Continue Statement in C – Master It with Examples

The continue statement is a control flow statement in C that alters the execution of loops. It allows developers to skip the remaining source code in the current iterations of a loop and proceed to the next iteration. This can be particularly useful when conditions are met, allowing for more efficient and clear source code.  This article will explore the continue statement in detail, including its syntax, usage, and how it works with practical examples.

What is the Continue statement in C?

The continue statement in C regulates loops. It enables the program to exit the current iterations and proceed to the next iteration. Before the break statement ends a loop, it skips over the rest of the source code in the current iteration and returns to the loop’s test expression condition.

The syntax of the continue statement is straightforward.

continue;

This statement can be used in loops to cause the control to pass immediately to the next iteration—simply, the continue statement for that iteration.

Also Read: Control Statements in C

Uses of Continue in C

Let’s discuss the usage of continue statement in C language.

• Skip Current Iteration: The continue statement skips the remaining source code within a loop’s current iteration.
• Control Loop Flow: The continue statement helps control loop execution by bypassing specific iterations. 

• Conditional Skipping: We can continue with conditional statements to skip iterations based on certain conditions.
• Efficiency: The continue statement improves the efficiency of your source code by avoiding the execution of unnecessary source code from the specific loop iterations.
• Common Use Cases: The continue statement also handles the exception case where we want to exclude the specific values from the loop while processing.
• Versatility: The continue statement can work with different loops, such as ‘for,’ ‘while,’ and ‘do-white’ loops.
• Programming Logic: This tool is valuable for managing program logic and ensuring the source code executes as intended within loops. 

• Careful Usage: The continue statement must be used to avoid potential infinite loops or unintended logic errors.

Examples of Continue Statement in C

Let’s see the simple continue statement in C language.

Output

Program 2

Output

Program 3: The following program demonstrates the continue statement with Nested Loops.

Output

How Does Continue Statement Work?

• Encounter “continue”:  When a continue statement is encountered in a loo, it instantly bypasses the remaining code in the current iteration and proceeds to the next iteration.
• Skips Code: All source code following continue in the current iteration is ignored.
• Conditional: It is often used with conditional statements to skip specific iterations based on conditions, allowing fine-grained loop control.

Also Read: Control Statements in C

Flowchart of Continue in C

Now, we understand the continue statement used to skip iterations in a loop. Let’s see how the flow diagram visualizes how to continue works in a loop.

Difference between Break and Continue Statements in C

Let’s compare the break and continue statements in C language.

Conclusion

The continue statement in C programming is used to skip the current iteration of a loop and proceed with the next iteration. When encountered inside loops like for, while, or do-white. It causes the program to bypass the remaining code within the loop for that specific iteration and immediately test its conditions to determine whether to continue with the next iteration. This is particularly useful when specific conditions must be avoided or bypassed without breaking out of the loop entirely.  You can check out our Certificate Program in full-stack development with a web and mobile development specialization course to learn more about development.