JavaScript: substring() vs substr()

What is the difference between substring() and substr()?#

Quick tip for remembering the difference:

• substring - index-based
• substr - length-based

Both substring() and substr() accept an index-based first parameter, but the second parameter of substring() is index-based (the end index), while the second parameter of substr() length-based (number of characters to return).

Under most conditions, both behave very similarly. Take a look at these examples.

const name = 'hippopotamus';

The difference becomes obvious when both the parameters are specified and the starting index is a positive integer, and the end index is within the length of the string.

substr() is considered "legacy", so you might as well forget about its existence . Always prefer to use substring() over substr().

Summary#

substring() returns the characters of a string from a starting index to an end index, substr() on the other hand, returns an n number of characters from a starting index.

References#

1. MDN - substring
2. MDN - substr