break and continue

C# course · Beginner · Lesson 46/116

Learn to exit a loop with break and skip with continue.

break and continue

break exits the loop entirely; continue skips the current step and moves to the next. Both change the control flow inside a loop.

For example, in a search loop, breaking out when found is sensible. To skip even numbers you write if (n % 2 == 0) continue;; this step is skipped and the loop continues with the next element.

Smart break usage

break and continue make a loop more efficient. For example, breaking once you find a target in a list skips the remaining elements, which speeds up large lists.

However, deep nesting of break and continue hurts readability. When possible, move the condition into the loop header or use a helper method for clarity. Reach for them only when really needed.

Exercise Find the first match with break

Use a for loop from 0 to 9. When i reaches 4, exit the loop with if (i == 4) break;. Otherwise print i with Console.WriteLine. The output should be 0, 1, 2, 3 (4 is not printed).

Show example solution

Write for (int i = 0; i < 10; i++) { if (i == 4) break; Console.WriteLine(i); }
Example solution:
using System;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        for (int i = 0; i < 10; i++)
        {
            if (i == 4) break;
            Console.WriteLine(i);
        }
    }
}

Test yourself

Write the loop exit

for (int i = 0; i < 100; i++)
{
    if (i == 5) ____;
    Console.WriteLine(i);
}

Show answer

for (int i = 0; i < 100; i++)
{
    if (i == 5) break;
    Console.WriteLine(i);
}

Match each statement to its effect

break

Exits the loop
continue

Skips the step
return

Exits the method
throw

Raises an error
What does the break statement do?
```
while (true) { if (done) break; }
```
- Skips the step, moves to next
- Exits the method
- Exits the loop entirely
- Raises an error
Show answer

Exits the loop entirely — Correct. break exits the loop entirely; continue only skips the current step.

break and continue