php array_shift() – Remove the First Element from Array

The php array_shift() function allows us to get and delete the first element of an array in php.

$array = array(1, 2, 3, 4, 5);

array_shift($array);

print_r($array);

// Output:
Array
(
    [0] => 2
    [1] => 3
    [2] => 4
    [3] => 5
)

When working with arrays and collections of data in php, it is useful to be able to add or remove items from our data structures easily.

The array_shift() function gives us the ability to remove the first element of a given array.

To use array_shift(), just pass an array.

Below is an example of how you can use array_shift() to delete the first element of an array in php.

$array = array(1, 2, 3, 4, 5);

array_shift($array);

print_r($array);

// Output:
Array
(
    [0] => 2
    [1] => 3
    [2] => 4
    [3] => 5
)

Getting the First Element of an Array with array_shift()

The array_shift() function returns the first element of an array. So with array_shift(), we can get the first element of an array.

Below is a simple example in php of how to get the first element of an array using array_shift().

$array = array(1, 2, 3, 4, 5);

echo array_shift($array);

// Output:
1

Getting the Last Element of an Array with array_pop()

If you’d instead like to get the last element of an array, you can use the php array_pop() function.

The array_pop() function does the opposite of array_shift() – it gets the last element and deletes it from the array.

Below is an example of how you can use array_pop() to delete the last element of an array in php.

$array = array(1, 2, 3, 4, 5);

array_pop($array);

print_r($array);

// Output:
Array
(
    [0] => 1
    [1] => 2
    [2] => 3
    [3] => 4
)

Hopefully this article has been useful for you to learn how to use the php array_shift() function.