C# Programming › Strings in C#

What is the difference between int.Parse and int.TryParse methods?

Beginner

Answer

int.Parse converts a string to an integer but throws a FormatException if the string is not a valid number, or an OverflowException if the number is too large, which means you need to wrap it in a try catch block to handle invalid input safely. int.TryParse, on the other hand, attempts the same conversion but returns a boolean indicating whether it succeeded, placing the converted value into an out parameter, which avoids the performance cost and complexity of exception handling for something as common as invalid user input.

// Using Parse, requires try catch
try {
    int value = int.Parse("abc");
} catch (FormatException) {
    Console.WriteLine("Invalid number");
}

// Using TryParse, no exception needed
bool success = int.TryParse("abc", out int result);

Real-world example A checkout page that converts a user entered quantity into an integer uses TryParse instead of Parse, so an invalid entry like empty text simply results in a validation message rather than crashing the checkout process with an unhandled exception.

Common follow-ups: Why is TryParse generally considered more performant than Parse combined with a try catch?;Does TryParse work with types other than int?

How do you determine whether a String represents a numeric value?;What is the difference between System.Text.StringBuilder and System.String?