In programming, decision-making is a critical part of logic. Two of the most commonly used conditional statements are if and switch case. Understanding when to use each can help you write cleaner, more efficient, and more readable code.

IF Statement

The if statement is used to execute a block of code based on a condition that evaluates to true.

Use if when:

• You need to evaluate complex logical expressions.
• You're comparing ranges of values (e.g., greater than or less than).
• You're using logical operators like && (and), || (or), ! (not).
• There are few conditions to check.

//Examples

$score = 80;
if ($score >= 90) {
    echo "Grade A";
} elseif ($score >= 80) {
    echo "Grade B";
} elseif ($score >= 70) {
    echo "Grade C";
} else {
    echo "Grade D";
}

SWITCH CASE Statement

The switch statement is best used when comparing a single variable against multiple specific values.

Use switch when:

• You're checking one value against multiple fixed cases.
• Each case leads to a distinct outcome.
• You want to avoid writing multiple if...elseif statements for equality checks.

//Examples:

$day = "Monday";
switch ($day) {
    case "Monday":
        echo "Start of the week";
        break;
    case "Friday":
        echo "Almost the weekend";
        break;
    case "Sunday":
        echo "Rest day";
        break;
    default:
        echo "Just a regular day";
}

Final Tip

Choose if when your logic is complex or involves ranges.
Choose switch case when you're dealing with multiple discrete values and want your code to be more readable.

Both are powerful tools—knowing when to use them makes you a better programmer.