In JavaScript, NaN
is a special numeric value:
typeof NaN; // 'number'
Please note that NaN
(property of the global object) and Number.NaN
(property of the Number
object) are equivalent.
It represents "Not-a-Number" (as defined in the IEEE-754 standard). NaN
never equals to any other number, or even to itself:
NaN === NaN; // false
Therefore, to check if a number is NaN
or not, you would use the Number.isNaN()
method (or the slightly different isNaN()
global function). However, do not confuse these as a means to check whether a non-numeric value is a number or not. For that, you should instead use:
typeof value === 'number'; // true/false
NaN
is actually, rarely used in a program. Typically, it is returned from a function or operation to indicate a failed operation on numbers, suggesting that the value is not a legal number (where you may be expecting the return value to be a legal number). Such is the case, for example, when:
- Parsing numbers;
- Using
NaN
as an operand; - Using
undefined
as an operand; - Using indeterminate form;
- Math operation does not result in a real number;
- Performing non-addition operation on a string.
Parsing Numbers
NaN
is returned when a value cannot be parsed into a number. For example:
parseInt('foo'); // NaN Number('foo'); // NaN parseInt(undefined); // NaN Number(undefined); // NaN // ...
Using NaN
as an Operand
When an expression has NaN
, the resulting value is NaN
. Consider, for example, the following:
3 + NaN; // NaN 3 * NaN; // NaN 3 / NaN; // NaN // ...
Using undefined
as an Operand
When undefined
is used as an operand, the resulting value is NaN
. Consider, for example, the following:
3 + undefined; // NaN 3 * undefined; // NaN 3 / undefined; // NaN // ...
Using Indeterminate Form
When an operation is in indeterminate form, it returns NaN
. This happens, for example, when:
- Dividing
(±0) / (±0)
and(±∞) / (±∞)
; - Multiplying
(±0) * (±∞)
and(±∞) * (±0)
; - Using remainder operator
x % y
whenx
isInfinity
ory
is0
; - Adding
(+∞) + (−∞)
and(−∞) + (+∞)
; - Subtracting
(+∞) − (+∞)
and(−∞) − (−∞)
.
For example:
undefined + Infinity; // NaN undefined + undefined; // NaN Infinity - Infinity; // NaN 0 * Infinity; // NaN 0 * undefined; // NaN Infinity % 10; // NaN 10 % 0; // NaN 0/0; // NaN Infinity/Infinity; // NaN Infinity/-Infinity; // NaN 1**Infinity; // NaN // ...
Math Operation That Does Not Result in a Real Number
A math operation that does not yield a real number, such as when a mathematical function receives an invalid argument, NaN
is returned. This happens, for example, when calculating:
- Square root of a negative number;
- Logarithm of a negative number;
- Tangent of an odd multiple of 90 degrees;
- Inverse sine or cosine of a number less than
−1
, or greater than+1
.
For example:
Math.sqrt(-1); // NaN Math.log(-1); // NaN // ...
Performing Non-Addition Operation on a String
Using a operations other than addition on a string yields NaN
. For example:
'foo' + 3; // 'foo3' 'foo' - 3; // NaN 'foo' / 3; // NaN 'foo' * 3; // NaN // ...
This post was published (and was last revised ) by Daniyal Hamid. Daniyal currently works as the Head of Engineering in Germany and has 20+ years of experience in software engineering, design and marketing. Please show your love and support by sharing this post.