Number() constructor
The Number()
constructor creates Number
objects. When called as a function, it returns primitive values of type Number.
Syntax
js
new Number(value)
Number(value)
Note: Number()
can be called with or without new
, but with different effects. See Return value.
Parameters
value
-
The numeric value of the object being created.
Return value
When Number
is called as a constructor (with new
), it creates a Number
object, which is not a primitive.
When Number
is called as a function, it coerces the parameter to a number primitive. BigInts are converted to numbers. If the value can't be converted, it returns NaN
.
Warning: You should rarely find yourself using Number
as a constructor.
Examples
Creating Number objects
js
const a = new Number("123"); // a === 123 is false
const b = Number("123"); // b === 123 is true
a instanceof Number; // is true
b instanceof Number; // is false
typeof a; // "object"
typeof b; // "number"
Using Number() to convert a BigInt to a number
Number()
is the only case where a BigInt can be converted to a number without throwing, because it's very explicit.
js
+1n; // TypeError: Cannot convert a BigInt value to a number
0 + 1n; // TypeError: Cannot mix BigInt and other types, use explicit conversions
js
Number(1n); // 1
Note that this may result in loss of precision, if the BigInt is too large to be safely represented.
js
BigInt(Number(2n ** 54n + 1n)) === 2n ** 54n + 1n; // false
Specifications
Specification |
---|
ECMAScript Language Specification # sec-number-constructor |
Browser compatibility
BCD tables only load in the browser
See also
- Polyfill of modern
Number
behavior (with support binary and octal literals) incore-js
NaN
- The
Math
global object - Integers with arbitrary precision:
BigInt