How to Reliably Check for Empty Field Values in NetSuite SuiteScript?

To ensure robust code execution, it is critical to consistently verify if a field value is empty. NetSuite SuiteScript 2.x APIs may return empty values inconsistently, with some functions returning an empty string ('') and others returning null depending on the field type or context (e.g., N/currentRecord.getValue() vs. N/record.lookupFields).Therefore, to safely check if a field is empty, always verify if the value is either an empty string or null.1. Retrieve the field value using a SuiteScript 2.x API:

javascriptvar value = currentRecord.getValue({ fieldId: 'your_field_id' }); // Example using N/currentRecord

1. Implement a conditional check for both empty string and null:

javascriptif (value !== '' && value !== null) {    // Proceed with code, as the field has a non-empty value}

Modern JavaScript best practices in SuiteScript 2.1 (supporting ES2020 features) recommend using strict equality operators (===, !==) for explicit comparisons of both value and type. For handling null or undefined values and providing defaults, the nullish coalescing operator (??) offers a more precise approach:

javascriptvar fieldContent = currentRecord.getValue({ fieldId: 'some_field' }) ?? 'Default Value';

This ensures that fieldContent will be 'Default Value' only if getValue() returns null or undefined, not for other falsy values like 0 or ''.