goto statement

 

C++

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Technical specifications

Symbols index

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C++ language

General topics
Preprocessor Comments	Keywords Escape sequences
Flow control
Conditional execution statements
if	switch
Iteration statements (loops)
for range-for (C++11)	while do-while
Jump statements
continue - break	goto - return
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inline specifier
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noexcept specifier (C++11)
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throw-expression try block	handler
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Specifiers
const/volatile decltype (C++11) auto (C++11)	constexpr (C++11) consteval (C++20) constinit (C++20)
Storage duration specifiers
Initialization
Default-initialization Value-initialization Zero-initialization Copy-initialization Direct-initialization	Aggregate initialization List-initialization (C++11)   Constant initialization Reference initialization

Expressions
Value categories Order of evaluation	Operators Operator precedence
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Character - String - nullptr (C++11)
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typedef declaration
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new expression	delete expression
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Virtual function override specifier (C++11)   final specifier (C++11)	explicit (C++11) static
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Templates
Class template Function template	Template specialization Parameter packs (C++11)
Miscellaneous
Inline assembly	History of C++

 

Statements

Labels

label : statement

Expression statements

expression ;

Compound statements

{ statement... }

Selection statements

if

switch

Iteration statements

while

do while

for

range for (C++11)

Jump statements

break

continue

return

goto

Declaration statements

declaration ;

Try blocks

try block

Transactional memory

synchronized, atomic_commit, etc (TM TS)

 

Transfers control unconditionally.

Used when it is otherwise impossible to transfer control to the desired location using other statements.

Syntax

attr (optional) goto label ;

Explanation

The goto statement transfers control to the location specified by label. The goto statement must be in the same function as the label it is referring, it may appear before or after the label.

If transfer of control exits the scope of any automatic variables (e.g. by jumping backwards to a point before the declarations of such variables or by jumping forward out of a compound statement where the variables are scoped), the destructors are called for all variables whose scope was exited, in the order opposite to the order of their construction.

The goto statement cannot transfer control into a control-flow-limited statement, but can transfer control out of a control-flow-limited statement (the rules above regarding automatic variables in scope are followed).

If transfer of control enters the scope of any automatic variables (e.g. by jumping forward over a declaration statement), the program is ill-formed (cannot be compiled), unless all variables whose scope is entered have the following types:

• scalar types declared without initializers
• class types with trivial default constructors and trivial destructors declared without initializers
• cv-qualified versions of one of the above
• arrays of one of the above

(Note: the same rules apply to all forms of transfer of control)

Notes

In the C programming language, the goto statement has fewer restrictions and can enter the scope of any variable other than variable-length array or variably-modified pointer.

Keywords

goto

Example

Run this code

#include <iostream>
 
struct Object
{
    // non-trivial destructor
    ~Object() { std::cout << 'd'; }
};
 
struct Trivial
{
    double d1;
    double d2;
}; // trivial ctor and dtor
 
int main()
{
    int a = 10;
 
    // loop using goto
label:
    Object obj;
    std::cout << a << ' ';
    a -= 2;
 
    if (a != 0)
        goto label;  // jumps out of scope of obj, calls obj destructor
    std::cout << '\n';
 
    // goto can be used to efficiently leave a multi-level (nested) loops
    for (int x = 0; x < 3; ++x)
        for (int y = 0; y < 3; ++y)
        {
            std::cout << '(' << x << ',' << y << ") " << '\n';
            if (x + y >= 3)
                goto endloop;
        }
 
endloop:
    std::cout << '\n';
 
    goto label2; // jumps into the scope of n and t
 
    [[maybe_unused]] int n; // no initializer
 
    [[maybe_unused]] Trivial t; // trivial ctor/dtor, no initializer
 
//  int x = 1;   // error: has initializer
//  Object obj2; // error: non-trivial dtor
 
label2:
    {
        Object obj3;
        goto label3; // jumps forward, out of scope of obj3
    }
 
label3:
    std::cout << '\n';
}

Output:

10 d8 d6 d4 d2
(0,0)
(0,1)
(0,2)
(1,0)
(1,1)
(1,2)
 
d
d

See also

C documentation for goto

External links

The popular Edsger W. Dijkstra essay, “Goto Considered Harmful” (originally, in "Letter to Communications of the ACM (CACM)", vol. 11 #3, March 1968, pp. 147-148.), presents a survey of the many subtle problems the careless use of this keyword can introduce.