? PHP Continue & Break Statement

? Quick Overview

The continue and break statements in PHP allow developers to control loop execution. break exits the loop immediately, while continue skips the current iteration and proceeds with the next cycle.

? Key Concepts

break terminates loop execution completely
continue skips current iteration only
Commonly used inside for, while, and foreach loops

? Loop Simulator

Target Condition: When Number == 3

⚙️ Syntax / Theory

? View Code Example

// Terminates the loop immediately
break;
// Skips the current iteration and continues
continue;

? Code Example (break)

? View Code Example

// Loop stops when value reaches 3
<?php
for ($i = 1; $i <= 5; $i++) {
if ($i == 3) {
break;
}
echo "Number: $i
";
}
?>

? Live Output / Explanation

The loop prints numbers 1 and 2 only. When $i becomes 3, the break statement stops the loop entirely.

? Code Example (continue)

? View Code Example

// Skips printing when value equals 3
<?php
for ($i = 1; $i <= 5; $i++) {
if ($i == 3) {
continue;
}
echo "Number: $i
";
}
?>

? Live Output / Explanation

The loop skips number 3 but continues execution, resulting in output: 1, 2, 4, and 5.

? Interactive Understanding

Think of break as an emergency exit ? from a loop, while continue is like skipping one step ⏭️ and moving ahead.

? Use Cases

Stopping data processing when a condition is met
Ignoring invalid data during iteration
Improving performance by exiting loops early

✅ Tips & Best Practices

Use break to stop loops as soon as the goal is achieved
Use continue to skip unnecessary processing
Keep loop logic readable and simple

? Try It Yourself

Create break_continue.php
Print numbers 1–10 but skip 5 using continue
Stop loop execution when number reaches 7 using break