TL;DR     ?? (Null Coalescing Operator) Only falls back if the variable is undefined or... Tagged with wordpress, php, webdev.

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A practical breakdown of PHP's Elvis operator (?:) and Null Coalescing operator (??) for WordPress developers. The ?? operator only falls back when a variable is undefined or null, making it ideal for array access and request data where 0 or empty string may be valid. The ?: operator falls back on any falsy value (false, 0, "", null), making it better suited for WordPress options and database-driven settings where empty or false values should trigger a default. Choosing the wrong operator can introduce subtle bugs, especially with functions like get_option() that may return false or empty strings.

Elvis (?:) vs Null Coalescing (??) in PHP: A Practical Guide for WordPress Developers