normal addition | $a + $b |
| Subtraction | - | Used for performing normal subtraction | $a - $b |
| Multiplication | * | Used for performing multiplication | $a * $b |
| Division | / | Used for performing division. | $a / $b |
| Exponent | ** | The first operand is returned raised to the power the second operand. $a ** $b =$a$b | $a ** $b |
| Modulus(or, Remainder) | % | operator returns the remainder of the first operand divided by the second operand | $a % $b |
You can use assignment operators for assigning values to variables, either after performing some arithmetic operation on it or as it is. The basic assignment operator is equal to=.
| Operator | Usage |
|---|---|
| = | $a = $b, will save the value of variable $b to the variable $a |
| +- | $a += $b is same as $a + $b |
| -= | $a -= $b is same as $a - $b |
| *= | $a *= $b is same as $a * $b |
| /= | $a /= $b is same as $a / $b |
| %= | $a %= $b is same as $a % $b |
The shorthand techniques for performing arithmetic operations are provided by the assignment operator.
These operators are used for comparing two values.
| Name | Operator | What does it do? | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Equal | == | It returns true if left operand is equal to the right operand. | $a == $b |
| Identical | === | It returns true if left operand is equal to the right operand and they are of the same type. | $a === $b |
| Not Equal | != | It returns true if left operand is not equal to the right operand. | $a != $b |
| Not Identical | !== | It returns true if left operand is not equal to the right operand, and they are of different type as well. | $a !== $b |
| Greater than | > | It returns true if left operand is greater than the right operand. | $a > $b |
| Less than | < | It returns true if left operand is less than the right operand. | $a < $b |
| Greater than or equal to | >= | It returns true if left operand is greater than or equal to the right operand. | $a >= $b |
| Less than or equal to | <= | It returns true if left operand is less than or equal to the right operand. | $a <= $b |
The increment/decrement operators are unary operators. Therefore, they require only one operand.
| Operator | Usage |
|---|---|
| ++$a | Pre Increment, It will first increment the operand by 1(add one to it) and then use it or return it. |
| $a++ | Post Increment, It will first return the operand and then increment the operand by 1. |
| --$b | Pre Decrement, It will first decrement the operand by 1(subtract one from it) and then use it or return it. |
| $b-- | Post Decrement, It will first return the operand and then decrement the operand by 1. |
The increment/decrement operators are handy when you have to use loops or when you have to simply increment any value by one in your program/script.
You can use logical operators when any action depends on two or more conditions.
| Name | Operator | What does it do? | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| And | and or && | It returns true if both the operands(or expressions) returns true. | $a && $b |
| Or | or or || | It returns true if any one out of the two operands(or expressions) returns true, or both return true. | $a || $b |
| Xor | xor | It returns true if any one out of the two operands(or expressions) returns true, but not when both return true. | $a xor $b |
| Not | ! | This is a unary operator. It returns true, if the operand(or expression) returns false. | !$a |
You can use string operators for performing operations on a string. There are only two string operators. In general, PHP built-in functions perform various operations on strings. We will learn more about PHP string operators in the coming tutorials.
| Name | Operator | What does it do? | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Concatenation | . (a dot) | It is used to concatenate(join together) two strings. | $a.$b |
| Concatenation Assignment | .= | It is used to append one string to another. | $a .= $b |
The usage of both the string operators has been demonstrated here with an example:
<?php
$a = "PHP";
$b = "Laravel";
// concatenating $a and $b
echo $a.$b;
echo "n";
$a .=$b;
echo $a;
// appending $b to $a
?>Output:
PHPLaravel
PHPLaravel
You can use these operators to compare arrays.
| Name | Operator | What does it do? | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Equal | == | It returns true if both the arrays have same key/value pairs. | $a == $b |
| Identical | === | It returns true if both the arrays have same key/value pairs, in same order and of same type. | $a === $b |
| Not Equal | != | It returns true if both the arrays are not same. | $a != $b |
| Not Identical | !== | It returns true if both the arrays are not identical, based on type of value etc. | $a !== $b |
| Union(Join) | + | It joins the arrays together | $a + $b |