Luau and C# comparison
Explains the similarities and differences between the C and Luau programming languages.
Roblox uses the Luau programming language. The following code samples and tables indicate some of the differences between syntaxes for C# and Luau.
Line endings#
You don't need semicolons in Luau, but they don't break the syntax.
Reserved keywords#
The following table has Luau's reserved keywords mapped to their C# equivalent. Note it doesn't show all C# keywords.
| Luau | C# |
|---|---|
and |
|
break |
break |
do |
do |
if |
if |
else |
else |
elseif |
else if |
then |
|
end |
|
true |
true |
false |
false |
for |
for or foreach |
function |
|
in |
in |
local |
|
nil |
null |
not |
|
or |
|
repeat |
|
return |
return |
until |
|
while |
while |
Comments#
-- Single line comment
--[[ Resulting output:
Block comment
--]]// Single line comment
/*
Block comment
*/Strings#
-- Multi-line string
local multiLineString = [[This is a string that,
when printed, appears
on multiple lines]]
-- Concatenation
local s1 = "This is a string "
local s2 = "made with two parts."
local endString = s1 .. s2// Multi-line string
string multiLineString1 = "This is a string that,\nwhen printed, appears\n on multiple lines.";
string multiLineString2 = @"This is a string that,
when printed, appears
on multiple lines";
// Concatenation
string s1 = "This is a string ";
string s2 = "made with two parts.";
string endString = s1 + s2;Tables#
To learn more about tables in Luau, see Tables.
Dictionary tables#
You can use tables in Luau as dictionaries just like in C#.
local dictionary = {
val1 = "this",
val2 = "is"
}
print(dictionary.val1) -- Outputs 'this'
print(dictionary["val1"]) -- Outputs 'this'
dictionary.val1 = nil -- Removes 'val1' from table
dictionary["val3"] = "a dictionary" -- Overwrites 'val3' or sets new key-value pairDictionary dictionary = new Dictionary()
{
{ "val1", "this" },
{ "val2", "is" }
};
Console.WriteLine(dictionary["val1"]); // Outputs 'this'
dictionary.Remove("val1"); // Removes 'val1' from dictionary
dictionary["val3"] = "a dictionary"; // Overwrites 'val3' or sets new key-value pair
dictionary.Add("val3", "a dictionary"); // Creates a new key-value pairNumerically-indexed tables#
You can use tables in Luau as arrays just like in C#. Indices start at 1 in Luau and 0 in C#.
local npcAttributes = {"strong", "intelligent"}
print(npcAttributes[1]) -- Outputs 'strong'
print(#npcAttributes) -- Outputs the size of the list
-- Append to the list
table.insert(npcAttributes, "humble")
-- Another way...
npcAttributes[#npcAttributes+1] = "humble"
-- Insert at the beginning of the list
table.insert(npcAttributes, 1, "brave")
-- Remove item at a given index
table.remove(npcAttributes, 3)List npcAttributes = new List{"strong", "intelligent"};
Console.WriteLine(npcAttributes[0]); // Outputs 'strong'
Console.WriteLine(npcAttributes.Count); // Outputs the size of the list
// Append to the list
npcAttributes.Add("humble");
// Another way...
npcAttributes.Insert(npcAttributes.Count, "humble");
// Insert at the beginning of the list
npcAttributes.Insert(0, "brave");
// Remove item at a given index
npcAttributes.Remove(2);Operators#
Conditional operators#
| Operator | Luau | C# |
|---|---|---|
| Equal To | == |
== |
| Greater Than | > |
> |
| Less Than | `<` | `<` |
| Greater Than or Equal To | >= |
>= |
| Less Than or Equal To | `<=` | `<=` |
| Not Equal To | ~= |
!= |
| And | and |
&& |
| Or | or |
|| |
Arithmetic operators#
| Luau | C# | |
|---|---|---|
| Addition | + |
+ |
| Subtraction | - |
- |
| Multiplication | * |
* |
| Division | / |
/ |
| Modulus | % |
% |
| Exponentiation | ^ |
** |
Variables#
In Luau, variables don't specify their type when you declare them. Luau variables don't have access modifiers, although you may prefix "private" variables with an underscore for readability.
local stringVariable = "value"
-- "Public" declaration
local variableName
-- "Private" declaration - parsed the same way
local _variableNamestring stringVariable = "value";
// Public declaration
public string variableName
// Private declaration
string variableName;Scope#
In Luau, you can write variables and logic in a tighter scope than their function or class by nesting the logic within do and end keywords, similar to curly brackets {} in C#. For more details, see Scope.
local outerVar = 'Outer scope text'
do
-- Modify 'outerVar'
outerVar = 'Inner scope modified text'
-- Introduce a local variable
local innerVar = 'Inner scope text'
print('1: ' .. outerVar) -- prints "1: Inner scope modified text"
print('2: ' .. innerVar) -- prints "2: Inner scope text"
end
print('3: ' .. outerVar) -- prints "3: "Inner scope modified text"
-- Attempting to print 'innerVar' here would failvar outerVar = "Outer scope text";
{
// Modify 'outerVar'
outerVar = "Inner scope modified text";
// Introduce a local variable
var innerVar = "Inner scope text";
Console.WriteLine("1: " + outerVar); // prints "1: Inner scope modified text"
Console.WriteLine("2: " + innerVar); // prints "2: Inner scope text"
}
Console.WriteLine("3: " + outerVar); // prints "3: "Inner scope modified text"
// Attempting to print 'innerVar' here would failConditional statements#
-- One condition
if boolExpression then
doSomething()
end
-- Multiple conditions
if not boolExpression then
doSomething()
elseif otherBoolExpression then
doSomething()
else
doSomething()
end// One condition
if (boolExpression) {
doSomething();
}
// Multiple conditions
if (!boolExpression) {
doSomething();
}
else if (otherBoolExpression) {
doSomething();
}
else {
doSomething();
}Conditional operator#
local max = if x > y then x else yint max = (x > y) ? x : y;Loops#
To learn more about loops in Luau, see Control Structures.
While and repeat loops#
while boolExpression do
doSomething()
end
repeat
doSomething()
until not boolExpressionwhile (boolExpression) {
doSomething();
}
do {
doSomething();
} while (boolExpression)For loops#
-- Forward loop
for i = 1, 10 do
doSomething()
end
-- Reverse loop
for i = 10, 1, -1 do
doSomething()
end// Forward loop
for (int i = 1; i <= 10; i++) {
doSomething();
}
// Reverse loop
for (int i = 10; i >= 1; i--) {
doSomething();
}local abcList = {"a", "b", "c"}
for i, v in ipairs(abcList) do
print(v)
end
local abcDictionary = { a=1, b=2, c=3 }
for k, v in pairs(abcDictionary) do
print(k, v)
endList<string> abcList = new List<string>{"a", "b", "c"};
foreach (string v in abcList) {
Console.WriteLine(v);
}
Dictionary<string, int> abcDictionary = new Dictionary<string, int>
{ {"a", 1}, {"b", 2}, {"c", 3} };
foreach (KeyValuePair<string, int> entry in abcDictionary) {
Console.WriteLine(entry.Key + " " + entry.Value);
}Luau also supports generalized iteration, which further simplifies working with tables.
Functions#
To learn more about functions in Luau, see Functions.
Generic functions#
-- Generic function
local function increment(number)
return number + 1
end// Generic function
int increment(int number) {
return number + 1;
}Variable argument number#
-- Variable argument number
local function variableArguments(...)
print(...)
end// Variable argument number
void variableArguments(params string[] inventoryItems) {
for (item in inventoryItems) {
Console.WriteLine(item);
}
}Named arguments#
-- Named arguments
local function namedArguments(args)
return args.name .. "'s birthday: " .. args.dob
end
namedArguments{name="Bob", dob="4/1/2000"}// Named arguments
string namedArguments(string name, string dob) {
return name + "'s birthday: " + dob;
}
namedArguments(name: "Bob", dob: "4/1/2000");Try-catch structures#
local function fireWeapon()
if not weaponEquipped then
error("No weapon equipped!")
end
-- Proceed...
end
local success, errorMessage = pcall(fireWeapon)
if not success then
print(errorMessage)
endvoid fireWeapon() {
if (!weaponEquipped) {
// Use a user-defined exception
throw new InvalidWeaponException("No weapon equipped!");
}
// Proceed...
}
try {
fireWeapon();
} catch (InvalidWeaponException ex) {
// An error was raised
}