# substr_compare

(PHP 5)

substr_compare — Binary safe comparison of 2 strings from an offset, up to length characters

### Description

int substr_compare ( string `$main_str` , string `$str` , int `$offset` [, int `$length` [, bool `$case_insensitivity` ]] )

substr_compare() compares `main_str` from position `offset` with `str` up to `length` characters.

### Parameters

`main_str`

`str`

`offset`

  The start position for the comparison. If negative, it starts counting from the end of the string.

`length`

  The length of the comparison.

`case_insensitivity`

  If `case_insensitivity` is `TRUE`, comparison is case insensitive.

### Return Values

Returns < 0 if `main_str` from position `offset` is less than `str` , > 0 if it is greater than `str` , and 0 if they are equal. If `length` is equal or greater than length of `main_str` and `length` is set, substr_compare() prints warning and returns `FALSE`.

### ChangeLog

Version | Description
--- | ---
5.1.0 | Added the possibility to use a negative `offset` .

### Examples

Example#1 A substr_compare() example

`<?php
echo substr_compare("abcde", "bc", 1, 2); // 0
echo substr_compare("abcde", "de", -2, 2); // 0
echo substr_compare("abcde", "bcg", 1, 2); // 0
echo substr_compare("abcde", "BC", 1, 2, true); // 0
echo substr_compare("abcde", "bc", 1, 3); // 1
echo substr_compare("abcde", "cd", 1, 2); // -1
echo substr_compare("abcde", "abc", 5, 1); // warning
?>`