Cognitive Complexity

Cognitive Complexity is a measure of how difficult a unit of code is to intuitively understand. Unlike Cyclomatic Complexity, which determines how difficult your code will be to test, Cognitive Complexity tells you how difficult your code will be to read and comprehend.

A method's cognitive complexity is based on a few simple rules:

• Code is not considered more complex when it uses shorthand that the language provides for collapsing multiple statements into one
• Code is considered more complex for each "break in the linear flow of the code"
• Code is considered more complex when "flow breaking structures are nested"

Further reading

• Cognitive Complexity docs
• Cognitive Complexity: A new way of measuring understandability

Limit Cyclomatic Complexity (complexity)

Cyclomatic complexity measures the number of linearly independent paths through a program's source code. This rule allows setting a cyclomatic complexity threshold.

function a(x) {
    if (true) {
        return x; // 1st path
    } else if (false) {
        return x+1; // 2nd path
    } else {
        return 4; // 3rd path
    }
}

Rule Details

This rule is aimed at reducing code complexity by capping the amount of cyclomatic complexity allowed in a program. As such, it will warn when the cyclomatic complexity crosses the configured threshold (default is 20).

Examples of incorrect code for a maximum of 2:

/*eslint complexity: ["error", 2]*/

function a(x) {
    if (true) {
        return x;
    } else if (false) {
        return x+1;
    } else {
        return 4; // 3rd path
    }
}

Examples of correct code for a maximum of 2:

/*eslint complexity: ["error", 2]*/

function a(x) {
    if (true) {
        return x;
    } else {
        return 4;
    }
}

Options

Optionally, you may specify a max object property:

"complexity": ["error", 2]

is equivalent to

"complexity": ["error", { "max": 2 }]

Deprecated: the object property maximum is deprecated. Please use the property max instead.

When Not To Use It

If you can't determine an appropriate complexity limit for your code, then it's best to disable this rule.

Further Reading

• About Complexity
• Complexity Analysis of JavaScript Code

Related Rules

• [max-depth](max-depth.md)
• [max-len](max-len.md)
• [max-nested-callbacks](max-nested-callbacks.md)
• [max-params](max-params.md)
• [max-statements](max-statements.md) Source: http://eslint.org/docs/rules/

disallow unnecessary semicolons (no-extra-semi)

Typing mistakes and misunderstandings about where semicolons are required can lead to semicolons that are unnecessary. While not technically an error, extra semicolons can cause confusion when reading code.

Rule Details

This rule disallows unnecessary semicolons.

Examples of incorrect code for this rule:

/*eslint no-extra-semi: "error"*/

var x = 5;;

function foo() {
    // code
};

Examples of correct code for this rule:

/*eslint no-extra-semi: "error"*/

var x = 5;

var foo = function() {
    // code
};

When Not To Use It

If you intentionally use extra semicolons then you can disable this rule.

Related Rules

• [semi](semi.md)
• [semi-spacing](semi-spacing.md) Source: http://eslint.org/docs/rules/

Require IIFEs to be Wrapped (wrap-iife)

You can immediately invoke function expressions, but not function declarations. A common technique to create an immediately-invoked function expression (IIFE) is to wrap a function declaration in parentheses. The opening parentheses causes the contained function to be parsed as an expression, rather than a declaration.

// function expression could be unwrapped
var x = function () { return { y: 1 };}();

// function declaration must be wrapped
function () { /* side effects */ }(); // SyntaxError

Rule Details

This rule requires all immediately-invoked function expressions to be wrapped in parentheses.

Options

This rule has two options, a string option and an object option.

String option:

• "outside" enforces always wrapping the call expression. The default is "outside".
• "inside" enforces always wrapping the function expression.
• "any" enforces always wrapping, but allows either style.

Object option:

• "functionPrototypeMethods": true additionally enforces wrapping function expressions invoked using .call and .apply. The default is false.

outside

Examples of incorrect code for the default "outside" option:

/*eslint wrap-iife: ["error", "outside"]*/

var x = function () { return { y: 1 };}(); // unwrapped
var x = (function () { return { y: 1 };})(); // wrapped function expression

Examples of correct code for the default "outside" option:

/*eslint wrap-iife: ["error", "outside"]*/

var x = (function () { return { y: 1 };}()); // wrapped call expression

inside

Examples of incorrect code for the "inside" option:

/*eslint wrap-iife: ["error", "inside"]*/

var x = function () { return { y: 1 };}(); // unwrapped
var x = (function () { return { y: 1 };}()); // wrapped call expression

Examples of correct code for the "inside" option:

/*eslint wrap-iife: ["error", "inside"]*/

var x = (function () { return { y: 1 };})(); // wrapped function expression

any

Examples of incorrect code for the "any" option:

/*eslint wrap-iife: ["error", "any"]*/

var x = function () { return { y: 1 };}(); // unwrapped

Examples of correct code for the "any" option:

/*eslint wrap-iife: ["error", "any"]*/

var x = (function () { return { y: 1 };}()); // wrapped call expression
var x = (function () { return { y: 1 };})(); // wrapped function expression

functionPrototypeMethods

Examples of incorrect code for this rule with the "inside", { "functionPrototypeMethods": true } options:

/* eslint wrap-iife: [2, "inside", { functionPrototypeMethods: true }] */

var x = function(){ foo(); }()
var x = (function(){ foo(); }())
var x = function(){ foo(); }.call(bar)
var x = (function(){ foo(); }.call(bar))

Examples of correct code for this rule with the "inside", { "functionPrototypeMethods": true } options:

/* eslint wrap-iife: [2, "inside", { functionPrototypeMethods: true }] */

var x = (function(){ foo(); })()
var x = (function(){ foo(); }).call(bar)

Source: http://eslint.org/docs/rules/

Require IIFEs to be Wrapped (wrap-iife)

You can immediately invoke function expressions, but not function declarations. A common technique to create an immediately-invoked function expression (IIFE) is to wrap a function declaration in parentheses. The opening parentheses causes the contained function to be parsed as an expression, rather than a declaration.

// function expression could be unwrapped
var x = function () { return { y: 1 };}();

// function declaration must be wrapped
function () { /* side effects */ }(); // SyntaxError

Rule Details

This rule requires all immediately-invoked function expressions to be wrapped in parentheses.

Options

This rule has two options, a string option and an object option.

String option:

• "outside" enforces always wrapping the call expression. The default is "outside".
• "inside" enforces always wrapping the function expression.
• "any" enforces always wrapping, but allows either style.

Object option:

• "functionPrototypeMethods": true additionally enforces wrapping function expressions invoked using .call and .apply. The default is false.

outside

Examples of incorrect code for the default "outside" option:

/*eslint wrap-iife: ["error", "outside"]*/

var x = function () { return { y: 1 };}(); // unwrapped
var x = (function () { return { y: 1 };})(); // wrapped function expression

Examples of correct code for the default "outside" option:

/*eslint wrap-iife: ["error", "outside"]*/

var x = (function () { return { y: 1 };}()); // wrapped call expression

inside

Examples of incorrect code for the "inside" option:

/*eslint wrap-iife: ["error", "inside"]*/

var x = function () { return { y: 1 };}(); // unwrapped
var x = (function () { return { y: 1 };}()); // wrapped call expression

Examples of correct code for the "inside" option:

/*eslint wrap-iife: ["error", "inside"]*/

var x = (function () { return { y: 1 };})(); // wrapped function expression

any

Examples of incorrect code for the "any" option:

/*eslint wrap-iife: ["error", "any"]*/

var x = function () { return { y: 1 };}(); // unwrapped

Examples of correct code for the "any" option:

/*eslint wrap-iife: ["error", "any"]*/

var x = (function () { return { y: 1 };}()); // wrapped call expression
var x = (function () { return { y: 1 };})(); // wrapped function expression

functionPrototypeMethods

Examples of incorrect code for this rule with the "inside", { "functionPrototypeMethods": true } options:

/* eslint wrap-iife: [2, "inside", { functionPrototypeMethods: true }] */

var x = function(){ foo(); }()
var x = (function(){ foo(); }())
var x = function(){ foo(); }.call(bar)
var x = (function(){ foo(); }.call(bar))

Examples of correct code for this rule with the "inside", { "functionPrototypeMethods": true } options:

/* eslint wrap-iife: [2, "inside", { functionPrototypeMethods: true }] */

var x = (function(){ foo(); })()
var x = (function(){ foo(); }).call(bar)

Source: http://eslint.org/docs/rules/