PHP ucfirst() Function: Syntax, Parameters, Return Value, Usage Examples, and Tips

ucfirst()

function in PHP converts the first character of a string to uppercase, useful for formatting and normalizing strings.

ucfirst() Function Syntax

string ucfirst ( string $str )

Parameters

$str

: The input string to be processed.

Return Value

Returns a string with the first character converted to uppercase while the rest of the characters remain unchanged.

Usage Examples

$str = "hello world";
$result = ucfirst($str); // $result is "Hello world"

$str = "hello_world";
$result = ucfirst($str); // $result is "Hello_world"

$str = "world";
$result = ucfirst($str); // $result is "World"

Notes

If the string is empty or contains only whitespace, ucfirst() returns an empty string.

If the string contains multiple words, ucfirst() only capitalizes the first character of the first word; other words remain unchanged. Use other functions for full title‑casing.

Summary

The ucfirst() function provides a convenient way to capitalize the first letter of a string in PHP, returning the transformed string and aiding in string formatting and standardization.

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