---
title: Operators in the Flux language
description: Flux supports many types of operators including arithmetic operators, comparison operators, function operators, and others.
menu:
v2_0_ref:
name: Operators
parent: Flux specification
weight: 215
v2.0/tags: [operators]
---
Flux includes the following types of operators:
- [Arithmetic operators](#arithmetic-operators)
- [Comparison operators](#comparison-operators)
- [Logical operators](#logical-operators)
- [Assignment operators](#assignment-operators)
- [Function operators](#function-operators)
- [String Operators](#string-operators)
- [Literal constructors](#literal-constructors)
- [Miscellaneous operators](#miscellaneous-operators)
_Also see:_
- [Operator precedence](#operator-precedence)
## Arithmetic operators
Arithmetic operators take two numerical values (either literals or variables) and
perform a calculation that returns a single numerical value.
| Operator | Description | Example | Result |
|:--------:|:----------- | ------- | ------ |
| `+` | Addition | `1 + 1` | `2` |
| `-` | Subtraction | `3 - 2` | `1` |
| `*` | Multiplication | `2 * 3` | `6` |
| `/` | Division | `9 / 3` | `3` |
| `^` | Exponentiation | `2 ^ 3` | `8` |
| `%` | Modulo | `10 % 5` | `0` |
{{% note %}}
In the current version of Flux, values used in arithmetic operations must
be of the same numeric type (integer or float).
Operations with values of different numeric types will result in a type error.
{{% /note %}}
## Comparison operators
Comparison operators compare expressions and return true or false based on the comparison.
| Operator | Description | Example | Result |
|:--------:|:----------- | ------- | ------ |
| `==` | Equal to | `"abc" == "abc"` | `true` |
| `!=` | Not equal to | `"abc" != "def"` | `true` |
| `<` | Less than | `1 < 2` | `true` |
| `>` | Greater than | `1 > 2` | `false` |
| `<=` | Less than or equal | `1 <= 2` | `true` |
| `>=` | Greater than or equal | `1 >= 2` | `false` |
| `=~` | Equal to regular expression | `"abc" =~ /[a-z]*/` | `true` |
| `!~` | Not equal to regular expression | `"abc" !~ /[0-9]*/` | `true` |
{{% note %}}
The `>` and `<` operators also [compare the lexicographic order of strings](#string-operators).
{{% /note %}}
## Logical operators
| Operator | Description |
|:--------:|:----------- |
| `exists` | Returns `false` if right operand is _**null**_. Otherwise, returns `true`. |
| `and` | Returns `true` if both operands are true. Otherwise, returns `false`. |
| `or` | Returns `true` if any operand is true. Otherwise, returns `false`. |
#### Short-circuit evaluation
Flux logical operators observe the short-circuiting behavior seen in other programming languages.
The evaluation of the left-hand (LH) operand determines if the right-hand (RH) operand is evaluated.
- When the operator is `and` and the LH operand evaluates to `false`, the evaluation
returns `false` without evaluating the RH operand.
- When the operator is `or` and the LH operand evaluates to `true`, the evaluation
returns `true` without evaluating the RH operand.
## Assignment operators
An assignment operator assigns a value to its left operand based on the value of its right operand.
| Operator | Description | Example | Meaning |
|:--------:|:----------- | ------- | ------- |
| `=` | Assign value of left expression to right expression | `x = y` | x = y |
## Function operators
Function operators facilitate the creation of functions and control the flow of data through operations.
| Operator | Description | Examples | Meaning |
|:--------: |:----------- | -------- | ------- |
| |> | Pipe‑forward | data |> function() | Tables contained in the "data" variable are piped into the function. |
| `<-` | Pipe‑receive | `tables=<-` | The "tables" variable or parameter is assigned to data piped into the operation. _This operator is used for any data type passed into a function; not just table data._ |
| `=>` | Arrow | `(r) => r.tag1 == "tagvalue"` | The arrow passes an object or parameters into function operations. |
| `()` | Function call | `top(n:10)` | Call the `top` function setting the `n` parameter to `10` and perform the associated operations. |
---
_See [Custom functions](/v2.0/query-data/flux/custom-functions) for examples of function operators is use._
---
## String Operators
String operators concatenate or compare string values.
| Operator | Description | Examples | Result |
|:--------:|:----------- | -------- | ------ |
| `+` | Concatenation | `"ab" + "c"` | `"abc"` |
| `<` | Less than in lexicographic order | `"ant" < "bee"` | `true` |
| `>` | Greater than in lexicographic order | `"ant" > "bee"` | `false` |
## Literal constructors
Literal constructors define fixed values.
| Operator | Description |
|:--------:| ----------- |
| `[ ]` | List / array |
| `{ }` | Object |
| `""` | String |
## Miscellaneous operators
| Operator | Description | Example |
|:--------:|:----------- | ------- |
| `( )` | Logical grouping | `r._value / (r._value * 2)` |
| `,` | Sequence delimiter | `item1, item2, item3` |
| `:` | Key-value separator | `{name: "Bob"}` |
| `.` | Member access / dot reference | `r._measurement` |
## Operator precedence
The table below outlines operator precedence.
Operators with a lower number have higher precedence.
| Precedence | Operator | Description |
|:----------:|:--------: |:--------------------------|
| 1 | `a()` | Function call |
| | `a[]` | Member or index access |
| | `.` | Member access |
| 2 | `*` `/` |Multiplication and division|
| 3 | `+` `-` | Addition and subtraction |
| 4 |`==` `!=` | Comparison operators |
| | `<` `<=` | |
| | `>` `>=` | |
| |`=~` `!~` | |
| 5 | `not` | Unary logical operator |
| | `exists` | Null check operator |
| 6 | `and` | Logical AND |
| 7 | `or` | Logical OR |
| 8 | `if` `then` `else` | Conditional |