Benchmark: Compare comparison with null or undefined (nested2)

Script Preparation code:

var value = { a: 123 };
var valueNull = null;
var valueUndefined;

var zz;

function x() {
function y() {
function z() {
function f() {
function g() {
function h() {
function m() {
function n() {
function s() {
function t() {
function k() {
function q() {
function w() {
function o() {
function r() {
	zz = {
		callNull: function() {
			value === null;
			valueNull === null;
		},
		callUndefined: function() {
			value === undefined;
			valueUndefined === null;
		},
		callNotNull: function() {
			value !== null;
			valueNull !== null;
		},
		callNotUndefined: function() {
			value !== undefined;
			valueUndefined !== null;
		}
    };
} r();
} o();
} w();
} q();
} k();
} t();
} s();
} n();
} m();
} h();
} g();
} f();
} z();
} y();
} x();

function callNull() {
	zz.callNull();
}
function callUndefined() {
	zz.callUndefined();
}
function callNotNull() {
	zz.callNotNull();
}
function callNotUndefined() {
	zz.callNotUndefined();
}

Tests:

value === null
callNull();
value === undefined
callUndefined();
value !== null
callNotNull();
value !== undefined
callNotUndefined();

Rendered benchmark preparation results:

Suite status: <idle, ready to run>

Previous results

Test case name	Result
value === null
value === undefined
value !== null
value !== undefined

Fastest: N/A

Slowest: N/A

Latest run results:

Run details: (Test run date: 28 days ago)

User agent: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 10.0; Win64; x64; rv:123.0) Gecko/20100101 Firefox/123.0

Browser/OS: Firefox 123 on Windows

View result in a separate tab

Test name	Executions per second
value === null	172611760.0 Ops/sec
value === undefined	263126560.0 Ops/sec
value !== null	293581792.0 Ops/sec
value !== undefined	166552464.0 Ops/sec

Autogenerated LLM Summary (model gpt-4o-mini, generated 27 days ago):

LLMs can make mistakes. Check important info.

The benchmark defined in the provided JSON is focused on comparing the performance of four different comparison operations in JavaScript involving `null` and `undefined`. Here’s a breakdown of what is being tested, the individual test cases, their pros and cons, and some considerations for software engineers.

### What is Tested:

1. **Test Cases**:
   - **`callNull()`**:
     - Operation: `value === null`
     - Test Name: Checks if `value` is strictly `null`.
     
   - **`callUndefined()`**:
     - Operation: `value === undefined`
     - Test Name: Checks if `value` is strictly `undefined`.
     
   - **`callNotNull()`**:
     - Operation: `value !== null`
     - Test Name: Checks if `value` is not `null`.
     
   - **`callNotUndefined()`**:
     - Operation: `value !== undefined`
     - Test Name: Checks if `value` is not `undefined`.

### Pros and Cons of Different Comparisons:

- **Strict Equality (`===` and `!==`)**:
  - **Pros**:
    - Strict equality checks the value and type, reducing the chances of false positives. For instance, `null` is not equal to an `undefined` or any other type.
    - Makes it easier for developers to catch bugs caused by unintentional type coercion.
  - **Cons**:
    - Can lead to additional boilerplate in code, as developers need to ensure they appropriately check for both cases.
  
- **Possible Alternatives**:
  - Some developers may use loose equality (`==` and `!=`), which allows for type coercion:
    - `null == undefined` evaluates to `true`, while `null === undefined` evaluates to `false`.
  - However, loose equality checks can introduce ambiguity and hard-to-track bugs due to type conversions leading to unexpected results.

### Benchmark Results Analysis:
From the results provided, the execution speeds for each of the operations are reported, showing performance in executions per second:

- **`callNotNull()`**: 293,581,792.0 executions per second (fastest)
- **`callNotUndefined()`**: 263,126,560.0 executions per second
- **`callNull()`**: 172,611,760.0 executions per second
- **`callUndefined()`**: 166,552,464.0 executions per second (slowest)

### Considerations:

1. **Performance**:
   - The benchmark shows variations in performance for each comparison operation. Understanding these differences is key for developers aiming to write high-performance code, especially in contexts where these checks are repeatedly executed.

2. **Code Clarity vs. Performance**:
   - While performance is important, it is also crucial to consider code readability. Strict equality checks are more explicit, making the code easier to understand, even if they may be slightly less performant in certain contexts.

3. **Specific Use Cases**:
   - Certain applications may encounter `null` and `undefined` frequently. For instance, APIs often return `null` or throw errors that can translate to `undefined`. Understanding the distinctions and performance of these checks can provide a competitive edge in optimizing the code.

4. **JavaScript Engines**:
   - The performance of such comparisons may also vary across different JavaScript engines (like V8 in Chrome and SpiderMonkey in Firefox). It's beneficial to test benchmarks across multiple environments.

### Additional Libraries or Features:

No special libraries are utilized in this benchmark. The comparisons are performed using native JavaScript syntax. Other alternatives include utility functions or libraries that streamline nullability checks (e.g., using Lodash’s `_.isNil`). However, using such libraries might introduce additional overhead and complexity. Therefore, it depends on the specific project’s requirements whether to use native checks or those provided by libraries.

In conclusion, understanding performance implications and correctness of `null` and `undefined` comparisons is crucial for JavaScript developers. Each method has its intended use cases, and choosing the right one will depend on the specific context of the application being developed.

Related benchmarks:

Compare comparison with null or undefined (nested2) (version: 1)

Comparing performance of: value === null vs value === undefined vs value !== null vs value !== undefined

Created: 28 days ago by: Guest

Jump to the latest result

value === null

value === undefined

value !== null

value !== undefined

Suite status: <idle, ready to run>

Experimental features:

Fastest: N/A

Slowest: N/A

Autogenerated LLM Summary (model gpt-4o-mini, generated 27 days ago):