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PHP Arrays


An array stores multiple values in one single variable:

Example

<?php
$cars = array("Volvo", "BMW", "Toyota");
echo "I like " . $cars[0] . ", " . $cars[1] . " and " . $cars[2] . ".";
?>
Try it Yourself »

What is an Array?

An array is a special variable, which can hold more than one value at a time.

If you have a list of items (a list of car names, for example), storing the cars in single variables could look like this:

$cars1 = "Volvo";
$cars2 = "BMW";
$cars3 = "Toyota";

However, what if you want to loop through the cars and find a specific one? And what if you had not 3 cars, but 300?

The solution is to create an array!

An array can hold many values under a single name, and you can access the values by referring to an index number.


Create an Array in PHP

In PHP, the array() function is used to create an array:

array();

In PHP, there are three types of arrays:

  • Indexed arrays - Arrays with a numeric index
  • Associative arrays - Arrays with named keys
  • Multidimensional arrays - Arrays containing one or more arrays


Get The Length of an Array - The count() Function

The count() function is used to return the length (the number of elements) of an array:

Example

<?php
$cars = array("Volvo", "BMW", "Toyota");
echo count($cars);
?>
Try it Yourself »

Complete PHP Array Reference

For a complete reference of all array functions, go to our complete PHP Array Reference.

The reference contains a brief description, and examples of use, for each function!


PHP Exercises

Test Yourself With Exercises

Exercise:

Use the correct function to output the number of items in an array.

$fruits = array("Apple", "Banana", "Orange");
echo ;