Difference Between Math.pow() and ** in JavaScript

JavaScript provides multiple ways to perform exponentiation two of the most commonly used methods are Math.pow() and the exponentiation operator **. While both serve the same purpose of raising a number to a certain power they have different syntaxes and characteristics. The Exponentiation is a mathematical operation involving the two numbers the base and the exponent.

In JavaScript exponentiation can be performed using the Math.pow() function or the exponentiation operator **. Understanding the differences between these two methods can help the developers choose the most appropriate one for their use case.

These are the following topics that we are going to discuss:

What is Math.pow()?

The Math.pow() is a function provided by the Math object in JavaScript to perform the exponentiation. The Math.pow() function returns the base raised to the power of the exponent i.e., base^exponent.

Syntax:

Math.pow(base, exponent)

Example: This example shows the use of Math.pow() function.

let result = Math.pow(2, 3);
console.log(result); 

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What is **?

The ** operator is the exponentiation operator introduced in the ECMAScript 2016 (ES7). The exponentiation operator ** returns the result of the raising the base to the power of the exponent similar to the Math.pow(). But is is an operator.

Syntax:

base ** exponent

Example: This example shows the use of the ** operator.

let result = 2 ** 3;
console.log(result); 

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Difference Between Math.pow() and ** in JavaScript

Conclusion

Both Math.pow() and ** serve the same purpose of the performing the exponentiation in JavaScript. Math.pow() is a method available in the all JavaScript environments making it suitable for the legacy code. The exponentiation operator ** provides the more concise and readable syntax and is preferred for the modern JavaScript development. Understanding the differences allows the developers to the choose the appropriate method based on their specific needs and the environment they are working in.