if-elif-else statement on one line in Python

# Table of Contents

1. If-Elif-Else statement on one line in Python
2. Shorthand if-else statement in Python

# If-Elif-Else statement on one line in Python

Use a nested ternary operator to implement an if-elif-else statement on one line.

The first ternary should check for a condition and if the condition is not met, it should return another ternary that does the job of an elif/else statement.

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my_str = 'bobby hadz'


result = ("Anonymous" if not my_str else my_str.upper()
          if len(my_str) > 2 else my_str.capitalize())

print(result)  # 👉️ 'BOBBY HADZ'

The ternary operator is very similar to an if/else statement.

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name = 'Bobby Hadz'

result = 'James Doe' if not name else name

print(result)  # 👉️ 'Bob'

The example checks if the name variable is falsy and if it is, the string "James Doe" is returned, otherwise, the name variable is returned.

# Using nested ternaries in Python

To have an inline if-elif-else statement, we have to use a nested ternary.

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my_num = 50

result = 10 if my_num > 100 else 20 if my_num < 100 else 0
print(result)  # 👉️ 20

You can wrap the statement in parentheses to make it more readable.

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my_num = 50

result = (10 if my_num > 100 else
          20 if my_num < 100 else 0)
print(result)  # 👉️ 20

The first ternary in the example checks if the variable stores a value greater than 100.

If the condition is met, the number 10 gets returned.

The nested ternary operator checks if the variable is less than 100.

If the condition is met, the number 20 is returned, otherwise, 0 is returned.

Here is another example.

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my_num = 50

result = ('a' if my_num > 100 else
          ('b' if my_num < 100 else 'c'))
print(result)  # 👉️ 'b'

If the condition isn't met, the else statement runs and the nested ternary checks for another condition.

The nested ternary checks if the variable stores a value of less than 100 and if the condition is met, the string b gets returned. This is the elif statement.

If the condition isn't met, the else statement runs and the string c gets returned.

# The equivalent of the nested ternary in an if-elif-else statement

Here is how we would implement the ternary operator of the example using if/elif/else statements.

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my_num = 50

if my_num > 100:
    result = 'a'
elif my_num < 100:
    result = 'b'
else:
    result = 'c'

print(result)  # 👉️ 'b'

Using if-elif-else statements is a bit more readable, but it is also a bit more verbose.

Whether using a nested ternary operator makes your code more readable depends on the complexity of the conditions you are checking for.

Using the shorthand syntax isn't always recommended.

# Shorthand if-else statement in Python

The ternary operator can also be used if you need a shorthand if-else statement.

The ternary operator will return the value to the left if the condition is met, otherwise, the value in the else statement is returned.

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variable1 = 50
variable2 = 100

result = 5 if variable1 > variable2 else 10

print(result)  # 👉️ 10

The ternary operator is very similar to an if/else statement.

The operator in the example checks if variable1 is greater than variable2.

Here is the same code sample but using the longer form syntax.

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variable1 = 50
variable2 = 100

if variable1 > variable2:
    result = 5
else:
    result = 10

print(result)  # 👉️ 10

# a if condition else b

The syntax of the ternary operator is a if condition else b.

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# 👇️ 'hello'
print('hello' if len('hi') == 2 else 'bye')

You can also store the result in a variable.

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result = 'hello' if len('hi') == 2 else 'bye'

print(result)  # 👉️ result

Here is another example.

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name = None

result = 'bobby hadz' if not name else name
print(result) # 👉️ bobby hadz

The example checks if the name variable is falsy and if it is the string "bobby hadz" is returned, otherwise the name variable is returned.

I've also written an article on how to check for multiple conditions in an if statement.

# Additional Resources

You can learn more about the related topics by checking out the following tutorials:

• Styling multiline 'if' statements in Python
• Get the first item in a list that matches condition - Python
• Find the index of Elements that meet a condition in Python
• Using f-string for conditional formatting in Python
• Check if all/any elements in List meet condition in Python
• ValueError: Circular reference detected in Python [Solved]
• Process finished with exit code 139 (interrupted by signal 11: SIGSEGV)
• Python argparse: unrecognized arguments error [Solved]
• How to exit an if statement in Python [5 Ways]