JavaScript Math max()

The max() method finds the maximum value among the specified values and returns it.

Example

let numbers = Math.max(12, 4, 5, 9, 0, -3);
console.log(numbers); 

// Output:  12

max() Syntax

The syntax of the max() method is:

Math.max(number1, number2,...)

Here, max() is a static method. Hence, we are accessing the method using the class name, Math.


max() Parameters

The max() method takes in a random number of parameters:

  • number1/number2/… - values among which the maximum number is to be computed

max() Return Value

The max() method returns:

  • the largest value among the given numbers
  • NaN (Not a Number) for non-numeric arguments

Example 1: JavaScript Math.max()

// max() with negative numbers let numbers1 = Math.max(-1, -11, -132);
console.log(numbers1);
// max() with positive numbers let numbers2 = Math.max(0.456, 135, 500);
console.log(numbers2); // Output: // -1 // 500

In the above example, we have used Math.max() to find the minimum number among:

  • Math.max(-1,-11,-132) - returns -1
  • Math.max(0.456,135,500) - returns 500

Example 2: Math.max() with Arrays

let numbers = [4, 1, 2, 55, 9];

// max() with a spread operator let maxNum = Math.max(...numbers);
console.log(maxNum); // Output: 55

In the above example, we have created an array named numbers. Notice that we are passing the array as an argument to the Math.max() method.

let minNum = Math.max(...numbers);

Here, ... is the spread operator that destructures the array and passes the array values as arguments to max().

The method then finds the smallest number.


Example 3: Math.max() with Non-Numeric Argument

// max() with the string argument let numbers1 = Math.max("Dwayne", 2, 5, 79);
console.log(numbers1);
// max() with character arguments let maxNum = Math.max('A', 'B', 'C');
console.log(maxNum); // Output: // NaN // NaN

In the above example, we have used the max() method with the string and character arguments. For both arguments, we get NaN as output.


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