assignment to constant variable error

TypeError: Assignment to Constant Variable in JavaScript

Last updated: Mar 2, 2024 Reading time · 3 min

# TypeError: Assignment to Constant Variable in JavaScript

The "Assignment to constant variable" error occurs when trying to reassign or redeclare a variable declared using the const keyword.

When a variable is declared using const , it cannot be reassigned or redeclared.

Here is an example of how the error occurs.

# Declare the variable using let instead of const

To solve the "TypeError: Assignment to constant variable" error, declare the variable using the let keyword instead of using const .

Variables declared using the let keyword can be reassigned.

We used the let keyword to declare the variable in the example.

Variables declared using let can be reassigned, as opposed to variables declared using const .

You can also use the var keyword in a similar way. However, using var in newer projects is discouraged.

# Pick a different name for the variable

Alternatively, you can declare a new variable using the const keyword and use a different name.

We declared a variable with a different name to resolve the issue.

The two variables no longer clash, so the "assignment to constant" variable error is no longer raised.

# Declaring a const variable with the same name in a different scope

You can also declare a const variable with the same name in a different scope, e.g. in a function or an if block.

The if statement and the function have different scopes, so we can declare a variable with the same name in all 3 scopes.

However, this prevents us from accessing the variable from the outer scope.

# The const keyword doesn't make objects immutable

Note that the const keyword prevents us from reassigning or redeclaring a variable, but it doesn't make objects or arrays immutable.

We declared an obj variable using the const keyword. The variable stores an object.

Notice that we are able to directly change the value of the name property even though the variable was declared using const .

The behavior is the same when working with arrays.

Even though we declared the arr variable using the const keyword, we are able to directly change the values of the array elements.

The const keyword prevents us from reassigning the variable, but it doesn't make objects and arrays immutable.

# Additional Resources

You can learn more about the related topics by checking out the following tutorials:

• SyntaxError: Unterminated string constant in JavaScript
• TypeError (intermediate value)(...) is not a function in JS

Borislav Hadzhiev

Web Developer

Copyright © 2024 Borislav Hadzhiev

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TypeError: invalid assignment to const "x"

Const and immutability, what went wrong.

A constant is a value that cannot be altered by the program during normal execution. It cannot change through re-assignment, and it can't be redeclared. In JavaScript, constants are declared using the const keyword.

Invalid redeclaration

Assigning a value to the same constant name in the same block-scope will throw.

Fixing the error

There are multiple options to fix this error. Check what was intended to be achieved with the constant in question.

If you meant to declare another constant, pick another name and re-name. This constant name is already taken in this scope.

const , let or var ?

Do not use const if you weren't meaning to declare a constant. Maybe you meant to declare a block-scoped variable with let or global variable with var .

Check if you are in the correct scope. Should this constant appear in this scope or was is meant to appear in a function, for example?

The const declaration creates a read-only reference to a value. It does not  mean the value it holds is immutable, just that the variable identifier cannot be reassigned. For instance, in case the content is an object, this means the object itself can still be altered. This means that you can't mutate the value stored in a variable:

But you can mutate the properties in a variable:

Document Tags and Contributors

• JavaScript basics
• JavaScript first steps
• JavaScript building blocks
• Introducing JavaScript objects
• Introduction
• Grammar and types
• Control flow and error handling
• Loops and iteration
• Expressions and operators
• Numbers and dates
• Text formatting
• Regular expressions
• Indexed collections
• Keyed collections
• Working with objects
• Details of the object model
• Iterators and generators
• Meta programming
• A re-introduction to JavaScript
• JavaScript data structures
• Equality comparisons and sameness
• Inheritance and the prototype chain
• Strict mode
• JavaScript typed arrays
• Memory Management
• Concurrency model and Event Loop
• References:
• ArrayBuffer
• AsyncFunction
• Float32Array
• Float64Array
• GeneratorFunction
• InternalError
• Intl.Collator
• Intl.DateTimeFormat
• Intl.NumberFormat
• ParallelArray
• ReferenceError
• SIMD.Bool16x8
• SIMD.Bool32x4
• SIMD.Bool64x2
• SIMD.Bool8x16
• SIMD.Float32x4
• SIMD.Float64x2
• SIMD.Int16x8
• SIMD.Int32x4
• SIMD.Int8x16
• SIMD.Uint16x8
• SIMD.Uint32x4
• SIMD.Uint8x16
• SharedArrayBuffer
• StopIteration
• SyntaxError
• Uint16Array
• Uint32Array
• Uint8ClampedArray
• WebAssembly
• decodeURI()
• decodeURIComponent()
• encodeURI()
• encodeURIComponent()
• parseFloat()
• Arithmetic operators
• Array comprehensions
• Assignment operators
• Bitwise operators
• Comma operator
• Comparison operators
• Conditional (ternary) Operator
• Destructuring assignment
• Expression closures
• Generator comprehensions
• Grouping operator
• Legacy generator function expression
• Logical Operators
• Object initializer
• Operator precedence
• Property accessors
• Spread syntax
• async function expression
• class expression
• delete operator
• function expression
• function* expression
• in operator
• new operator
• void operator
• Legacy generator function
• async function
• for each...in
• try...catch
• Arguments object
• Arrow functions
• Default parameters
• Method definitions
• Rest parameters
• constructor
• element loaded from a different domain for which you violated the same-origin policy." href="Property_access_denied.html">Error: Permission denied to access property "x"
• InternalError: too much recursion
• RangeError: argument is not a valid code point
• RangeError: invalid array length
• RangeError: invalid date
• RangeError: precision is out of range
• RangeError: radix must be an integer
• RangeError: repeat count must be less than infinity
• RangeError: repeat count must be non-negative
• ReferenceError: "x" is not defined
• ReferenceError: assignment to undeclared variable "x"
• ReferenceError: deprecated caller or arguments usage
• ReferenceError: invalid assignment left-hand side
• ReferenceError: reference to undefined property "x"
• SyntaxError: "0"-prefixed octal literals and octal escape seq. are deprecated
• SyntaxError: "use strict" not allowed in function with non-simple parameters
• SyntaxError: "x" is a reserved identifier
• SyntaxError: JSON.parse: bad parsing
• SyntaxError: Malformed formal parameter
• SyntaxError: Unexpected token
• SyntaxError: Using //@ to indicate sourceURL pragmas is deprecated. Use //# instead
• SyntaxError: a declaration in the head of a for-of loop can't have an initializer
• SyntaxError: applying the 'delete' operator to an unqualified name is deprecated
• SyntaxError: for-in loop head declarations may not have initializers
• SyntaxError: function statement requires a name
• SyntaxError: invalid regular expression flag "x"
• SyntaxError: missing ) after argument list
• SyntaxError: missing ; before statement
• SyntaxError: missing = in const declaration
• SyntaxError: missing ] after element list
• SyntaxError: missing formal parameter
• SyntaxError: missing variable name
• SyntaxError: missing } after property list
• SyntaxError: redeclaration of formal parameter "x"
• SyntaxError: return not in function
• SyntaxError: test for equality (==) mistyped as assignment (=)?
• SyntaxError: unterminated string literal
• TypeError: "x" has no properties
• TypeError: "x" is (not) "y"
• TypeError: "x" is not a constructor
• TypeError: "x" is not a function
• TypeError: "x" is read-only
• TypeError: More arguments needed
• TypeError: can't define property "x": "obj" is not extensible
• TypeError: cyclic object value
• TypeError: invalid Array.prototype.sort argument
• TypeError: invalid arguments
• TypeError: invalid assignment to const "x"
• TypeError: property "x" is non-configurable and can't be deleted
• TypeError: setting a property that has only a getter
• TypeError: variable "x" redeclares argument
• URIError: malformed URI sequence
• Warning: -file- is being assigned a //# sourceMappingURL, but already has one
• Warning: 08/09 is not a legal ECMA-262 octal constant
• Warning: Date.prototype.toLocaleFormat is deprecated
• Warning: JavaScript 1.6's for-each-in loops are deprecated
• Warning: String.x is deprecated; use String.prototype.x instead
• Warning: expression closures are deprecated
• Warning: unreachable code after return statement
• JavaScript technologies overview
• Lexical grammar
• Enumerability and ownership of properties
• Iteration protocols
• Transitioning to strict mode
• Template literals
• Deprecated features
• ECMAScript 2015 support in Mozilla
• ECMAScript 5 support in Mozilla
• ECMAScript Next support in Mozilla
• Firefox JavaScript changelog
• New in JavaScript 1.1
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• JavaScript TypeError - "X" has no properties
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• JavaScript TypeError - "X" is (not) "Y"
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• JavaScript RangeError - Repeat count must be non-negative
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• JavaScript ReferenceError Deprecated caller or arguments usage
• JavaScript ReferenceError - Invalid assignment left-hand side
• JavaScript Warning - Date.prototype.toLocaleFormat is deprecated
• JavaScript ReferenceError - Assignment to undeclared variable
• JavaScript TypeError - Can't assign to property "X" on "Y": not an object
• JavaScript TypeError - Can't access property "X" of "Y"

JavaScript TypeError – Invalid assignment to const “X”

This JavaScript exception invalid assignment to const occurs if a user tries to change a constant value. Const declarations in JavaScript can not be re-assigned or re-declared.

Error Type:

Cause of Error: A const value in JavaScript is changed by the program which can not be altered during normal execution. 

Example 1: In this example, the value of the variable(‘GFG’) is changed, So the error has occurred.

Output(in console):

Example 2: In this example, the value of the object(‘GFG_Obj’) is changed, So the error has occurred.

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What went wrong?

A constant is a value that cannot be altered by the program during normal execution. It cannot change through re-assignment, and it can't be redeclared. In JavaScript, constants are declared using the const keyword.

Invalid redeclaration

Assigning a value to the same constant name in the same block-scope will throw.

Fixing the error

There are multiple options to fix this error. Check what was intended to be achieved with the constant in question.

If you meant to declare another constant, pick another name and re-name. This constant name is already taken in this scope.

const , let or var ?

Do not use const if you weren't meaning to declare a constant. Maybe you meant to declare a block-scoped variable with let or global variable with var .

Check if you are in the correct scope. Should this constant appear in this scope or was it meant to appear in a function, for example?

const and immutability

The const declaration creates a read-only reference to a value. It does not  mean the value it holds is immutable, just that the variable identifier cannot be reassigned. For instance, in case the content is an object, this means the object itself can still be altered. This means that you can't mutate the value stored in a variable:

But you can mutate the properties in a variable:

Document Tags and Contributors

• JavaScript basics
• JavaScript first steps
• JavaScript building blocks
• Introducing JavaScript objects
• Introduction
• Grammar and types
• Control flow and error handling
• Loops and iteration
• Expressions and operators
• Numbers and dates
• Text formatting
• Regular expressions
• Indexed collections
• Keyed collections
• Working with objects
• Details of the object model
• Using promises
• Iterators and generators
• Meta programming
• Client-side web APIs
• A re-introduction to JavaScript
• JavaScript data structures
• Equality comparisons and sameness
• Inheritance and the prototype chain
• Strict mode
• JavaScript typed arrays
• Memory Management
• Concurrency model and Event Loop
• References:
• ArrayBuffer
• AsyncFunction
• Float32Array
• Float64Array
• GeneratorFunction
• InternalError
• Intl.Collator
• Intl.DateTimeFormat
• Intl.ListFormat
• Intl.NumberFormat
• Intl.PluralRules
• Intl.RelativeTimeFormat
• ReferenceError
• SharedArrayBuffer
• SyntaxError
• Uint16Array
• Uint32Array
• Uint8ClampedArray
• WebAssembly
• decodeURI()
• decodeURIComponent()
• encodeURI()
• encodeURIComponent()
• parseFloat()
• Arithmetic operators
• Array comprehensions
• Assignment operators
• Bitwise operators
• Comma operator
• Comparison operators
• Conditional (ternary) operator
• Destructuring assignment
• Expression closures
• Generator comprehensions
• Grouping operator
• Legacy generator function expression
• Logical operators
• Object initializer
• Operator precedence
• (currently at stage 1) allows the creation of chained function calls in a readable manner. Basically, the pipeline operator provides syntactic sugar on a function call with a single argument allowing you to write">Pipeline operator
• Property accessors
• Spread syntax
• async function expression
• class expression
• delete operator
• function expression
• function* expression
• in operator
• new operator
• void operator
• Legacy generator function
• async function
• for await...of
• for each...in
• function declaration
• import.meta
• try...catch
• Arrow functions
• Default parameters
• Method definitions
• Rest parameters
• The arguments object
• constructor
• element loaded from a different domain for which you violated the same-origin policy.">Error: Permission denied to access property "x"
• InternalError: too much recursion
• RangeError: argument is not a valid code point
• RangeError: invalid array length
• RangeError: invalid date
• RangeError: precision is out of range
• RangeError: radix must be an integer
• RangeError: repeat count must be less than infinity
• RangeError: repeat count must be non-negative
• ReferenceError: "x" is not defined
• ReferenceError: assignment to undeclared variable "x"
• ReferenceError: can't access lexical declaration`X' before initialization
• ReferenceError: deprecated caller or arguments usage
• ReferenceError: invalid assignment left-hand side
• ReferenceError: reference to undefined property "x"
• SyntaxError: "0"-prefixed octal literals and octal escape seq. are deprecated
• SyntaxError: "use strict" not allowed in function with non-simple parameters
• SyntaxError: "x" is a reserved identifier
• SyntaxError: JSON.parse: bad parsing
• SyntaxError: Malformed formal parameter
• SyntaxError: Unexpected token
• SyntaxError: Using //@ to indicate sourceURL pragmas is deprecated. Use //# instead
• SyntaxError: a declaration in the head of a for-of loop can't have an initializer
• SyntaxError: applying the 'delete' operator to an unqualified name is deprecated
• SyntaxError: for-in loop head declarations may not have initializers
• SyntaxError: function statement requires a name
• SyntaxError: identifier starts immediately after numeric literal
• SyntaxError: illegal character
• SyntaxError: invalid regular expression flag "x"
• SyntaxError: missing ) after argument list
• SyntaxError: missing ) after condition
• SyntaxError: missing : after property id
• SyntaxError: missing ; before statement
• SyntaxError: missing = in const declaration
• SyntaxError: missing ] after element list
• SyntaxError: missing formal parameter
• SyntaxError: missing name after . operator
• SyntaxError: missing variable name
• SyntaxError: missing } after function body
• SyntaxError: missing } after property list
• SyntaxError: redeclaration of formal parameter "x"
• SyntaxError: return not in function
• SyntaxError: test for equality (==) mistyped as assignment (=)?
• SyntaxError: unterminated string literal
• TypeError: "x" has no properties
• TypeError: "x" is (not) "y"
• TypeError: "x" is not a constructor
• TypeError: "x" is not a function
• TypeError: "x" is not a non-null object
• TypeError: "x" is read-only
• TypeError: 'x' is not iterable
• TypeError: More arguments needed
• TypeError: Reduce of empty array with no initial value
• TypeError: can't access dead object
• TypeError: can't access property "x" of "y"
• TypeError: can't define property "x": "obj" is not extensible
• TypeError: can't delete non-configurable array element
• TypeError: can't redefine non-configurable property "x"
• TypeError: cannot use 'in' operator to search for 'x' in 'y'
• TypeError: cyclic object value
• TypeError: invalid 'instanceof' operand 'x'
• TypeError: invalid Array.prototype.sort argument
• TypeError: invalid arguments
• TypeError: property "x" is non-configurable and can't be deleted
• TypeError: setting getter-only property "x"
• TypeError: variable "x" redeclares argument
• URIError: malformed URI sequence
• Warning: -file- is being assigned a //# sourceMappingURL, but already has one
• Warning: 08/09 is not a legal ECMA-262 octal constant
• Warning: Date.prototype.toLocaleFormat is deprecated
• Warning: JavaScript 1.6's for-each-in loops are deprecated
• Warning: String.x is deprecated; use String.prototype.x instead
• Warning: expression closures are deprecated
• Warning: unreachable code after return statement
• X.prototype.y called on incompatible type
• JavaScript technologies overview
• Lexical grammar
• Enumerability and ownership of properties
• Iteration protocols
• Transitioning to strict mode
• Template literals
• Deprecated features
• ECMAScript 2015 support in Mozilla
• ECMAScript 5 support in Mozilla
• ECMAScript Next support in Mozilla
• Firefox JavaScript changelog
• New in JavaScript 1.1
• New in JavaScript 1.2
• New in JavaScript 1.3
• New in JavaScript 1.4
• New in JavaScript 1.5
• New in JavaScript 1.6
• New in JavaScript 1.7
• New in JavaScript 1.8
• New in JavaScript 1.8.1
• New in JavaScript 1.8.5
• Documentation:
• All pages index
• Methods index
• Properties index
• Pages tagged "JavaScript"
• JavaScript doc status
• The MDN project

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