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PHP Tutorial · Functions and Arrays · Lesson 18 of 38

PHP Arrays

Indexed, associative and multidimensional arrays.

Indexed arrays

PHP arrays are ordered maps. Indexed arrays use integer keys starting at 0:

Example 1Try it yourself
<?php
$langs = ["PHP", "JavaScript", "Go"];
echo $langs[0], "\n";
echo count($langs), "\n";
$langs[] = "Rust";           // append
print_r($langs);

Output

PHP
3
Array
(
    [0] => PHP
    [1] => JavaScript
    [2] => Go
    [3] => Rust
)

Associative arrays

Use string keys to name each value:

Example 2Try it yourself
<?php
$user = ["name" => "Ada", "email" => "[email protected]"];
$user["role"] = "admin";
echo $user["name"], " is an ", $user["role"], "\n";
var_dump(array_key_exists("email", $user), isset($user["phone"]));
unset($user["email"]);
print_r($user);

Output

Ada is an admin
bool(true)
bool(false)
Array
(
    [name] => Ada
    [role] => admin
)

Multidimensional arrays

Arrays can contain arrays — perfect for rows of data:

Example 3Try it yourself
<?php
$products = [
    ["name" => "Laptop", "price" => 999, "tags" => ["tech", "work"]],
    ["name" => "Mug", "price" => 9, "tags" => ["kitchen"]],
];
echo $products[0]["name"], " has tag ", $products[0]["tags"][1], "\n";
foreach ($products as ["name" => $name, "price" => $price]) {
    echo "$name: $$price\n";
}

Output

Laptop has tag work
Laptop: $999
Mug: $9

Destructuring

[$a, $b] = $array unpacks values; with keys: ['name' => $name] = $user.

Example 4Try it yourself
<?php
[$first, $second] = ["gold", "silver", "bronze"];
echo "$first, $second\n";
["host" => $host, "port" => $port] = ["host" => "localhost", "port" => 5432];
echo "$host:$port\n";
[$a, $b] = [1, 2];
[$a, $b] = [$b, $a];
echo "$a $b\n";

Output

gold, silver
localhost:5432
2 1

Test yourself

What does $arr[] = 'x'; do?

  1. Replaces the array
  2. Appends 'x' to the end of the array
  3. Prepends 'x'
  4. Causes an error
Show answer

Answer: Appends 'x' to the end of the array

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