What is Operators in PHP ?

PHP operators are symbols or combinations of symbols that are used to perform operations on variables and values. These operations include arithmetic calculations, comparisons, logical operations, and more. Operators are a fundamental part of PHP and enable you to manipulate data and build dynamic logic for your applications.

Types of PHP Operators

PHP provides a variety of operators grouped into the following categories:

PHP Arithmetic Operators
PHP Assignment Operators
PHP Comparison Operators
PHP Logical Operators
PHP Increment/Decrement Operators
PHP String Operators
PHP Array Operators
PHP Type Operators (introduced in PHP 7.0)
PHP Null Coalescing Operator (introduced in PHP 7.0)
PHP Spaceship Operator (introduced in PHP 7.0)
PHP Error Control Operators

PHP Arithmetic Operators

Used to perform mathematical operations.

Operator	Description	Example	Result
`+`	Addition	`$x + $y`	Sum of `$x` and `$y`
`-`	Subtraction	`$x - $y`	Difference of `$x` and `$y`
`*`	Multiplication	`$x * $y`	Product of `$x` and `$y`
`/`	Division	`$x / $y`	Quotient of `$x` and `$y`
`%`	Modulus (remainder)	`$x % $y`	Remainder of `$x / $y`

PHP Assignment Operators

Used to assign values to variables.

Operator	Description	Example	Equivalent To
`=`	Assign	`$x = $y`	`$x = $y`
`+=`	Add and assign	`$x += $y`	`$x = $x + $y`
`-=`	Subtract and assign	`$x -= $y`	`$x = $x - $y`
`*=`	Multiply and assign	`$x *= $y`	`$x = $x * $y`
`/=`	Divide and assign	`$x /= $y`	`$x = $x / $y`
`%=`	Modulus and assign	`$x %= $y`	`$x = $x % $y`

PHP Comparison Operators

Used to compare two values.

Operator	Description	Example	Result
`==`	Equal	`$x == $y`	`true` if `$x` equals `$y`
`===`	Identical (value and type)	`$x === $y`	`true` if `$x` is equal to `$y` and same type
`!=`	Not equal	`$x != $y`	`true` if `$x` is not equal to `$y`
`!==`	Not identical	`$x !== $y`	`true` if `$x` is not equal or not same type as `$y`
`>`	Greater than	`$x > $y`	`true` if `$x` is greater than `$y`
`<`	Less than	`$x < $y`	`true` if `$x` is less than `$y`
`>=`	Greater than or equal	`$x >= $y`	`true` if `$x` is greater than or equal to `$y`
`<=`	Less than or equal	`$x <= $y`	`true` if `$x` is less than or equal to `$y`

PHP Logical Operators

Used to combine conditional statements.

Operator	Description	Example	Result
`&&`	Logical AND	`$x && $y`	`true` if both `$x` and `$y` are true
`		`	Logical OR
`!`	Logical NOT	`!$x`	`true` if `$x` is false

PHP Increment/Decrement Operators

Used to increment or decrement a variable’s value.

Operator	Description	Example	Result
`++$x`	Pre-increment	`++$x`	Increments `$x` by 1, then returns `$x`
`$x++`	Post-increment	`$x++`	Returns `$x`, then increments `$x` by 1
`--$x`	Pre-decrement	`--$x`	Decrements `$x` by 1, then returns `$x`
`$x--`	Post-decrement	`$x--`	Returns `$x`, then decrements `$x` by 1

PHP String Operators

Used to concatenate or manipulate strings.

Operator	Description	Example	Result
`.`	Concatenation	`$x . $y`	Joins `$x` and `$y`
`.=`	Concatenate and assign	`$x .= $y`	Appends `$y` to `$x`

PHP Array Operators

Used to compare and manipulate arrays.

Operator	Description	Example	Result
`+`	Union	`$x + $y`	Combines `$x` and `$y`
`==`	Equality	`$x == $y`	`true` if `$x` and `$y` have the same key-value pairs
`===`	Identity	`$x === $y`	`true` if `$x` and `$y` have the same key-value pairs and same order
`!=`	Inequality	`$x != $y`	`true` if `$x` is not equal to `$y`
`<>`	Inequality	`$x <> $y`	Same as `!=`
`!==`	Non-identity	`$x !== $y`	`true` if `$x` and `$y` are not identical

PHP Type Operators (PHP 7.0+)

Used to check the type of an object.

Operator	Description	Example	Result
`instanceof`	Checks if an object is an instance of a class	`$obj instanceof MyClass`	`true` if `$obj` is an instance of `MyClass`

PHP Null Coalescing Operator (PHP 7.0+)

Used to provide a default value for null variables.

Operator	Description	Example	Result
`??`	Null coalescing	`$x = $y ?? $z`	Assigns `$y` to `$x` if `$y` is not null; otherwise assigns `$z`

PHP Error Control Operators

Suppresses error messages.

Operator	Description	Example
`@`	Error control	`@file('abc')`

Practical Example

Here’s how operators can be used together in PHP:

<?php
$x = 10;
$y = 5;

// Arithmetic
echo $x + $y; // Output: 15

// Comparison
echo $x > $y; // Output: 1 (true)

// Logical
if ($x > $y && $y > 0) {
    echo "Both conditions are true!";
}

// String
$name = "John";
$greeting = "Hello, " . $name;
echo $greeting; // Output: Hello, John

// Null Coalescing
$z = $undefinedVariable ?? 'Default Value';
echo $z; // Output: Default Value
?>