if and else in Go

Go’s if is simple and can include a short initialization statement.

Basic

A standard conditional with braces. Conditions must be boolean—no implicit int-to-bool.

if x > 0 {
    // ...
} else {
    // ...
}

Else-if

Chain additional conditions using else if. Prefer small, readable branches over deep nesting.

if n < 0 {
    // negative
} else if n == 0 {
    // zero
} else {
    // positive
}

Short statement

Declare and initialize a temporary that’s scoped to the if/else blocks.

if v := compute(); v > 10 {
    // v is in scope here
} else {
    // and here
}
// v is out of scope here

With errors

The idiomatic pattern: do work, check err, and return early. Keeps happy path left-aligned.

if v, err := parse("42"); err != nil {
    // handle
} else {
    _ = v // use v
}

Truthiness

• Only booleans are allowed (no implicit int-to-bool)
• Zero values: false for bool; check explicitly for other types

// bad: if s { ... } // s is string
// good:
if s != "" { /* ... */ }

Tips

• Return early inside if err != nil to avoid nesting
• Keep conditions readable; extract into a named variable when complex
• Avoid deep else chains; consider guard clauses

if err != nil { return err }  // guard clause
// proceed with success path

Summary

• Use short init statements for scoped temps
• Prefer early returns for clarity