PHP

Operators in PHP

PHP 90 views Dec 22, 2025 2 min read

Operators in PHP are symbols used to perform operations on variables and values. They are essential for calculations, comparisons, decision-making, and logical processing in PHP programs.

1. Arithmetic Operators

Used for mathematical operations.

OperatorDescriptionExample
+Addition$a + $b
-Subtraction$a - $b
*Multiplication$a * $b
/Division$a / $b
%Modulus (remainder)$a % $b
**Exponentiation$a ** $b

Example:

$a = 10;
$b = 3;
echo $a + $b; // 13

2. Assignment Operators

Used to assign values to variables.

OperatorDescription
=Assign
+=Add and assign
-=Subtract and assign
*=Multiply and assign
/=Divide and assign
%=Modulus and assign

Example:

$x = 5;
$x += 3; // 8

3. Comparison Operators

Used to compare two values.

OperatorDescription
==Equal
===Identical (value + type)
!=Not equal
!==Not identical
>Greater than
<Less than
>=Greater than or equal
<=Less than or equal
<=>Spaceship

Example:

var_dump(5 === "5"); // false

4. Logical Operators

Used for combining conditions.

OperatorDescription
&&AND
`
!NOT
andAND
orOR

Example:

if ($age > 18 && $active) {
    echo "Access granted";
}

5. Increment / Decrement Operators

OperatorDescription
++$aPre-increment
$a++Post-increment
--$aPre-decrement
$a--Post-decrement

Example:

$i = 5;
echo $i++; // 5
echo $i;   // 6

6. String Operators

OperatorDescription
.Concatenation
.=Concatenate and assign

Example:

$name = "John";
echo "Hello " . $name;

7. Array Operators

OperatorDescription
+Union
==Equal
===Identical
!=Not equal

Example:

$a = ["a" => 1];
$b = ["b" => 2];
$c = $a + $b;

8. Conditional (Ternary) Operator

$status = ($age >= 18) ? "Adult" : "Minor";

9. Null Coalescing Operator

Used to handle null values.

$username = $_GET['user'] ?? 'Guest';

10. Type Operators

OperatorDescription
instanceofChecks object type

Example:

if ($obj instanceof User) {
    //
}

Conclusion

Operators in PHP are fundamental building blocks for performing calculations, making decisions, and processing data. A solid understanding of operators helps you write efficient and logical PHP code, especially when moving toward advanced topics and frameworks like Laravel.

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