Expression Operators, Functions, and Constants
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This topic lists operators and functions supported by expressions. It also provides information on how constants can be specified in expressions.
Operators
Operator | Description | Example | XLS(x) Format Export-Friendly See Note |
|---|---|---|---|
+ | Adds the value of one numeric expression to another or concatenates two strings. | [UnitPrice] + 4 [FirstName] + ‘ ‘ + [LastName] | Yes |
- | Finds the difference between two numbers. | [Price1] - [Price2] | Yes |
* | Multiplies the value of two expressions. | [Quantity] * [UnitPrice] * (1 - [BonusAmount]) | Yes |
/ | Divides the first operand by the second. | [Quantity] / 2 | Yes |
% | Returns the remainder (modulus) obtained by dividing one numeric expression by another. | [Quantity] % 3 | Yes |
| | Compares each bit of its first operand to the corresponding bit of its second operand. If either bit is 1, the corresponding result bit is set to 1. Otherwise, the corresponding result bit is set to 0. | [Flag1] | [Flag2] | Yes |
& | Performs a bitwise logical AND operation between two integer values. | [Flag] & 10 | Yes |
^ | Performs a logical exclusion on two Boolean expressions, or a bitwise exclusion on two numeric expressions. | [Flag1] ^ [Flag2] | Yes |
== | Returns true if both operands have the same value; otherwise, it returns false. | [Quantity] == 10 | Yes |
!= | Returns true if the operands do not have the same value; otherwise, it returns false. | [Country] != ‘France’ | Yes |
< | Less than operator. Used to compare expressions. | [UnitPrice] < 20 | Yes |
<= | Less than or equal to operator. Used to compare expressions. | [UnitPrice] <= 20 | Yes |
>= | Greater than or equal to operator. Used to compare expressions. | [UnitPrice] >= 30 | Yes |
> | Greater than operator. Used to compare expressions. | [UnitPrice] > 30 | Yes |
In (,,,) | Tests for the existence of a property in an object. | [Country] In (‘USA’, ‘UK’, ‘Italy’) | Yes |
Between (,) | Specifies a range to test. Returns true if a value is greater than or equal to the first operand and less than or equal to the second operand. | [Quantity] Between (10, 20) | Yes |
And && | Performs a logical conjunction on two expressions. | [InStock] And ([ExtendedPrice]> 100) [InStock] && ([ExtendedPrice]> 100) | Yes |
Or || | Performs a logical disjunction on two Boolean expressions. | [Country]==’USA’ Or [Country]==’UK’ [Country]==’USA’ || [Country]==’UK’ | Yes |
Not ! | Performs logical negation on an expression. | Not [InStock] ![InStock] | Yes |
Functions
Aggregate Functions
| Function | Description | Example | XLS(x) Format Export-Friendly See Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Avg(Value) | Evaluates the average of the values in the collection. | [].Avg([UnitPrice]) | - |
| Count() | Returns the number of objects in a collection. | [].Count() | - |
| Exists() | Determines whether the object exists in the collection. | [][[CategoryID] == 7].Exists() | - |
| Max(Value) | Returns the maximum expression value in a collection. | [].Max([UnitPrice]) | - |
| Min(Value) | Returns the minimum expression value in a collection. | [].Min([UnitPrice]) | - |
| Single() | Returns a single object from the collection. | [][^.ParentId = Id].Single([This]) | - |
| Sum(Value) | Returns the sum of all the expression values in the collection. | [].Sum([UnitsInStock]) | - |
Date-time Functions
| Function | Description | Example | XLS(x) Format Export-Friendly See Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| AddDays(DateTime, DaysCount) | Returns a date-time value that is the specified number of days away from the specified DateTime. | AddDays([OrderDate], 30) | Yes |
| AddHours(DateTime, HoursCount) | Returns a date-time value that is the specified number of hours away from the specified DateTime. | AddHours([StartTime], 2) | Yes |
| AddMilliSeconds(DateTime, MilliSecondsCount) | Returns a date-time value that is the specified number of milliseconds away from the specified DateTime. | AddMilliSeconds(([StartTime], 5000)) | - |
| AddMinutes(DateTime, MinutesCount) | Returns a date-time value that is the specified number of minutes away from the specified DateTime. | AddMinutes([StartTime], 30) | Yes |
| AddMonths(DateTime, MonthsCount) | Returns a date-time value that is the specified number of months away from the specified DateTime. | AddMonths([OrderDate], 1) | Yes |
| AddSeconds(DateTime, SecondsCount) | Returns a date-time value that is the specified number of seconds away from the specified DateTime. | AddSeconds([StartTime], 60) | Yes |
| AddTicks(DateTime, TicksCount) | Returns a date-time value that is the specified number of ticks away from the specified DateTime. | AddTicks([StartTime], 5000) | - |
| AddTimeSpan(DateTime, TimeSpan) | Returns a date-time value that is away from the specified DateTime for the given TimeSpan. | AddTimeSpan([StartTime], [Duration]) | - |
| AddYears(DateTime, YearsCount) | Returns a date-time value that is the specified number of years away from the specified DateTime. | AddYears([EndDate], -1) | Yes |
| DateDiffDay(startDate, endDate) | Returns the number of day boundaries between two non-nullable dates. | DateDiffDay([StartTime], Now()) | Yes |
| DateDiffHour(startDate, endDate) | Returns the number of hour boundaries between two non-nullable dates. | DateDiffHour([StartTime], Now()) | Yes |
| DateDiffMilliSecond(startDate, endDate) | Returns the number of millisecond boundaries between two non-nullable dates. | DateDiffMilliSecond([StartTime], Now()) | - |
| DateDiffMinute(startDate, endDate) | Returns the number of minute boundaries between two non-nullable dates. | DateDiffMinute([StartTime], Now()) | Yes |
| DateDiffMonth(startDate, endDate) | Returns the number of month boundaries between two non-nullable dates. | DateDiffMonth([StartTime], Now()) | Yes |
| DateDiffSecond(startDate, endDate) | Returns the number of second boundaries between two non-nullable dates. | DateDiffSecond([StartTime], Now()) | Yes |
| DateDiffTick(startDate, endDate) | Returns the number of tick boundaries between two non-nullable dates. | DateDiffTick([StartTime], Now()) | - |
| DateDiffYear(startDate, endDate) | Returns the number of year boundaries between two non-nullable dates. | DateDiffYear([StartTime], Now()) | Yes |
| GetDate(DateTime) | Extracts a date from the defined DateTime. | GetDate([OrderDateTime]) | Yes |
| GetDay(DateTime) | Extracts a day from the defined DateTime. | GetDay([OrderDate]) | Yes |
| GetDayOfWeek(DateTime) | Extracts a day of the week from the defined DateTime. | GetDayOfWeek([OrderDate]) | Yes |
| GetDayOfYear(DateTime) | Extracts a day of the year from the defined DateTime. | GetDayOfYear([OrderDate]) | Yes |
| GetHour(DateTime) | Extracts an hour from the defined DateTime. | GetHour([StartTime]) | Yes |
| GetMilliSecond(DateTime) | Extracts milliseconds from the defined DateTime. | GetMilliSecond([StartTime]) | - |
| GetMinute(DateTime) | Extracts minutes from the defined DateTime. | GetMinute([StartTime]) | Yes |
| GetMonth(DateTime) | Extracts a month from the defined DateTime. | GetMonth([StartTime]) | Yes |
| GetSecond(DateTime) | Extracts seconds from the defined DateTime. | GetSecond([StartTime]) | Yes |
| GetTimeOfDay(DateTime) | Extracts the time of the day from the defined DateTime in ticks. | GetTimeOfDay([StartTime]) | - |
| GetYear(DateTime) | Extracts a year from the defined DateTime. | GetYear([StartTime]) | Yes |
| IsThisMonth(DateTime) | Returns True if the specified date falls within the current month. | IsThisMonth([OrderDate]) | Yes |
| IsThisWeek(DateTime) | Returns True if the specified date falls within the current week. | IsThisWeek([OrderDate]) | Yes |
| IsThisYear(DateTime) | Returns True if the specified date falls within the current year. | IsThisYear([OrderDate]) | Yes |
| LocalDateTimeDayAfterTomorrow() | Returns a date-time value corresponding to the day after Tomorrow. | AddDays(LocalDateTimeDayAfterTomorrow(), 5) | Yes |
| LocalDateTimeLastWeek() | Returns a date-time value corresponding to the first day of the previous week. | AddDays(LocalDateTimeLastWeek(), 5) | Yes |
| LocalDateTimeNextMonth() | Returns a date-time value corresponding to the first day of the next month. | AddMonths(LocalDateTimeNextMonth(), 5) | Yes |
| LocalDateTimeNextWeek() | Returns a date-time value corresponding to the first day of the following week. | AddDays(LocalDateTimeNextWeek(), 5) | Yes |
| LocalDateTimeNextYear() | Returns a date-time value corresponding to the first day of the following year. | AddYears(LocalDateTimeNextYear(), 5) | Yes |
| LocalDateTimeNow() | Returns a date-time value corresponding to the current moment in time. | AddDays(LocalDateTimeNow(), 5) | Yes |
| LocalDateTimeThisMonth() | Returns a date-time value corresponding to the first day of the current month. | AddMonths(LocalDateTimeThisMonth(), 5) | Yes |
| LocalDateTimeThisWeek() | Returns a date-time value corresponding to the first day of the current week. | AddDays(LocalDateTimeThisWeek(), 5) | Yes |
| LocalDateTimeThisYear() | Returns a date-time value corresponding to the first day of the current year. | AddYears(LocalDateTimeThisYear(), 5) | Yes |
| LocalDateTimeToday() | Returns a date-time value corresponding to Today. | AddDays(LocalDateTimeToday(), 5) | Yes |
| LocalDateTimeTomorrow() | Returns a date-time value corresponding to Tomorrow. | AddDays(LocalDateTimeTomorrow(), 5) | Yes |
| LocalDateTimeTwoWeeksAway() | Returns a date-time value corresponding to the first day of the week that is after next week. | AddDays(LocalDateTimeTwoWeeksAway(), 5) | Yes |
| LocalDateTimeYesterday() | Returns a date-time value corresponding to Yesterday. | AddDays(LocalDateTimeYesterday(), 5) | Yes |
| Now() | Returns the current system date and time. | AddDays(Now(), 5) | Yes |
| Today() | Returns the current date. Regardless of the actual time, this function returns midnight of the current date. | AddMonths(Today(), 1) | Yes |
| UtcNow() | Returns the current system date and time, expressed as Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). | AddDays(UtcNow(), 7) | - |
Logical Functions
| Function | Description | Example | XLS(x) Format Export-Friendly See Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Iif(Expression, TruePart, FalsePart) | Returns either TruePart or FalsePart, depending on the evaluation of the Boolean Expression. | Iif([Quantity]>=10, 10, 0 ) | - |
| IsNull(Value) | Returns True if the specified Value is NULL. | IsNull([OrderDate]) | Yes |
| IsNull(Value1, Value2) | Returns Value1 if it is not set to NULL; otherwise, Value2 is returned. | IsNull([ShipDate], [RequiredDate]) | - |
| IsNullOrEmpty(String) | Returns True if the specified String object is NULL or an empty string; otherwise, False is returned. | IsNullOrEmpty([ProductName]) | Yes |
Math Functions
| Function | Description | Example | XLS(x) Format Export-Friendly See Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abs(Value) | Returns the absolute, positive value of the given numeric expression. | Abs(1 - [Discount]) | Yes |
| Acos(Value) | Returns the arccosine of a number (the angle in radians, whose cosine is the given float expression). | Acos([Value]) | Yes |
| Asin(Value) | Returns the arcsine of a number (the angle in radians, whose sine is the given float expression). | Asin([Value]) | Yes |
| Atn(Value) | Returns the arctangent of a number (the angle in radians, whose tangent is the given float expression). | Atn([Value]) | Yes |
| Atn2(Value1, Value2) | Returns the angle whose tangent is the quotient of two specified numbers in radians. | Atn2([Value1], [Value2]) | Yes |
| BigMul(Value1, Value2) | Returns an Int64 containing the full product of two specified 32-bit numbers. | BigMul([Amount], [Quantity]) | - |
| Ceiling(Value) | Returns the smallest integer that is greater than or equal to the given numeric expression. | Ceiling([Value]) | Yes |
| Cos(Value) | Returns the cosine of the angle defined in radians. | Cos([Value]) | Yes |
| Cosh(Value) | Returns the hyperbolic cosine of the angle defined in radians. | Cosh([Value]) | Yes |
| Exp(Value) | Returns the exponential value of the given float expression. | Exp([Value]) | Yes |
| Floor(Value) | Returns the largest integer less than or equal to the given numeric expression. | Floor([Value]) | Yes |
| Log(Value) | Returns the natural logarithm of a specified number. | Log([Value]) | Yes |
| Log(Value, Base) | Returns the logarithm of a specified number in a specified Base. | Log([Value], 2) | Yes |
| Log10(Value) | Returns the base 10 logarithm of a specified number. | Log10([Value]) | Yes |
| Max(Value1, Value2) | Returns the maximum value from the specified values. | Max([Value1], [Value2]) | Yes |
| Min(Value1, Value2) | Returns the minimum value from the specified values. | Min([Value1], [Value2]) | Yes |
| Power(Value, Power) | Returns a specified number raised to a specified power. | Power([Value], 3) | Yes |
| Rnd() | Returns a random number that is less than 1, but greater than or equal to zero. | Rnd()*100 | Yes |
| Round(Value) | Rounds the given value to the nearest integer. | Round([Value]) | Yes |
| Round(Value, Precision) | Rounds the given value to the nearest integer, or to a specified number of decimal places. | Round([Value], 2) | Yes |
| Sign(Value) | Returns the positive (+1), zero (0), or negative (-1) sign of the given expression. | Sign([Value]) | Yes |
| Sin(Value) | Returns the sine of the angle defined in radians. | Sin([Value]) | Yes |
| Sinh(Value) | Returns the hyperbolic sine of the angle defined in radians. | Sinh([Value]) | Yes |
| Sqr(Value) | Returns the square root of a given number. | Sqr([Value]) | - |
| Tan(Value) | Returns the tangent of the angle defined in radians. | Tan([Value]) | Yes |
| Tanh(Value) | Returns the hyperbolic tangent of the angle defined in radians. | Tanh([Value]) | Yes |
| ToDecimal(Value) | Converts Value to an equivalent decimal number. | ToDecimal([Value]) | - |
| ToDouble(Value) | Converts Value to an equivalent 64-bit double-precision floating-point number. | ToDouble([Value]) | - |
| ToFloat(Value) | Converts Value to an equivalent 32-bit single-precision floating-point number. | ToFloat([Value]) | - |
| ToInt(Value) | Converts Value to an equivalent 32-bit signed integer. | ToInt([Value]) | - |
| ToLong(Value) | Converts Value to an equivalent 64-bit signed integer. | ToLong([Value]) | - |
String Functions
| Function | Description | Example | XLS(x) Format Export-Friendly See Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ascii(String) | Returns the ASCII code value of the leftmost character in a character expression. | Ascii(‘a’) | - |
| Char(Number) | Converts an integerASCIICode to a character. | Char(65) + Char(51) | Yes |
| CharIndex(String1, String2) | Returns the starting position of String1 within String2, beginning from the zero character position to the end of a string. | CharIndex(‘e’, ‘devexpress’) | - |
| CharIndex(String1, String2, StartLocation) | Returns the starting position of String1 within String2, beginning from the StartLocation character position to the end of a string. | CharIndex(‘e’, ‘devexpress’, 2) | - |
| Concat(String1, … , StringN) | Returns a string value containing the concatenation of the current string with any additional strings. | Concat(‘A’, ‘)’, [ProductName]) | Yes |
| Contains(String1, SubString1) | Returns True if SubString1 occurs within String1; otherwise, False is returned. | Contains([ProductName], ‘dairy’) | Yes |
| EndsWith(String1, SubString1) | Returns True if the end of String1 matches SubString1; otherwise, False is returned. | EndsWith([Description], ‘The end.’) | Yes |
| Insert(String1, StartPosition, String2) | Inserts String2 into String1 at the position specified by StartPositon | Insert([Name], 0, ‘ABC-‘) | - |
| Len(Value) | Returns an integer containing either the number of characters in a string or the nominal number of bytes required to store a variable. | Len([Description]) | Yes |
| Lower(String) | Returns String in lowercase. | Lower([ProductName]) | Yes |
| PadLeft(String, Length) | Left-aligns characters in the defined string, padding its left side with white space characters up to a specified total length. | PadLeft([Name], 30) | - |
| PadLeft(String, Length, Char) | Left-aligns characters in the defined string, padding its left side with the specified Char up to a specified total length. | PadLeft([Name], 30, ‘<’) | - |
| PadRight(String, Length) | Right-aligns characters in the defined string, padding its left side with white space characters up to a specified total length. | PadRight([Name], 30) | - |
| PadRight(String, Length, Char) | Right-aligns characters in the defined string, padding its left side with the specified Char up to a specified total length. | PadRight([Name], 30, ‘>’) | - |
| Remove(String, StartPosition) | Deletes all characters from this instance, beginning at a specified position. | Remove([Name], 3) | - |
| Remove(String, StartPosition, Length) | Deletes a specified number of characters from this instance, beginning at a specified position. | Remove([Name], 0, 3) | - |
| Replace(String, SubString2, String3) | Returns a copy of String1, in which SubString2 has been replaced with String3. | Replace([Name], ‘The ‘, ‘’) | - |
| Reverse(String) | Reverses the order of elements within String. | Reverse([Name]) | - |
| StartsWith(String1, SubString1) | Returns True if the beginning of String1 matches SubString1; otherwise, False is returned. | StartsWith([Title], ‘The best’) | Yes |
| Substring(String, StartPosition, Length) | Retrieves a substring from String. The substring starts at StartPosition and has a specified Length. | Substring([Description], 2, 3) | - |
| Substring(String, StartPosition) | Retrieves a substring from String. The substring starts at StartPosition. | Substring([Description], 2) | - |
| ToStr(Value) | Returns a string representation of an object. | ToStr([ID]) | - |
| Trim(String) | Removes all leading and trailing SPACE characters from String. | Trim([ProductName]) | Yes |
| Upper(String) | Returns String in uppercase. | Upper([ProductName]) | Yes |
Constants
Constant | Description | Example | XLS(x) Format Export-Friendly See Note |
|---|---|---|---|
String constants | String constants must be wrapped in apostrophes. If a string contains an apostrophe, the apostrophe must be doubled. | [Country] == ‘France’ [Name] == ‘O’’Neil’ | Yes |
Date-time constants | Date-time constants must be wrapped in ‘#’. | [OrderDate] >= #1/1/2009# | Yes |
True | Represents the Boolean True value. | [InStock] == True | Yes |
False | Represents the Boolean False value. | [InStock] == False | Yes |
? | Represents a null reference, one that does not refer to any object. | [Region] != ? | Yes |
Note - Operators, Functions and Constants That Can be Exported to XLS(X) Format When Used in Expression Based Conditional Formatting and Unbound Columns
The following restrictions apply when exporting certain DevExpress controls (Data Grid and Tree List controls for WinForms and WPF) to XLS(X) format in Data-Aware Export Mode.
If these controls use expression-based conditional formatting and/or expression-based unbound columns, expressions are only exported to XLS(X) format if they are made of export-friendly functions. To find out if a function can be exported to XLS(x) format, refer to the XLS(x) Format Export-Friendly column in the tables above.
Note
To export expressions for unbound columns, ensure that a dedicated setting (XlsExportOptionsEx.UnboundExpressionExportMode/XlsxExportOptionsEx.UnboundExpressionExportMode) is set to AsFormula.
See the following links to learn more.