http://www.perlmonks.org?node_id=6437


in reply to How do I compare two strings?

if ($string1 eq $string2){ print"\$string1 is equal to \$string2\n"; } elsif ($string1 lt $string2){ print"\$string1 is less than \$string2\n"; } elsif ($string1 gt $string2){ print"\$string1 is greater than \$string2\n"; }
== tests equality for numbers.
eq does the same for strings.
lt is the string testing equivalent of the numerical <
gt is the string testing equivalent of the numerical >

You can also use the cmp operator, which is the non-numerical equivalent of the <=> operator:

$result = $string1 cmp $string2;

$result will be: