The async function
keyword can be used to define async
functions inside expressions.
You can also define async functions using an async function statement.
Syntax
async function [name]([param1[, param2[, ..., paramN]]]) { statements }
As of ES2015, you can also use arrow functions.
Parameters
name
- The function name. Can be omitted, in which case the function is anonymous. The name is only local to the function body.
paramN
- The name of an argument to be passed to the function.
statements
- The statements which comprise the body of the function.
Description
An async function
expression is very similar to, and has almost the same syntax as, an async function statement
. The main difference between an async function
expression and an async function
statement is the function name, which can be omitted in async function
expressions to create anonymous functions. An async function
expression can be used as an IIFE (Immediately Invoked Function Expression) which runs as soon as it is defined. See also the chapter about functions for more information.
Examples
Simple example
function resolveAfter2Seconds(x) { return new Promise(resolve => { setTimeout(() => { resolve(x); }, 2000); }); }; const add = async function(x) { // async function expression assigned to a variable let a = await resolveAfter2Seconds(20); let b = await resolveAfter2Seconds(30); return x + a + b; }; add(10).then(v => { console.log(v); // prints 60 after 4 seconds. }); (async function(x) { // async function expression used as an IIFE let p_a = resolveAfter2Seconds(20); let p_b = resolveAfter2Seconds(30); return x + await p_a + await p_b; })(10).then(v => { console.log(v); // prints 60 after 2 seconds. });
Specifications
Specification |
---|
ECMAScript (ECMA-262) The definition of 'async function' in that specification. |
Browser compatibility
The compatibility table on this page is generated from structured data. If you'd like to contribute to the data, please check out https://github.com/mdn/browser-compat-data and send us a pull request.
Desktop | Mobile | Server | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
async function expression | Chrome Full support 55 | Edge Full support 15 | Firefox Full support 52 | IE No support No | Opera Full support 42 | Safari Full support 10.1 | WebView Android Full support 55 | Chrome Android Full support 55 | Firefox Android Full support 52 | Opera Android Full support 42 | Safari iOS Full support 10.3 | Samsung Internet Android Full support 6.0 | nodejs
Full support
7.6.0
|
Legend
- Full support
- Full support
- No support
- No support
- User must explicitly enable this feature.
- User must explicitly enable this feature.
See also
async function
AsyncFunction
objectawait