


Difference between `var`, `let`, and `const` declarations in JavaScript
Jul 08, 2025 am 02:21 AMIn JavaScript, the main differences between var, let and const are scope, enhancement behavior, and reassignability. var is the function scope, while let and const are block scope; variables declared by var will be promoted and initialized to undefined, while let and const are promoted but will not be initialized, and access will be errors (temporary dead zone); var and let allow reassignment, while const does not allow reassignment, but the content of the mutable object can be modified. When using it, use const first. Use let when reassigning values ??to avoid using var.
In JavaScript, var
, let
, and const
are all used to declare variables, but they behave differently in terms of scope, hoisting, and reassignment. Understanding these differences is essential for writing clean and bug-free code.

Function Scope vs. Block Scope
The main difference between var
and let
/ const
lies in their scope .

-
var
is function-scoped , meaning a variable declared withvar
is accessible throughout the function it's declared in — not just the block where it was created.Example:
if (true) { var x = 10; } console.log(x); // Outputs: 10
let
andconst
are block-scoped , so they're only accessible within the block{}
they were declared in.Example:
if (true) { let y = 20; } console.log(y); // ReferenceError
This makes let
and const
safer to use because they prevent accidental access or modification from outside the intended scope.
Hoisting Behavior
All three declarations are hoisted, but they behave differently:
Variables declared with
var
are hoisted and initialized withundefined
, which means you can access them before declaration (though the value will beundefined
).Example:
console.log(a); // undefined var a = 5;
let
andconst
are also hoisted, but not initialized . Accessing them before declaration results in aReferenceError
. This period is known as the Temporal Dead Zone (TDZ) .Example:
console.log(b); // ReferenceError let b = 10;
So, even though all three are hoisted, using let
and const
encourages better coding practices by enforcing variable declaration before usage.
Reassignment and Mutability
Here's how each behaves when it comes to changing values:
var
andlet
allow reassignment :let name = "Alice"; name = "Bob"; // Allowed
const
does not allow reassignment , but the content of reference types like objects and arrays can still be changed:const arr = [1, 2]; arr.push(3); // Allowed arr = []; // TypeError: Assignment to constant variable.
So const
doesn't make values ??immutable, just prevents reassigning the variable identifier.
When to Use Which?
A few practical guidelines:
- Use
const
by default unless you know the variable needs to be reassigned. - Use
let
when you need to reassign values, such as in loops or counters. - Avoid
var
in modern JS unless you're maintaining legacy code.
You'll rarely have a reason to use var
anymore since let
and const
provide more predictable behavior.
That's the core of how var
, let
, and const
different. The key takesaways are around scope, hoisting, and mutability — and knowing when to choose one over the others helps avoid bugs and confusion.
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