Require Variable Declarations to be at the top of their scope (vars-on-top)

The vars-on-top rule generates warnings when variable declarations are not used serially at the top of a function scope or the top of a program. By default variable declarations are always moved (“hoisted”) invisibly to the top of their containing scope by the JavaScript interpreter. This rule forces the programmer to represent that behavior by manually moving the variable declaration to the top of its containing scope.

Rule Details

This rule aims to keep all variable declarations in the leading series of statements. Allowing multiple declarations helps promote maintainability and is thus allowed.

Examples of incorrect code for this rule:

/*eslint vars-on-top: "error"*/

// Variable declarations in a block:
function doSomething() {
    var first;
    if (true) {
        first = true;
    }
    var second;
}

// Variable declaration in for initializer:
function doSomething() {
    for (var i=0; i<10; i++) {}
}

/*eslint vars-on-top: "error"*/

// Variables after other statements:
f();
var a;

Examples of correct code for this rule:

/*eslint vars-on-top: "error"*/

function doSomething() {
    var first;
    var second; //multiple declarations are allowed at the top
    if (true) {
        first = true;
    }
}

function doSomething() {
    var i;
    for (i=0; i<10; i++) {}
}

/*eslint vars-on-top: "error"*/

var a;
f();

/*eslint vars-on-top: "error"*/

// Directives may precede variable declarations.
"use strict";
var a;
f();

// Comments can describe variables.
function doSomething() {
    // this is the first var.
    var first;
    // this is the second var.
    var second
}

Further Reading

• JavaScript Scoping and Hoisting
• var Hoisting
• A criticism of the Single Var Pattern in JavaScript, and a simple alternative
• Multiple var statements in JavaScript, not superfluous Source: http://eslint.org/docs/rules/

Require Variable Declarations to be at the top of their scope (vars-on-top)

The vars-on-top rule generates warnings when variable declarations are not used serially at the top of a function scope or the top of a program. By default variable declarations are always moved (“hoisted”) invisibly to the top of their containing scope by the JavaScript interpreter. This rule forces the programmer to represent that behavior by manually moving the variable declaration to the top of its containing scope.

Rule Details

This rule aims to keep all variable declarations in the leading series of statements. Allowing multiple declarations helps promote maintainability and is thus allowed.

Examples of incorrect code for this rule:

/*eslint vars-on-top: "error"*/

// Variable declarations in a block:
function doSomething() {
    var first;
    if (true) {
        first = true;
    }
    var second;
}

// Variable declaration in for initializer:
function doSomething() {
    for (var i=0; i<10; i++) {}
}

/*eslint vars-on-top: "error"*/

// Variables after other statements:
f();
var a;

Examples of correct code for this rule:

/*eslint vars-on-top: "error"*/

function doSomething() {
    var first;
    var second; //multiple declarations are allowed at the top
    if (true) {
        first = true;
    }
}

function doSomething() {
    var i;
    for (i=0; i<10; i++) {}
}

/*eslint vars-on-top: "error"*/

var a;
f();

/*eslint vars-on-top: "error"*/

// Directives may precede variable declarations.
"use strict";
var a;
f();

// Comments can describe variables.
function doSomething() {
    // this is the first var.
    var first;
    // this is the second var.
    var second
}

Further Reading

• JavaScript Scoping and Hoisting
• var Hoisting
• A criticism of the Single Var Pattern in JavaScript, and a simple alternative
• Multiple var statements in JavaScript, not superfluous Source: http://eslint.org/docs/rules/

Require using arrow functions for callbacks (prefer-arrow-callback)

Arrow functions can be an attractive alternative to function expressions for callbacks or function arguments.

For example, arrow functions are automatically bound to their surrounding scope/context. This provides an alternative to the pre-ES6 standard of explicitly binding function expressions to achieve similar behavior.

Additionally, arrow functions are:

• less verbose, and easier to reason about.

• bound lexically regardless of where or when they are invoked.

Rule Details

This rule locates function expressions used as callbacks or function arguments. An error will be produced for any that could be replaced by an arrow function without changing the result.

The following examples will be flagged:

/* eslint prefer-arrow-callback: "error" */

foo(function(a) { return a; }); // ERROR
// prefer: foo(a => a)

foo(function() { return this.a; }.bind(this)); // ERROR
// prefer: foo(() => this.a)

Instances where an arrow function would not produce identical results will be ignored.

The following examples will not be flagged:

/* eslint prefer-arrow-callback: "error" */
/* eslint-env es6 */

// arrow function callback
foo(a => a); // OK

// generator as callback
foo(function*() { yield; }); // OK

// function expression not used as callback or function argument
var foo = function foo(a) { return a; }; // OK

// unbound function expression callback
foo(function() { return this.a; }); // OK

// recursive named function callback
foo(function bar(n) { return n && n + bar(n - 1); }); // OK

Options

Access further control over this rule's behavior via an options object.

Default: { allowNamedFunctions: false, allowUnboundThis: true }

allowNamedFunctions

By default { "allowNamedFunctions": false }, this boolean option prohibits using named functions as callbacks or function arguments.

Changing this value to true will reverse this option's behavior by allowing use of named functions without restriction.

{ "allowNamedFunctions": true } will not flag the following example:

/* eslint prefer-arrow-callback: [ "error", { "allowNamedFunctions": true } ] */

foo(function bar() {});

allowUnboundThis

By default { "allowUnboundThis": true }, this boolean option allows function expressions containing this to be used as callbacks, as long as the function in question has not been explicitly bound.

When set to false this option prohibits the use of function expressions as callbacks or function arguments entirely, without exception.

{ "allowUnboundThis": false } will flag the following examples:

/* eslint prefer-arrow-callback: [ "error", { "allowUnboundThis": false } ] */
/* eslint-env es6 */

foo(function() { this.a; });

foo(function() { (() => this); });

someArray.map(function(itm) { return this.doSomething(itm); }, someObject);

When Not To Use It

• In environments that have not yet adopted ES6 language features (ES3/5).

• In ES6+ environments that allow the use of function expressions when describing callbacks or function arguments.

Further Reading

• More on ES6 arrow functions Source: http://eslint.org/docs/rules/

require let or const instead of var (no-var)

ECMAScript 6 allows programmers to create variables with block scope instead of function scope using the let and const keywords. Block scope is common in many other programming languages and helps programmers avoid mistakes such as:

var count = people.length;
var enoughFood = count > sandwiches.length;

if (enoughFood) {
    var count = sandwiches.length; // accidentally overriding the count variable
    console.log("We have " + count + " sandwiches for everyone. Plenty for all!");
}

// our count variable is no longer accurate
console.log("We have " + count + " people and " + sandwiches.length + " sandwiches!");

Rule Details

This rule is aimed at discouraging the use of var and encouraging the use of const or let instead.

Examples

Examples of incorrect code for this rule:

/*eslint no-var: "error"*/

var x = "y";
var CONFIG = {};

Examples of correct code for this rule:

/*eslint no-var: "error"*/
/*eslint-env es6*/

let x = "y";
const CONFIG = {};

When Not To Use It

In addition to non-ES6 environments, existing JavaScript projects that are beginning to introduce ES6 into their codebase may not want to apply this rule if the cost of migrating from var to let is too costly. Source: http://eslint.org/docs/rules/

require let or const instead of var (no-var)

ECMAScript 6 allows programmers to create variables with block scope instead of function scope using the let and const keywords. Block scope is common in many other programming languages and helps programmers avoid mistakes such as:

var count = people.length;
var enoughFood = count > sandwiches.length;

if (enoughFood) {
    var count = sandwiches.length; // accidentally overriding the count variable
    console.log("We have " + count + " sandwiches for everyone. Plenty for all!");
}

// our count variable is no longer accurate
console.log("We have " + count + " people and " + sandwiches.length + " sandwiches!");

Rule Details

This rule is aimed at discouraging the use of var and encouraging the use of const or let instead.

Examples

Examples of incorrect code for this rule:

/*eslint no-var: "error"*/

var x = "y";
var CONFIG = {};

Examples of correct code for this rule:

/*eslint no-var: "error"*/
/*eslint-env es6*/

let x = "y";
const CONFIG = {};

When Not To Use It

In addition to non-ES6 environments, existing JavaScript projects that are beginning to introduce ES6 into their codebase may not want to apply this rule if the cost of migrating from var to let is too costly. Source: http://eslint.org/docs/rules/

Disallow Undeclared Variables (no-undef)

This rule can help you locate potential ReferenceErrors resulting from misspellings of variable and parameter names, or accidental implicit globals (for example, from forgetting the var keyword in a for loop initializer).

Rule Details

Any reference to an undeclared variable causes a warning, unless the variable is explicitly mentioned in a /*global ...*/ comment, or specified in the globals key in the configuration file. A common use case for these is if you intentionally use globals that are defined elsewhere (e.g. in a script sourced from HTML).

Examples of incorrect code for this rule:

/*eslint no-undef: "error"*/

var a = someFunction();
b = 10;

Examples of correct code for this rule with global declaration:

/*global someFunction b:true*/
/*eslint no-undef: "error"*/

var a = someFunction();
b = 10;

The b:true syntax in /*global */ indicates that assignment to b is correct.

Examples of incorrect code for this rule with global declaration:

/*global b*/
/*eslint no-undef: "error"*/

b = 10;

By default, variables declared in /*global */ are read-only, therefore assignment is incorrect.

Options

• typeof set to true will warn for variables used inside typeof check (Default false).

typeof

Examples of correct code for the default { "typeof": false } option:

/*eslint no-undef: "error"*/

if (typeof UndefinedIdentifier === "undefined") {
    // do something ...
}

You can use this option if you want to prevent typeof check on a variable which has not been declared.

Examples of incorrect code for the { "typeof": true } option:

/*eslint no-undef: ["error", { "typeof": true }] */

if(typeof a === "string"){}

Examples of correct code for the { "typeof": true } option with global declaration:

/*global a*/
/*eslint no-undef: ["error", { "typeof": true }] */

if(typeof a === "string"){}

Environments

For convenience, ESLint provides shortcuts that pre-define global variables exposed by popular libraries and runtime environments. This rule supports these environments, as listed in [Specifying Environments](../user-guide/configuring.md#specifying-environments). A few examples are given below.

browser

Examples of correct code for this rule with browser environment:

/*eslint no-undef: "error"*/
/*eslint-env browser*/

setTimeout(function() {
    alert("Hello");
});

Node.js

Examples of correct code for this rule with node environment:

/*eslint no-undef: "error"*/
/*eslint-env node*/

var fs = require("fs");
module.exports = function() {
    console.log(fs);
};

When Not To Use It

If explicit declaration of global variables is not to your taste.

Compatibility

This rule provides compatibility with treatment of global variables in JSHint and JSLint. Source: http://eslint.org/docs/rules/