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Extending optionals in Swift

Quick tip on how to extend an optional in Swift

16 May 2021 · 2 min read

swift

basics

Image of Natascha Fadeeva

As we have learned in Understanding Swift Optionals, an optional is just an enum of two cases.

enum Optional<Wrapped> {
    /// The absence of a value.
    case none


    /// The presence of a value, stored as `Wrapped`.
    case some(Wrapped)
}

Knowing this, we can extend an optional just like any other type.

extension Optional where Wrapped == String {
    var isNilOrEmpty: Bool {
        return self?.isEmpty ?? true
    }
}

In the example above, we are extending an optional String by adding where Wrapped == String to our extension.

Now, we can use the computed property isNilOrEmpty on every optional String.

var name: String?
if name.isNilOrEmpty {
}

Related tags

swift

basics

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Image of Natascha Fadeeva