What is the R switch Statement?

The switch statement in R is a control structure that allows you to execute one of several possible code blocks based on the value of an expression. It is particularly useful when you have multiple conditions to check and want to avoid using multiple if-else statements.

switch(expression,
    case1 = { # Code for case 1 },
    case2 = { # Code for case 2 },
    case3 = { # Code for case 3 }
    # Default case if no match is found
)

The switch function takes an expression and a series of cases. It evaluates the expression and executes the corresponding block of code that matches the expression’s value.

# Example of a switch statement
result <- switch(2,
    "One" = "You selected One",
    "Two" = "You selected Two",
    "Three" = "You selected Three"
)

print(result)  # Output: "You selected Two"

In this example, the expression evaluates to 2, so the code block associated with “Two” is executed, and “You selected Two” is printed. If the expression does not match any of the cases, a default value (if provided) or NULL is returned.

The switch statement is useful for simplifying the code when you need to select from multiple possible actions based on the value of a single expression.