How to determine the version of the C++ standard used by the compiler?

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From the Bjarne Stroustrup C++0x FAQ:

__cplusplus

In C++11 the macro __cplusplus will be set to a value that differs from (is greater than) the current 199711L.

Although this isn’t as helpful as one would like. gcc (apparently for nearly 10 years) had this value set to 1, ruling out one major compiler, until it was fixed when gcc 4.7.0 came out.

These are the C++ standards and what value you should be able to expect in __cplusplus:

  • C++ pre-C++98: __cplusplus is 1.
  • C++98: __cplusplus is 199711L.
  • C++98 + TR1: This reads as C++98 and there is no way to check that I know of.
  • C++11: __cplusplus is 201103L.
  • C++14: __cplusplus is 201402L.
  • C++17: __cplusplus is 201703L.
  • C++20: __cplusplus is 202002L.

If the compiler might be an older gcc, we need to resort to compiler specific hackery (look at a version macro, compare it to a table with implemented features) or use Boost.Config (which provides relevant macros). The advantage of this is that we actually can pick specific features of the new standard, and write a workaround if the feature is missing. This is often preferred over a wholesale solution, as some compilers will claim to implement C++11, but only offer a subset of the features.

The Stdcxx Wiki hosts a comprehensive matrix for compiler support of C++0x features (archive.org link) (if you dare to check for the features yourself).

Unfortunately, more finely-grained checking for features (e.g. individual library functions like std::copy_if) can only be done in the build system of your application (run code with the feature, check if it compiled and produced correct results – autoconf is the tool of choice if taking this route).

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