Switch vs Match in PHP

Switch Statement

Basic syntax of a switch statement :

switch (expression)
{

case value1:
 // code to execute if expression equals value 1
 break;
case value2;
 //code to execute if expression equals value 2
 break;
default:
 // code to execute if none of the above cases match
}

Example :

$dayofweek =4;
switch($dayofweek)
{
case 1:
echo "its monday";
break;
case 2:
echo "its tuesday";
break;
case 3:
echo "its wedneshday";
break;
case 4:
echo "its thursday";
break;
case 5:
echo "its friday";
break;
default:
echo "its the weekend";

}

Match Expression

Basic syntax of a match statement:

$result = match ( expression)
{
value1 =>expression1, value2 => expression2,  // additional cases

default=>expression_default

};

$dayofweek = 4;
$result=match ($dayofweek)
{
1=>"its monday",
2=>"its tuesday",
3=>"its wednesday",
4=>"its thursday",
5=>"its friday",
default=> "its the weekend"
}

echo $result;   /// its thursday

Type Safety

The match expression in PHP is more type-safe compared to the switch statement. In a switch statement, loose type comparisons can lead to unexpected behavior, but the match expression enforces strict type checking. A match arm compares values strictly ( === ) instead of loosely as the switch statement does.

$value=1;
switch ($value)
{

case 1:
echo "integer 1";
break;
case "1":
echo "string '1'";
break;

}

// output integer 1

$value ="1";

$result=match($value){ 
1=>"integer 1",
"1"=>"string '1'",
};

echo $result;

// output : string '1'

"Fall through " Behavior

In a switch statement, if you forget to use break after a case, execution "falls through" to the next case , potentially causing unintended behavior. The match expression doesn't have this issue.

Exhaustiveness checking

the match expression enforces exhaustive checking, meaning you need to cover all possible cases. If you miss a case, PHP will generate a warning or error.