C# - while Loop

C# provides the while loop to repeatedly execute a block of code as long as the specified condition returns true.

While(condition)
{
    //code block
}

The while loop starts with the while keyword, and it must include a boolean conditional expression inside brackets that returns either true or false. It executes the code block until the specified conditional expression returns false.

The for loop contains the initialization and increment/decrement parts. When using the while loop, initialization should be done before the loop starts, and increment or decrement steps should be inside the loop.

int i = 0; // initialization

while (i < 10) // condition
{
    Console.WriteLine("i = {0}", i);

    i++; // increment
}

Above, a while loop includes an expression i < 10. Inside a while loop, the value of i increased to 1 using i++. The above while loop will be executed when the value of i equals to 10 and a condition i < 10 returns false.

Use the break or return keyword to exit from a while loop on some condition, as shown below.

int i = 0;

while (true)
{
    Console.WriteLine("i = {0}", i);

    i++;

    if (i > 10)
        break;
}

Ensure that the conditional expression evaluates to false or exit from the while loop on some condition to avoid an infinite loop. The following loop is missing an appropriate condition or break the loop, which makes it an infinite while loop.

int i = 1;

while (i > 0)
{
    Console.WriteLine("i = {0}", i);
    i++;
}

Nested while Loop

C# allows while loops inside another while loop, as shown below. However, it is not recommended to use nested while loop because it makes it hard to debug and maintain.

int i = 0, j = 1;

while (i < 2)
{
    Console.WriteLine("i = {0}", i);
    i++;

    while (j < 2)
    {
        Console.WriteLine("j = {0}", j);
        j++;
    }
}