When is a switch statement better than multiple if statements in C programming

A switch statement is generally best to use when you have more than two conditional expressions based on
a single variable of numeric type. For instance, rather than the code

if (x == 1)
               printf(“x is equal to one.\n”);
else if (x == 2)
              printf(“x is equal to two.\n”);
else if (x == 3)
               printf(“x is equal to three.\n”);
else
               printf(“x is not equal to one, two, or three.\n”);

the following code is easier to read and maintain:

switch (x)
{

case 1: printf(“x is equal to one.\n”);

                                break;

case 2: printf(“x is equal to two.\n”);
                                break;

case 3: printf(“x is equal to three.\n”);
                                break;

default: printf(“x is not equal to one, two, or three.\n”);
                                break;
}

Notice that for this method to work, the conditional expression must be based on a variable of numeric type
in order to use the switch statement. Also, the conditional expression must be based on a single variable. For
instance, even though the following if statement contains more than two conditions, it is not a  candidate for using a switch statement because it is based on string comparisons and not numeric comparisons:

char* name = “Lupto”;
if (!stricmp(name, “Isaac”))
                 printf(“Your name means ‘Laughter’.\n”);
else if (!stricmp(name, “Amy”))
                 printf(“Your name means ‘Beloved’.\n “);
else if (!stricmp(name, “Lloyd”))
                 printf(“Your name means ‘Mysterious’.\n “);
else
                 printf(“I haven’t a clue as to what your name means.\n”);

Cross Reference:

Is a default case necessary in a switch statement?

Can the last case of a switch statement skip including the break?