Lodash _.result() Method

What You’ll Learn

By the end of this tutorial, you’ll use _.result() to read nested values, call object methods safely, and fall back to defaults when data is missing.

What Is _.result()?

_.result() resolves a property on an object—including nested paths—and returns the final value. If the value at that path is a function, Lodash calls it with the parent object as this and returns what the function returns. If the resolved value is undefined, the optional defaultValue is used instead.

Reach for _.result() when objects expose computed values as methods, when paths may be missing, or when you want a clean default without manual if checks.

📝 Syntax

The signature combines an object, a path, and an optional default:

_.result(object, path, [defaultValue])

Syntax Rules

• object — the object to query.
• path — property path as a string ("a.b"), array (["a", "b"]), or single key.
• Function at path — invoked with parent object as this; its return value is the result.
• undefined resolved — returns defaultValue (if default is a function, it is invoked with parent as this).
• Other values — returned as-is (null, 0, strings, etc.).

import result from "lodash/result";

const user = {
  name: "John Doe",
  greet() {
    return `Hello, my name is ${this.name}.`;
  }
};

const userName = result(user, "name");
const greeting = result(user, "greet");

// userName -> "John Doe"
// greeting  -> "Hello, my name is John Doe."

Examples Gallery

Practical _.result() patterns with sample output and interactive Try It Yourself labs.

const user = {
  name: "John Doe",
  age: 30,
  greet() {
    return `Hello, my name is ${this.name}.`;
  }
};

const userName = _.result(user, "name");
const userGreeting = _.result(user, "greet");

console.log(userName);
// -> "John Doe"

console.log(userGreeting);
// -> "Hello, my name is John Doe."

John Doe
Hello, my name is John Doe.

const user = {
  name: "Jane Doe"
};

const userAge = _.result(user, "age", "Age not available");

console.log(userAge);
// -> "Age not available"

Age not available

const car = {
  details: {
    make: "Toyota",
    model: "Camry"
  }
};

const carMake = _.result(car, "details.make");
const carModel = _.result(car, ["details", "model"]);

console.log(carMake, carModel);
// -> "Toyota" "Camry"

Toyota Camry

const config = {
  locale: "en-US"
};

const theme = _.result(config, "theme", function () {
  return this.locale === "en-US" ? "light" : "dark";
});

console.log(theme);
// -> "light" (default fn ran because theme was undefined)

light

const user = {
  name: "Alex",
  greet() {
    return `Hi, ${this.name}!`;
  }
};

_.get(user, "greet");    // -> [Function: greet]
_.result(user, "greet"); // -> "Hi, Alex!"

_.get    → function greet() { ... }
_.result → "Hi, Alex!"

const user = {
  name: "John Doe"
};

const userEmail = _.result(user, "email", "Email not provided");

console.log(userEmail);
// -> "Email not provided"

Email not provided

📝 Notes

• Defaults apply only when the resolved value is undefined, not null.
• A string at the path (e.g. greet: "Hello") is returned as-is—the default is not used.
• Functions at the path are always invoked; use _.get() if you need the function reference.
• Methods run with the parent object as this—same as object.method().
• If a method throws, the error propagates; _.result() does not catch it.
• For writing nested values, see the next tutorial: _.set().

💡 Best Practices