How to Remove First Element From Array in JavaScript

To remove the first element from an array in JavaScript, you can use the shift() method.

This method removes the first element from an array and returns that element, so you can store it in a variable if you need to use it later.

For example, consider the following array:

var fruits = ["apple", "banana", "orange", "mango"];
Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

To remove the first element ("apple") from this array, you can use the following code:

var first = fruits.shift();
Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

After running this code, the fruits array will contain the following elements: ["banana", "orange", "mango"], and the first variable will contain the value "apple".

If you only need to remove the first element from the array and you don’t need to use it later, you can simply call the shift() method without storing the returned value in a variable. For example:

fruits.shift(); // removes the first element from the array
Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

It is important to keep in mind that the shift() method modifies the original array. This means that the array on which you call the shift() method will be altered, and the removed element will no longer be present in the array.

For example, consider the following array:

var fruits = ["apple", "banana", "orange", "mango"];
Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

If you call the shift() method on this array, the array will be modified, and the first element ("apple") will be removed. The resulting array will look like this:

["banana", "orange", "mango"]
Code language: JSON / JSON with Comments (json)

If you need to preserve the original array, you can use the slice() method to create a new array that contains all elements except the first one.

The slice() method takes two arguments: the start index and the end index. To create a new array that contains all elements except the first one, you can use the following code:

var newFruits = fruits.slice(1); // creates a new array with all elements except the first one
Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

After running this code, the newFruits array will contain the following elements: ["banana", "orange", "mango"], and the fruits array will remain unchanged.

In general, it’s a good idea to consider whether you need to modify the original array or create a new array when removing elements from an array in JavaScript. This will help you choose the right method and avoid potential problems or unintended side effects in your code.