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    count

    (PHP 4, PHP 5, PHP 7, PHP 8)

    count — Counts all elements in an array or in a Countable object

    Description

    count(Countable|array $value, int $mode = COUNT_NORMAL): int

    Counts all elements in an array when used with an array. When used with an object that implements the Countable interface, it returns the return value of the method Countable::count().

    Parameters

    value

    An array or Countable object.

    mode

    If the optional mode parameter is set to COUNT_RECURSIVE (or 1), count() will recursively count the array. This is particularly useful for counting all the elements of a multidimensional array.

    Caution

    count() can detect recursion to avoid an infinite loop, but will emit an E_WARNING every time it does (in case the array contains itself more than once) and return a count higher than may be expected.

    Return Values

    Returns the number of elements in value. Prior to PHP 8.0.0, if the parameter was neither an array nor an object that implements the Countable interface, 1 would be returned, unless value was null, in which case 0 would be returned.

    Changelog

    Version Description
    8.0.0 count() will now throw TypeError on invalid countable types passed to the value parameter.
    7.2.0 count() will now yield a warning on invalid countable types passed to the value parameter.

    Examples

    Example #1 count() example

    <?php
    $a    [0] = 1;
    $a[1] = 3;
    $a[2] = 5;
    var_dump(count($a));

    $b[0] = 7;
    $b[5] = 9;
    $b[10] = 11;
    var_dump(count($b));
    ?>

    The above example will output:

    int(3)
int(3)

    Example #2 count() non Countable|array example (bad example - don't do this)

    <?php
    $b    [0] = 7;
    $b[5] = 9;
    $b[10] = 11;
    var_dump(count($b));

    var_dump(count(null));

    var_dump(count(false));
    ?>

    The above example will output:

    int(3)
int(0)
int(1)

    Output of the above example in PHP 7.2:

    int(3)

Warning: count(): Parameter must be an array or an object that implements Countable in … on line 12
int(0)

Warning: count(): Parameter must be an array or an object that implements Countable in … on line 14
int(1)

    Output of the above example in PHP 8:

    int(3)

Fatal error: Uncaught TypeError: count(): Argument #1 ($var) must be of type Countable .. on line 12

    Example #3 Recursive count() example

    <?php
    $food     = array('fruits' => array('orange', 'banana', 'apple'),
    'veggie' => array('carrot', 'collard', 'pea'));

    // recursive count
    var_dump(count($food, COUNT_RECURSIVE));

    // normal count
    var_dump(count($food));

    ?>

    The above example will output:

    int(8)
int(2)

    Example #4 Countable object

    <?php
    class CountOfMethods implements Countable
    {
    private function     someMethod()
    {
    }

    public function     count(): int
    {
    return     count(get_class_methods($this));
    }
    }

    $obj = new CountOfMethods();
    var_dump(count($obj));
    ?>

    The above example will output:

    int(2)

    See Also

    • is_array() - Finds whether a variable is an array
    • isset() - Determine if a variable is declared and is different than null
    • empty() - Determine whether a variable is empty
    • strlen() - Get string length
    • is_countable() - Verify that the contents of a variable is a countable value
    • Arrays

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    User Contributed Notes 18 notes

    up
    137
    onlyranga at gmail dot com
    10 years ago
    [Editor's note: array at from dot pl had pointed out that count() is a cheap operation; however, there's still the function call overhead.]

    If you want to run through large arrays don't use count() function in the loops , its a over head in performance,  copy the count() value into a variable and use that value in loops for a better performance.

    Eg:

    // Bad approach

    for($i=0;$i<count($some_arr);$i++)
    {
        // calculations
    }

    // Good approach

    $arr_length = count($some_arr);
    for($i=0;$i<$arr_length;$i++)
    {
        // calculations
    }
    up
    6
    Anonymous
    5 years ago
    For a Non Countable Objects

    $count = count($data);
    print "Count: $count\n";

    Warning:  count(): Parameter must be an array or an object that implements Countable in example.php on line 159

    #Quick fix is to just cast the non-countable object as an array.. 

    $count = count((array) $data);
    print "Count: $count\n";

    Count: 250
    up
    4
    lucasfsmartins at gmail dot com
    5 years ago
    If you are on PHP 7.2+, you need to be aware of "Changelog" and use something like this:

    <?php
    $countFruits     = is_array($countFruits) || $countFruits instanceof Countable ? count($countFruits) : 0;
    ?>

    You can organize your code to ensure that the variable is an array, or you can extend the Countable so that you don't have to do this check.
    up
    1
    Christoph097
    2 years ago
    Empty values are counted:
    <?php
    $ar    [] = 3;
    $ar[] = null;
    var_dump(count($ar)); //int(2)
    ?>
    up
    12
    danny at dannymendel dot com
    17 years ago
    I actually find the following function more useful when it comes to multidimension arrays when you do not want all levels of the array tree.

    // $limit is set to the number of recursions
    <?php
    function count_recursive ($array, $limit) {
            $count = 0;
        foreach (    $array as $id => $_array) {
            if (    is_array ($_array) && $limit > 0) {
                    $count += count_recursive ($_array, $limit - 1);
            } else {
                    $count += 1;
            }
        }
        return     $count;
    }
    ?>
    up
    0
    olja dot fb at gmail dot com
    1 year ago
    In example #3, given as:

    <?php
    $food     = array('fruits' => array('orange', 'banana', 'apple'),
                      'veggie' => array('carrot', 'collard', 'pea'));

    // recursive count
    var_dump(count($food, COUNT_RECURSIVE));
    ?>

    with the output given as int(8), it may have some readers mistaken, as I was at first: one might take it as keys being counted as well as the inner array entries:

    <?php
    // NO:
    'fruits', 'orange', 'banana', 'apple',
    'veggie', 'carrot', 'collard', 'pea'
    ?>

    But actually keys are not counted in count function, and why it is still 8 - because inner arrays are counted as entries as well as their inner elements:

    <?php
    // YES:
    array('orange', 'banana', 'apple'), 'orange', 'banana', 'apple',
    array(    'carrot', 'collard', 'pea'), 'carrot', 'collard', 'pea'
    ?>
    up
    0
    asma mechtaba
    2 years ago
    count and sizeof are aliases, what work for one works for the other.
    up
    9
    alexandr at vladykin dot pp dot ru
    18 years ago
    My function returns the number of elements in array for multidimensional arrays subject to depth of array. (Almost COUNT_RECURSIVE, but you can point on which depth you want to plunge).

    <?php
          function getArrCount ($arr, $depth=1) {
          if (!    is_array($arr) || !$depth) return 0;
            
             $res=count($arr);
            
          foreach (    $arr as $in_ar)
                 $res+=getArrCount($in_ar, $depth-1);
         
          return     $res;
      }
    ?>
    up
    1
    pied-pierre
    9 years ago
    A function of one line to find the number of elements that are not arrays, recursively :

    function count_elt($array, &$count=0){
      foreach($array as $v) if(is_array($v)) count_elt($v,$count); else ++$count;
      return $count;
    }
    up
    0
    php_count at cubmd dot com
    8 years ago
    All the previous recursive count solutions with $depth option would not avoid infinite loops in case the array contains itself more than once.
    Here's a working solution:

    <?php
            /**
         * Recursively count elements in an array. Behaves exactly the same as native
         * count() function with the $depth option. Meaning it will also add +1 to the
         * total count, for the parent element, and not only counting its children.
         * @param $arr
         * @param int $depth
         * @param int $i (internal)
         * @return int
         */
            public static function countRecursive(&$arr, $depth = 0, $i = 0) {
                $i++;
                /**
             * In case the depth is 0, use the native count function
             */
                if (empty($depth)) {
                return     count($arr, COUNT_RECURSIVE);
            }
                $count = 0;
                /**
             * This can occur only the first time when the method is called and $arr is not an array
             */
                if (!is_array($arr)) {
                return     count($arr);
            }

                // if this key is present, it means you already walked this array
                if (isset($arr['__been_here'])) {
                return     0;
            }

                $arr['__been_here'] = true;

            foreach (    $arr as $key => &$value) {
                if (    $key !== '__been_here') {
                    if (    is_array($value) && $depth > $i) {
                            $count += self::countRecursive($value, $depth, $i);
                    }

                        $count++;
                }
            }

                // you need to unset it when done because you're working with a reference...
                unset($arr['__been_here']);
            return     $count;
        }
    ?>
    up
    -3
    Gerd Christian Kunze
    10 years ago
    Get maxWidth and maxHeight of a two dimensional array..?

    Note:
    1st dimension = Y (height)
    2nd dimension = X (width)
    e.g. rows and cols in database result arrays

    <?php
    $TwoDimensionalArray     = array( 0 => array( 'key' => 'value', ...), ... );
    ?>

    So for Y (maxHeight)
    <?php
    $maxHeight     = count( $TwoDimensionalArray )
    ?>

    And for X (maxWidth)
    <?php
    $maxWidth     = max( array_map( 'count',  $TwoDimensionalArray ) );
    ?>

    Simple? ;-)
    up
    -6
    buyatv at gmail dot com
    7 years ago
    You can not get collect sub array count when there is only one sub array in an array:

    $a = array ( array ('a','b','c','d'));
    $b = array ( array ('a','b','c','d'), array ('e','f','g','h'));

    echo count($a);  // 4 NOT 1, expect 1
    echo count($b);  // 2,   expected
    up
    -9
    JumpIfBelow
    9 years ago
    As I see in many codes, don't use count to iterate through array.
    Onlyranga says you could declare a variable to store it before the for loop.
    I agree with his/her approach, using count in the test should be used ONLY if you have to count the size of the array for each loop.

    You can do it in the for loop too, so you don't have to "search" where the variable is set.
    e.g.
    <?php
        $array     = [1, 5, 'element'];
        for(    $i = 0, $c = count($array); $i < $c; $i++)
                var_dump($array[$i]);
    ?>
    up
    -5
    vojtaripa at gmail dot com
    4 years ago
    To get the count of the inner array you can do something like:

    $inner_count = count($array[0]);
    echo ($inner_count);
    up
    -18
    buyatv at gmail dot com
    7 years ago
    You can not get collect sub array count when use the key on only one sub array in an array:

    $a = array("a"=>"appple", b"=>array('a'=>array(1,2,3),'b'=>array(1,2,3)));
    $b = array("a"=>"appple", "b"=>array(array('a'=>array(1,2,3),'b'=>array(1,2,3)), array(1,2,3),'b'=>array(1,2,3)), array('a'=>array(1,2,3),'b'=>array(1,2,3))));

    echo count($a['b']);  // 2 NOT 1, expect 1
    echo count($b['b']);  // 3,   expected
    up
    -30
    ThisIsNotImportant
    8 years ago
    About 2d arrays, you have many way to count elements :

    <?php
    $MyArray     = array ( array(1,2,3),
                           1,
                           'a',
                       array(    'a','b','c','d') );

    // All elements
    echo count($MyArray ,COUNT_RECURSIVE);  // output 11 (9 values + 2 arrays)

    // First level elements
    echo count($MyArray );                  // output 4 (2 values+ 2 arrays)

    // Both level values, but only values
    echo(array_sum(array_map('count',$MyArray ))); //output 9 (9 values)

    // Only second level values
    echo (count($MyArray ,COUNT_RECURSIVE)-count($MyArray )); //output 7 ((all elements) - (first elements))
    ?>
    up
    -6
    max at schimmelmann dot org
    4 years ago
    In special situations you might only want to count the first level of the array to figure out how many entries you have, when they have N more key-value-pairs.

    <?php

    $data     = [
            'a' => [
                'bla1' => [
                    0 => 'asdf',
                    1 => 'asdf',
                    2 => 'asdf',
            ],
                'bla2' => [
                    0 => 'asdf',
                    1 => 'asdf',
                    2 => 'asdf',
            ],
                'bla3' => [
                    0 => 'asdf',
                    1 => 'asdf',
                    2 => 'asdf',
            ],
                'bla4' => [
                    0 => 'asdf',
                    1 => 'asdf',
                    2 => 'asdf',
            ],
        ],
            'b' => [
                'bla1' => [
                    0 => 'asdf',
                    1 => 'asdf',
                    2 => 'asdf',
            ],
                'bla2' => [
                    0 => 'asdf',
                    1 => 'asdf',
                    2 => 'asdf',
            ],
        ],
            'c' => [
                'bla1' => [
                    0 => 'asdf',
                    1 => 'asdf',
                    2 => 'asdf',
            ]
        ]
    ];
    $count = array_sum(array_values(array_map('count', $data)));
    // will return int(7)
    var_dump($count);

    // will return 31
    var_dump(count($data, 1));
    ?>
    up
    -10
    XavDeb
    4 years ago
    If you want to know the sub-array containing the MAX NUMBER of values in a 3 dimensions array, here is a try (maybe not the nicest way, but it works):

    function how_big_is_the_biggest_sub ($array)  {
       // we parse the 1st level
       foreach ($array AS $key => $array_lvl2) {
             //within level 2, we count the 3d levels max
                $lvl2_nb = array_map( 'count',  $array_lvl2) ;
                $max_nb = max($lvl2_nb);
             // we store the matching keys, it might be usefull
                $max_key = array_search($max_nb, $lvl2_nb);
                $max_nb_all[$max_key.'|'.$key] = $max_nb;
            }
           // now we want the max from all levels 2, so one more time
            $real_max = max($max_nb_all);
            $real_max_key = array_search($real_max, $max_nb_all);
            list($real_max_key2, $real_max_key1) = explode('|', $real_max_key);
                    // preparing result
            $biggest_sub['max'] = $real_max;
            $biggest_sub['key1'] = $real_max_key1;
            $biggest_sub['key2'] = $real_max_key2;
           
            return $biggest_sub;
    }
    /*
    $cat_poids_max['M']['Juniors'][] = 55;
    $cat_poids_max['M']['Juniors'][] = 61;
    $cat_poids_max['M']['Juniors'][] = 68;
    $cat_poids_max['M']['Juniors'][] = 76;
    $cat_poids_max['M']['Juniors'][] = 100;

    $cat_poids_max['M']['Seniors'][] = 55;
    $cat_poids_max['M']['Seniors'][] = 60;
    $cat_poids_max['M']['Seniors'][] = 67;
    $cat_poids_max['M']['Seniors'][] = 75;
    $cat_poids_max['M']['Seniors'][] = 84;
    $cat_poids_max['M']['Seniors'][] = 90;
    $cat_poids_max['M']['Seniors'][] = 100;
    //....
    $cat_poids_max['F']['Juniors'][] = 52;
    $cat_poids_max['F']['Juniors'][] = 65;
    $cat_poids_max['F']['Juniors'][] = 74;
    $cat_poids_max['F']['Juniors'][] = 100;

    $cat_poids_max['F']['Seniors'][] = 62;
    $cat_poids_max['F']['Seniors'][] = 67;
    $cat_poids_max['F']['Seniors'][] = 78;
    $cat_poids_max['F']['Seniors'][] = 86;
    $cat_poids_max['F']['Seniors'][] = 100;
    */
    $biggest_sub = how_big_is_the_biggest_sub($cat_poids_max);
    echo "<li> ".$biggest_sub['key1']." ==> ".$biggest_sub['key2']." ==> ".$biggest_sub['max']; // displays : M ==> Seniors ==> 7
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