Laravel Tip: Use The `When()` Helper For Clean Conditional Logic

Laravel when() helper is a powerful tool for writing clean and concise conditional logic—especially useful in Blade templates, service definitions, and route declarations.

🧠 What is when()?

The when() function returns the value it’s given only if a condition is true. If the condition is false, it returns null. You can pass a value or a closure as the second argument.

$value = when(true, 'Hello World');
// "Hello World"
 
$value = when(false, 'Hello World');
// null
 
$value = when(true, fn () => 'Hello World');
// "Hello World"

✨ Real-World Use Cases

📧 Local Email Previews

Register test routes only in local environments:

<?php
use Illuminate\Support\Facades\App;
use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Route;
use App\Mail\WelcomeMail;
 
when(App::isLocal(), function () {
    Route::get('/email/preview/welcome', function () {
        return new \App\Mail\WelcomeMail(auth()->user());
    })->middleware('auth');
});

🛠 Pro Tips

you can use when() to service configuration or chained builders

$builder->when($isAdmin, function ($query) {
    $query->with('adminData');
});