Var_dump Function In PHP

Introduction

 

In this article, I will explain the "var_dump" variable handling function in PHP. The var_dump() function dumps information about a variable. It displays structured data concerning one or additional expressions that feature its kind and value. Arrays and objects are explored recursively with values indented to point out structure.

 

Syntax

 

var_dump(variable);

 

Parameter
Variable	The variable you want to dump

 

No value is returned.

 

Example 1

<?php
$a = array(1, 2, array("a", "b", "c"));
var_dump($a);
?>

Example 2

<?php
$a = array(1, 2, array("a", "b", "c"));
var_dump($a);
?>
<?php
$var1=678;
$var2="a678";
$var3="678";
$var4="W3resource.com";
$var5=698.99;
$var6=+125689.66;
echo var_dump($var1)."<br>";
echo var_dump($var2)."<br>";
echo var_dump($var3)."<br>";
echo var_dump($var4)."<br>";
echo var_dump($var5)."<br>";
echo var_dump($var6)."<br>";
?>

 

Example 3

<?php
$b = 3.1;
$c = true;
var_dump($b, $c);
?>

var_dump() vs print_r()

 

The var_dump() function is for structure information and the print_r() function shows readable information about variables.

 

Example 1

<?php
$name = array("Vinod", "Sharad", "Nitin", "Manish");
var_dump($name);
?>

Example 2

<?php
$name = array("Vinod", "Sharad", "Nitin", "Manish");
print_r($name);
?>