Comparing Strings in an IF statement

Question

The country_code in this case can be DE or GB.

var cc = country_code

if (cc.equals == "GB"){
    console.log("You're in the UK")
  }
  else {
    console.log("You're not in the UK")
}

Why is this statement throwing up incorrect responses?

EDIT:

The missing " was a typo. The solutions given haven't work so far.

I set country_code to be the text response of a XMLHttpRequest object. If that helps?

Don't need `.equals`, use `cc === "GB"`. `console.log(You're not in the UK")` Missing start quote, `"`. — Tushar, Jan 11 '16 at 04:22
is country code is object or you are comparing wrong ? I highly doubt in this line if @Tushar comment is just a typo — Anik Islam Abhi, Jan 11 '16 at 04:24
Possible duplicate of [What is the correct way to check for string equality in JavaScript?](http://stackoverflow.com/questions/3586775/what-is-the-correct-way-to-check-for-string-equality-in-javascript) — Tushar, Jan 11 '16 at 04:24
@Tushar given that it's both an incorrect comparison and a syntax error, it isn't quite covered by the dupe. I'd say it's worth answering. — elixenide, Jan 11 '16 at 04:26
How are the given solutions failing? What output are they giving and what errors are they causing? — Maximillian Laumeister, Jan 11 '16 at 05:30

Ryan · Answer 1 · 2016-01-11T04:26:30.473

2

You must use the Equal (==) operator to check if the value of cc is equal to the string literal "GB". Or you can use the Strict equal (===) operator to see if the operands are equal and of the same type.

Also the argument to the console.log call in the else branch must be within quotation marks, or else you'll get syntax error. String literals must always be enclosed in ' or ".

var cc = country_code;

if (cc == "GB"){
    console.log("You're in the UK")
}
else {
    console.log("You're not in the UK")
}

edited Jan 11 '16 at 04:26

answered Jan 11 '16 at 04:25

Ryan

14,392
8
62
102

2

you can also suggest strict checking with `===` – Anik Islam Abhi Jan 11 '16 at 04:25
@AnikIslamAbhi Good point. I've updated my answer to go into further detail in regard to your comment. – Ryan Jan 11 '16 at 04:28

score 1 · Answer 2 · answered Jan 11 '16 at 04:31

The country_code in this case can be DE or GB.

That means the variable country_code is a string.

So, cc.equals == "GB" will return undefined as there is no member property equals on the String prototype.

To compare two strings use equality operator == or strict equality operator ===.

if (cc === "GB") {

Also, in the else block, there is missing quote. It should be

console.log("You're not in the UK")
            ^

Here's complete code:

var cc = country_code;

if (cc === "GB") { // Use equality operator to compare strings
    console.log("You're in the UK");
} else {
    console.log("You 're not in the UK"); // Added missing quote
}

score 1 · Answer 3 · answered Jan 11 '16 at 04:32

1

var cc = country_code;

    if (cc == "GB"){
        console.log("You're in the UK");
    }
    else {
        console.log("You're not in the UK");
    }

answered Jan 11 '16 at 04:32

AAT

411
7
16

score 0 · Accepted Answer · answered Jan 20 '16 at 16:07

0

The reason why this was happening was because the text response from my XMLHttpRequest object was actually "GB " - three characters long.

I just cut it down to two and it worked fine: cc.substring(0,2)

answered Jan 20 '16 at 16:07

Henry

3
1
4

Comparing Strings in an IF statement

4 Answers4

Linked