require let or const instead of var (no-var)

The --fix option on the command line can automatically fix some of the problems reported by this rule.

ECMAScript 6 allows programmers to create variables with block scope instead of function scope using the let and const keywords. Block scope is common in many other programming languages and helps programmers avoid mistakes such as:

var count = people.length;
var enoughFood = count > sandwiches.length;

if (enoughFood) {
    var count = sandwiches.length; // accidentally overriding the count variable
    console.log("We have " + count + " sandwiches for everyone. Plenty for all!");
}

// our count variable is no longer accurate
console.log("We have " + count + " people and " + sandwiches.length + " sandwiches!");

Rule Details

This rule is aimed at discouraging the use of var and encouraging the use of const or let instead.

Examples

Examples of incorrect code for this rule:

/*eslint no-var: "error"*/

var x = "y";
var CONFIG = {};

Examples of correct code for this rule:

/*eslint no-var: "error"*/
/*eslint-env es6*/

let x = "y";
const CONFIG = {};

When Not To Use It

In addition to non-ES6 environments, existing JavaScript projects that are beginning to introduce ES6 into their codebase may not want to apply this rule if the cost of migrating from var to let is too costly.

Version

This rule was introduced in ESLint 0.12.0.

Resources

• Rule source
• Documentation source