How do I work with arrays in PHP (indexed vs associative)?

In PHP, arrays are a versatile data structure used to store multiple values in a single variable. There are two main types of arrays: indexed arrays and associative arrays.

Indexed Arrays

Indexed arrays use numeric indexes to access their values. The indexes start at 0, making it easy to loop through the values using a simple for loop or foreach.

Associative Arrays

Associative arrays allow you to use named keys that you assign to the elements. This makes it easier to associate specific values with meaningful names rather than numerical indexes.

Example

<?php // Indexed Array $fruits = array("Apple", "Banana", "Cherry"); echo $fruits[0]; // Outputs "Apple" // Associative Array $colors = array("red" => "Apple", "yellow" => "Banana", "pink" => "Cherry"); echo $colors["red"]; // Outputs "Apple" ?>

PHP arrays indexed arrays associative arrays PHP array example

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